By Barbra Chong

West Michigan Pursuit had wrestlers registered to compete in two different National tournaments last weekend.

Drew Moro traveled to Missouri for the Adidas Nationals. Moro entered the 2nd Grade division in the 61 lb wt class. He went 3-1 for the day, finishing in 2nd Place, and earning All American status. He ended with a 44-11 season record. Moro also entered their Mohawk contest and won with 190 votes.

The rest of the team traveled to Battle Creek for NUWAY Nationals. As a team, West Michigan Pursuit finished 32 out of 297 teams. WMP entered seven wrestlers and five earned All American status by placing in the top 8.

Chayson Eberspeaker entered the 7/8 age group in the 64 lb wt class. He went 2-2 for the day, finishing in 7th Place and ending with a 36-11 season record. Quinten Cassiday entered the 7/8 age group in the 61 lb wt class. He went 4-2 for the day, finishing in 5th Place and ending with a 52-6 season record.

Josh Vasquez and Blake Werkema both finished in 4th Place. Vasquez entered the 9/10 age group in the 59 lb wt class. He went 4-2 for the day and ended with a 48-7 season record. He also made the top 100 for number of pins for the National tournament. He had 3 pins with a combined time of 4:45 out of 1,221 wrestlers. Werkema entered the 4/6 age group in the 47 lb wt class. He went 3-2 for the day and ended with a 50-5 season record.

Kellen Weckesser entered the 7/8 age group in the 54 lb wt class. He went 3-1 for the day, finishing in 2nd Place and ending with a 40-15 season record.

“My mission from the start has always been the Pursuit of Champions,” said Head Coach Dave Andrus. “I am extremely proud of the success we are having. It’s not always about how these kids win; recovering after an emotional loss and continuing to succeed is equally important. These are valuable life lessons as they continue to grow and mature. I feel fortunate to have so many parents trust me as I try to instill these values into their kids.”