Ames Tribune's preseason list of the top 15 area Iowa high school boys wrestlers for 2023-2024
The 2023-2024 Iowa high school boys wrestling season will kick off very soon.
Practices will be getting underway Monday and Ames-area teams and athletes will be looking to make their mark on the season.
In 2022-2023, Ballard crowed one state champion and had two more make the finals, Ames had two wrestlers reach the finals while Nevada and Roland-Story both had a wrestler end up on the podium.
Several outstanding wrestlers from the area return for the 2023-2024 campaign. There will also be many talented younger wrestlers ready to step up and make a name for themselves this season.
Here, in alphabetical order by last name, is a look at the top 15 boys wrestlers from the Ames area heading into the new season.
Kade Blume
Senior | Roland-Story
Before the 2022-2023 season started Blume, a two-time state champion, was charged with assaulting a former Roland-Story student.
More: Police: Roland-Story student athlete charged with felony assault
He only wrestled four matches before being ruled ineligible for all athletic competition at Roland-Story for the 2022-2023 school year. He will resume wrestling for the Norsemen this season.
During his first two seasons, Blume went a combined 80-1. He won a Class 2A state title at 106 pounds as a freshman and at 113 as a sophomore.
Henry Christensen
Junior | Ballard
Christensen placed second at 220 pounds in Class 2A with a 44-8 record last season.
Christensen went 3-1 at last year's state tournament, losing to Dike-New Hartford's Nick Reinicke in the finals by major decision. Christensen placed eighth at 195 in 2A as a freshman.
Ben Hammes
Senior | Gilbert
Hammes is one of the top returning wrestlers for a Gilbert boys wrestling team that went through a rebuilding phase in a season ago.
During his junior campaign, Hammes went 26-14 at 182. He placed fourth at the 2A district meet in Webster City.
Rhett Hedrick
Junior | Ballard
Hedrick was a state qualifier in 2A at 160 last season.
Hedrick went 37-14 as a sophomore. He took second at the 2A district meet in Huxley to earn a trip to the state meet.
Daniel Herrera
Senior | Ames
Herrera transferred over to Ames from Palm Springs High School in California.
At Palm Springs, Herrera was a two-time state champion.
Herrera wrestles at 285. He was scheduled to sign with Iowa State on Wednesday, Nov. 8, at Ames High.
Jabari Hinson
Junior | Ames
Hinson is coming off a 44-4 sophomore campaign that saw him place second at 126 in 3A during the state meet.
He posted a 3-1 record at Wells Fargo Arena. He lost a hard-fought 4-3 battle with Iowa City High's Cael Seaton in the state championship match.
As a freshman, Hinson finished 28-6 at 113.
Tony Horness
Junior | Ballard
Horness qualified for the state meet in Class 2A last season.
As a sophomore, Horness won 16 matches at 113. He earned his trip to state by finishing second at the 2A district meet in Huxley.
Hesston Johnson Jr.
Senior | Roland-Story
Johnson rebounded from an injury to place fourth in 2A at 160 during last year's state tournament.
Johnson went 21-6 as a junior, including a 4-2 mark at the state meet.
Jackson Kadolph
Senior | Roland-Story
Kadolph was a state qualifier last year.
Kadolph went 28-19 at 195 as a junior. He placed second at the 2A district meet in Webster City to qualify for state.
Danarii Mickel
Sophomore | Ames
Mickel took the state by storm as a freshman in 2022-2023.
He went 31-8 at 195 pounds and made it all the way to the 3A state championship match before falling to another freshman standout, Fort Dodge's Dreshaun Ross, by an 8-1 decision.
Logan Powers
Senior | Roland-Story
Powers was injured prior to the start of the 2022-2023 season.
He ended up missing his entire junior campaign.
As a sophomore, Powers qualified for state. He went 43-8 and placed sixth at 138 in 2A.
Brody Sampson
Senior | Ballard
Sampson enters his senior season as a three-time state placewinner at 182 pounds.
More: How Brody Sampson has benefitted from joining the Ballard wrestling program
Sampson placed eighth as a freshman and fifth as a sophomore at 182 in 1A wrestling for Collins-Maxwell. Last year as a junior at Ballard he went 51-3 and made it all the way to the state championship match in 2A before falling to defending champion C.J. Walrath of Burlington Notre Dame.
Tucker Vitzthum
Junior | Ballard
Vitzthum was one of seven state qualifiers for Ballard last season.
Vitzthum went 42-18 at 132 during his sophomore year. He made his first trip to state and posted a 3-2 record in 2A competition.
Kaden Weber
Senior | Nevada
Weber placed seventh at state at 106 pounds and third at 113 in 2A during his last two seasons on the mat.
As a sophomore, Weber went 39-2 at 106. He was 3-2 at state.
Last season Weber finished 31-1 at 113. He went 4-1 at state and his only loss of the season was a 7-5 setback to eventual state champion Jace Hedeman of Union in the semifinals.
Jackson Winkey
Junior | Ames
Winkey was a state qualifier for Ames at 160 in 3A as a sophomore.
More: How Ames siblings Alexis and Jackson Winkey have bonded through wrestling
Winkey posted a 38-13 record in 2022-2023. He took second at the 3A district meet in Carlisle to earn his spot at state.
Joe Randleman covers high school sports for the Ames Tribune. Contact him at jrandleman@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @JoeRandleman
This article originally appeared on Ames Tribune: Ames Tribune's top 15 local Iowa high school boys wrestlers for 2023-2024
