DES MOINES — The ratings said that Quinn Wilson of Riverside and Jon Meyers of Coon Rapids-Bayard were the best wrestlers in the state in their respective weight classes.

But that meant nothing to them until Saturday night, when the western Iowa seniors went out and earned their gold medals.

Wilson (171 pounds) and Meyers (215) claimed Class 1-A state championships for western Iowa on the final night of competition at Wells Fargo Arena. Western Iowa’s other finalists in 1-A, Corning senior Tyler Ogburn (152) and Riverside senior Jason Frain (160), settled for second-place finishes.

Wilson blanked unrated Dacoda Ward of Lisbon 6-0 in the 171 championship match, capping a remarkable reversal of fortunes at state.

Even though being a four-time qualifier is an outstanding achievement, Wilson had finished 0-2 at state as a freshman and sophomore. Last year, he entered with a 49-0 record, but went 3-2 and settled for seventh.

Wilson said all that disappointment made the final result Saturday even more meaningful.

“After four years of being here and not being able to pull it off, it feels great to do it this year in my final year,’’ Wilson said. “I went out the way I wanted to.’’

The top-rated Wilson (55-1) scored the match’s first points on a takedown with 11 seconds left in the first period. He made it 4-0 on a nifty reversal with 1:15 remaining in the second.

Wilson added the icing on a takedown with three seconds left in the match. When time ran out, he flexed as the Riverside fans went wild.

Wilson said he couldn’t watch Frain’s match because he had to stay focused on his own preparations. He credited Frain and his own older brother, Cole, with helping him to fight off the temptation to slack off during the season.

“(Frain) is one of the main reasons I am the wrestler that I am,’’ Wilson said. “If I didn’t have him as a drill partner, pushing me every day, I couldn’t have done it. And my brother always dragged me to the wrestling room over Christmas break.’’

At 215, Meyers ran his record to 50-0 with a hard-fought 7-2 victory over No. 2 Jordan Simon of Aplington-Parkersburg (34-4). Meyers finished fourth last season.

“I’m speechless right now,’’ an emotional Meyers said. “I’m probably one of the happiest people ever. I never, ever thought I could be here, but I’ve worked hard.’’

In the finals, Meyers took a 2-1 lead on a takedown with 1:08 left in the second period. However, Simon escaped as time ran out in the period to send it to the third tied at 2-2.

With 1:17 left, Meyers picked up a reversal to make it 4-2, and he turned Simon for three near-fall points to push it to 7-2 with 25 seconds left.

Soon, he was celebrating a state title.

“I love to compete,’’ he said. “I don’t know where that came from, but I cannot stand losing. I worked so hard this year to make sure I didn’t lose.’’

At 160, Riverside’s third-rated Frain was pinned by second-rated Levi Peters of Twin River Valley in 2:43.

Frain led 2-0 after an early takedown. Peters evened it with a reversal at the 1:10 mark of the first period. Early in the second, Peters flipped Frain, turned him to his back and pinned him.

At 152, Corning’s fifth-rated Ogburn (41-4) turned in a game effort, but lost a 4-2 decision to heavily favored and top-ranked Dimitri Boyer of Eddyville-Blakesburg (50-1). Boyer won his second state title after back-to-back fourth-place efforts the previous two years.

After a scoreless first period, Boyer went ahead 4-0. Ogburn reversed him at the 16-second mark of the second to pull within 4-2. However, Boyer rode Ogburn for the entire third period to eke out the victory.

Don Bosco cruised to its fifth straight 1-A title, crowning a pair of champions.

Western Iowa athletes in Class 1-A picked up 13 other medals during consolation finals on Saturday afternoon.

Thirds went to Council Bluffs St. Albert’s Brennan McNitt (119), Logan-Magnolia’s Nolan Oviatt (130) and Tri-Center’s Loren Williams (135). Tri-Center’s Caleb White (285) placed fourth.

Earning fifths were Underwood’s Andrew Foutch (103), Missouri Valley’s Walker Marshall (119) and Logan-Magnolia’s Marrick Loftus (152). Finishing sixth were Lo-Ma’s Dillon Lorentzen (125) and Woodbine’s Dalton Peterson (189).

Ending seventh were Coon Rapids-Bayard’s Cole Hopkins (140) and A-H-S-T’s Gabe Fell (160). Placing eighth were Missouri Valley’s Brett Marcum (112) and Bedford/Lenox’s Willie Lawrence (171).

Contact the writer:

444-1055, kevin.white@owh.com

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