CHADRON, Neb. -- After going 8-0 while winning Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference's dual championship for the first time this season, the Chadron State College wrestling team will have another major challenge on Saturday, March 2.  That's when it will be among the 11 teams at the Super Region 6 Championships hosted by Colorado State-Pueblo.
             
While it's always invigorating to place high in the team standings at the regional tourney, that's usually overshadowed by how many wrestlers a team qualifies for the national tournament. The top three finishers in each of the 10 weight classes will advance to the NCAA Division II National Championships to take place Friday and Saturday, March 15 and 16 at Wichita, Kan. 
             
No question about it, Chadron State Coach Brett Hunter is pleased with the success his team has had this season. It's been a highlight of his 12 years as the Eagles' head coach. The season will become even better if CSC fares well at the regional showdown. 
             
The region is made up of the nine RMAC teams along with Nebraska-Kearney and Fort Hays State.
             
Here are the Eagles' regional entries and their season records: 125—Quade Smith, 15-6; 131—Quen Campbell, 17-1; 141--Ethan Leake, 15-4; 149—Torry Early, 21-9; 157—Hunter Gilmore, 3-0; 165—Logan Berger, 17-6; 174—Open; 184—Keegan Gehlhausen, 6-2; 197—Reece Jacobs, 3-0; and 285—Mason Watt, 16-3.
             
Much of the team's strength is at the lower weights.
             
As the Eagles' 125-pounder for the third consecutive year, Smith, a native of Layton, Utah, has lots of experience and is ranked 10^th at 125 pounds by the NCAA Coaches Association.  It's a tough weight class. Two others from the region are ranked ahead of him.  
             
Campbell is the defending Super Regional 131-pound winner who also was the National Tournament silver medalist a year ago, when his 4-3 loss at nationals was by a riding time point.  Hunter calls Campbell, who is from Tifton, Ga., an outstanding competitor, said he cuts lots of weight, never complains and is probably the outstanding wrestler in CSC history who hasn't won a national championship. 
             
Leake also is a savvy veteran. The Californian graduated last spring, but returned this year with a special goal in mind. He was the Eagles' only National Championships representative in 2022, and was disappointed when he failed to qualify again last year. Therefore, he returned for another season.

At 149 pounds, Early has been a valuable addition to the CSC lineup.  That weight class was expected to be filled by senior Brody Lamb, who was injured and had to be replaced.

Early had joined the team last fall after already graduating from Wisconsin-Parkside. He jumped at the chance to fill the void. After competing in three large tournaments before Christmas, he had already broken Coach Hunter's CSC record for most technical falls in a season.

Because of a recent injury to freshman Clayton Robinson, the Eagles have had "to find" a new 157-pounder.  He's Hunter Gilmore of Arlington, Neb., who was injured early this season, recovered and won a pair of impressive major decisions during recent RMAC duals. 

Another redshirt freshman, Logan Berger, will be the Eagles' regional representative at 165 pounds, after he compiled a 17-6 record while serving as the team's 174-pound entry all season.  Hunter said Berger, who is from South Carolina, has a great attitude, has willingly shed the extra pounds to make his new weight.

With Berger dropping down, CSC will not have a 174-pound entry at Pueblo. The Eagles' next two weights also will be filled by other up-and-coming young wrestlers.
 
Rangy Keegan Gehlhausen, a three-time state champion from Pinedale, Wyo., is highly regarded as the Eagles' 184-pound entry. He was tabbed the Region 6 Freshman of the Year after placing second at that weight at last year's tourney. He then won a match at nationals and lost by just 8-6 to the eventual 184 champion.
  
Gehlhausen had shoulder surgery early last summer and didn't compete this season until after Christmas.  That put him behind when he returned to action, but his 9-5 win over 2023 national qualifier Hunter Tobiasson of Adams State during that knock-down, drag-out dual on Feb. 2 demonstrated he's made up for lost time.

The Eagles will be represented by true freshman Reese Jacobs at 197 pounds at the regional showdown, even though he's shy of collegiate experience, 
 
Jacobs is a product of the exceptional wrestling program at Brown High School in Sturgis, S.D., where he won more than 200 matches and was a three-time state champ. He also was an all-state state prep football player and was recruited for that sport at CSC and lettered last fall.  But he missed wrestling and joined that team the second semester.   

Jacobs' unveiling as a college grappler resulted in a 14-5 major decision over Pueblo's Ben Gould, a junior who had won 16 of his 19 matches this season they tangled in early February.  

 "We'll see how things work out," Coach Hunter observed. "He's going to be a great one if he can stay healthy while taking part in both sports."

Fifth-year senior Mason Watt from Broomfield, Colo., will be the No. 2 seeded heavyweight at the regional showdown behind Kearney's Crew Howard.  They are ranked fifth and sixth, nationally.

Like Leake at 134 pounds, Watt has graduated but returned another season intent on earning a medal at the National Tournament before he finishes his career. 

Hunter says he appreciates Watt's dedication and will be rooting extra hard for him to qualify for nationals again and then achieve his goal at Nationals.  Besides having an imposing presence, Watt is the team's inspirational leader.