by Dustin Teays for The Scranton Journal
Nothing is quite like winning a wrestling match and proving that you were better than your opponent at your craft. What’s even better? Doing it on the biggest stage that Iowa High School wrestling can provide and becoming a state champion.
Some of the best stories in sports revolve around perseverance and resilience; for Greene County Rams wrestler Brent Dennhardt, that is precisely what his career has been.
From injury issues his freshman year, which caused him to miss the season, to qualifying for state his sophomore, junior, and senior seasons, Dennhardt has showcased what it means to battle through everything in front of him and achieve greatness.
This year was no different, as an ankle injury prevented him from wrestling early in the season, and illness caused him to miss some more time later in the year. Dennhardt wrestled exceptionally well when he did hit the mats this year. He finished the regular season with just two losses, and won his district tournament at 157 pounds in Humboldt to qualify for the state tourney.
The path to the podium was far from easy for Dennhardt as he was seeded eighth and wrestled and beat the number nine, one, four, and sixth-seeded wrestlers on his way to a state title. That’s some stiff competition.
His wins at state this year included a technical fall win over Caleb Seaba from Clarion-Goldfield-Dows in Round Two; a 7-1 decision win over the Number One seed Lucas Kral of Garner-Hayfield/Ventura in the quarterfinals; a 5-4 decision win over Tate Slagle from Algona; and a 5-1 decision win over Tucker Wheeler of PCM in the finals.
For high school wrestlers, the dream of a state title more often than not goes unfulfilled, but for Dennhardt he will always have this achievement, and it makes it even more special when he achieved it in his last year as a Ram wrestler.
“It feels amazing to have the opportunity to win it for my family, friends, coaches, and teammates. It takes more than just the competitor. I am grateful for the opportunity, and it feels amazing to be able to finally get the job done,” Dennhardt said.
Just as important as the wrestler and his skills on the mats are the ones who have supported him in his journey, including his head coach, Kirk Davis. Davis was more than excited to have one of his wrestlers grab the top spot at state.
“I am so happy for Brent and his family for achieving this final wrestling goal in his career. He has faced and overcome so many challenges throughout his career and ultimately has grown into an amazing young man,” Davis said.
For Dennhardt, no matter where he goes or what he does after an incredibly successful high school wrestling career for the Greene County Rams, he will forever be recognized as a state champion, and he did so while persevering through some of life’s hardest challenges. Throughout his time as a Greene County Ram wrestler, Dennhardt surpassed 100 career wins and qualified for the state tournament three years in a row as a sophomore, junior and senior ,and cemented himself among some of the very best wrestlers to every pass through this program.
