Cardinals Send Four to State from Norton Regional
The KSHSAA 3-2-1A Regional Wrestling Tournament was held last Friday and Saturday in Norton, and four Plainville Cardinals punched their tickets to state competition.
The top four finishers in each weight class qualified for the 2026 KSHSAA State Wrestling Championships, which will be held next Friday and Saturday at Gross Memorial Coliseum.
Advancing for Plainville are Zayne Stahl (165), Owen Brewster (175), Rylan Hamel (190), and Ryddik Bethel (285).
Bethel, Hamel Earn Runner-Up Finishes At heavyweight, Ryddik Bethel (31-6) turned in an impressive performance to place second. Bethel recorded back-toback falls in his opening matches, pinning Abel Apodaca of Oakley in 55 seconds and Hayden Pfannenstiel of Thomas More Prep-Marian in just 20 seconds. He added a 6-2 semifinal decision over previously 36-2 Daylan Fairchild of Rawlins County to reach the finals before falling to unbeaten Kharson Montgomery of Smith Center.
At 190 pounds, Rylan Hamel (20-12) also finished as regional runner- up. After a first-round bye, Hamel pinned Korey Weltmer of Smith Center and followed with a dominant 21-6 technical fall over Cash Roth of Phillipsburg in the semifinals. He dropped an 8-4 decision to Kolten Jones of Russell in the championship match.
Brewster Claims Third Owen Brewster (2811) battled back to earn third place at 175 pounds. Brewster opened with a 7-0 decision over Alex Eveleigh of Norton before a narrow 4-2 semifinal loss to Cass Smith of Trego. In the consolation bracket, Brewster defeated Max Foote of Hoxie 7-0 and then sealed his state berth with a pin of Tyler Ashbaugh of Hill City in 4:03 in the third-place match.
Stahl Fights to Fourth At 165 pounds, Zayne Stahl (28-14) secured a fourth-place finish to qualify for state. Stahl pinned Caleb Young of Tribune-Greeley County in 12 seconds and added a 15-0 technical fall over Dillon Keller of St. Francis to reach the semifinals. After a loss to eventual champion Parker Hutchinson of Smith Center, Stahl rebounded with a fall over Jared Aschenbrenner of Trego before finishing fourth.
Other Cardinals Compete Also competing for Plainville were:
• Traxton Smyth (132), who opened with a firstround pin over Gavin Dyas of Lakin.
• Colby Nuss (144), who earned a major decision in his opening match and added a medical forfeit win in consolation action.
• Ayden Cadoret (150), who recorded a 17-0 technical fall over Donovan Lara of Russell.
• Braylon Becker (157), who competed in the championship bracket.
With four state qualifiers advancing, the Cardinals will now turn their attention to Hays and the bright lights of Gross Memorial Coliseum, where they will look to cap their seasons with strong performances on the state’s biggest stage.
