Kason Clark: Now I too know what an amazing spectacle state wrestling is

BILLINGS - It had been nearly two years since the All-Class State wrestling tournament was held in the Metra in Billings. Last season, the tournament was broken up with the Class A tournament held in Miles City, the Class AA tournament in Kalispell and the Class B-C tournament in Shelby.

With that absence, I was not able to witness the spectacle and excitement of the All-Class State Tournament when I first came to Havre last year. But this past weekend, I finally got to witness the glory of Montana's state wrestling tournament in person.

The sheer size and scope of the venue was overwhelming at first when I arrived at the tournament Friday afternoon. With 16 matches going on at a time, it was a hassle to just find where the Havre High wrestling team was at. But as the weekend went along, the infectious energy of the crowd and the teams showed me why some consider the state wrestling tournament to be the best high school athletic event in the state.

Being on the ground floor with the wrestlers, I also got to experience the emotional highs and lows with them. On Friday afternoon, the Blue Ponies dominated the quarterfinals to send seven wrestlers to the semifinals. But Saturday morning, I witnessed only one of them win and advance to the finals. The emotions then swung back in the right direction as several Ponies wrestled well in their consolation brackets.

Along with some of the heartbreak, I got to witness the victories in the finals Saturday night. Unlike their wins throughout the tournament, the wrestlers would burst into emotion after winning a state championship. After winning with a pin less than a minute into his state title match, Havre's Orion Thivierge celebrated by jumping into the arms of his teammates.

It was also an exciting tournament because Fort Benton and Chinook represented north-central Montana well over the weekend. On Saturday night, Fort Benton's Brock Hanford and Chinook's Tyler Schoen both wrestled well to bring home state championships. As a reporter, getting to talk to an athlete after they fully realize their dreams is what it's all about.

It was also a pleasure to see a Chinook wrestler win a state title while being coached by Ben Stroh. In his high school career at Chinook, Stroh won four state titles. Because he returns for another season to Chinook, Schoen still has a chance to add to his own legacy and make his coach proud.

All of these matches were made better by the fans in attendance. You could tell every time a wrestler took advantage in their match as the screams and cheers of their fans could be heard throughout the Metra.

Over the next year, I will get to experience the emotions and atmosphere of postseason basketball and college football. But I know that none of those will come close to matching the energy and excitement of state wrestling at the Metra, and it will be a long wait until next year's tournament.