HAYS --  Three teammates delivered a history-making haul on a banner day for two separate schools at the Class 3-1A boys state wrestling tournament. 

Leo DeDonder, Bradley Doornbos and Tyler Hutchinson combined for a championship trifecta at the state meet on Feb. 28 at Gross Memorial Coliseum, making history for both Council Grove and Northern Heights.

The Braves crowned their first two individual state champions in Hutchinson and Doornbos, while DeDonder, their teammate through a co-op agreement with Council Grove and Northern Heights, added another milestone by winning the first state title for Heights. 

“Pretty big day,” Hutchinson said. “It was a big goal for us. We set out from the beginning and we told ourselves what we were going to do.
“One by one, we got it done.”

DeDonder got the monumental day started. After not placing in his previous trips to the state meet, the senior defeated West Franklin’s Chase Courtois by a 7-4 decision in the 126 title match. 

DeDonder scored a takedown in both the first and second periods and took a 7-0 lead into the third period. Courtois got a takedown in the third period but just two seconds remained in the match. 

“I'm just so grateful that I have the opportunity to be here, that my coaches, they pushed me as hard as I could to get to the top and that they've allowed our schools to work together,” DeDonder said. “I've loved wrestling since I was a kid and it wasn't something I wanted to stop, so I'm just so grateful we got that program worked out.”

As a freshman in 2023, DeDonder became Northern Heights’ first state qualifier. He reached the state meet in each of his four years. DeDonder finished his senior year with a 41-4 record.

“It means a lot to me (to be Heights’ first champion),” DeDonder said. “It's really something special. Not a lot of kids can say, I'm the first to do this for my school,  and I get to. So it's something I'll wear with honor.”
 

Doornbos supplied one of the memorable moments of the 3-1A tournament in the 138 title match. 

Against top-ranked Denton White from Jayhawk-Linn, Doornbos countered a takedown attempt by splitting White’s legs and trapping them in a cradle, executing the spladle. 

“I knew he got deep into my legs, and I was kind of like: I don't think I'm going to be able to get my hips back, so why not try the spladle?” Doornbos said. “It's my last match this year. Just go for broke.”

White avoided the pin, but Doornbos held the position for over a minute until the end of the period, opening up a 13-2 lead. 

“It was the first time I've hit (the move) this year,” Doornbos said. “I've kind of done it through kids' club and sparingly mess around with my friends in practice, but I'm glad it worked out in that moment.

“I was really working for the pin, and then kind of toward the end when I knew I wasn't getting the pin, I was just trying to hold on and just go to the next period with a good lead.”

Protecting the huge lead, Doornbos finished off a 13-4 decision to close his junior season at 44-4. 

“I've trained for this moment my whole life and dreamed of this moment. I wasn't gonna let someone stop me from achieving that goal,” said Doornbos, who took sixth at state last year. “I felt like I ended last year feeling disappointed. I felt like I let my coaches down, I let myself down, and I didn't want to feel that way again.”
 

 

Hutchinson cemented his 215 title with a huge third period against Ellsworth’s Micah Galvan. He took a 3-1 lead into the third period before notching two takedowns and a pair of escapes to win an 11-3 decision. 

“I wanted to push the pace and keep on him,” Hutchinson said. “I didn't want to give him any chances and I wanted to hand fight and get a takedown.

“It's just a crazy experience and I'm just so grateful for all my coaches, friends and family who pushed me to get me there.”

Like DeDonder, Hutchinson made state all four seasons but did not place in his first three state tournaments. 

“I have been pushing myself throughout the years after all the losses that I've had in the previous years,” Hutchinson said. “My coaches pushed me as hard as I could go.

“I'm glad it worked out.”
 

Council Grove is coached by Brogan Humphrey. The Braves placed eighth in the team standings with 74.5 points, not including the 30.5 points that went to Northern Heights. 

The three champions said sharing the moments with their teammates made their titles even more rewarding. 

“They’re the best guys I could ask to celebrate a state championship with,” Doornbos said of Hutchinson and DeDonder. “They'll be graduating next year, so it'll be different. They've meant the world to me and it's just been a huge blessing to have them a part of my life. 

“It's really special,” DeDonder said. “We've had a great relationship with each other. We push ourselves to be the best we can be. And I couldn't ask for a better group of boys and a better group of coaches that I want to share this experience with.”
 

SOUTHEAST OF SALINE’S CHAMBERS, TUTTLE GO BACK-TO-BACK 

The heavyweight showdown between Southeast of Saline’s Brody Chambers and Smith Center’s Kharson Montgomery played out largely in the same manner as the 2025 title match. 

Last year, Chambers won the championship in the ultimate tiebreaker after choosing the bottom position and earning the escape. 

As Chambers and Montgomery went to overtime tied at 1 this time, Chambers wanted no part in letting the match reach the ultimate tiebreak stage, especially since Montgomery would have choice on position after scoring the first point of the match. 

“I knew exactly what this match was going to be like,” Chambers said. “Going into that double overtime, I knew he got choice, so giving him that bottom choice to go into the ultimate tiebreaker, it can't happen. 

“He's a tough guy to ride out. He was able to stand up, I got onto his legs, we scrambled for a little bit, and I was able to get into a front head lock on the side of the mat, and it just kind of let time run out.”
 

Chambers (24-4) said the fact he had to beat Montgomery, a top-notch competitor, for his two championships made the feat even more gratifying.

He helped Southeast of Saline win a football championship in his junior season and the Trojans took runner-up this year to Nemaha Central in the 2A title game rematch this season. 

“Ending my career as the two-time state champ is just amazing,” said Chambers, who has signed to play football for Grand View University in Des Moines, Iowa.

“Coming out on top and never having to worry about, 'I could have done this or I could have done that' in a match, is great.  I'm going to have a lot of that in football with the loss this year. Good thing it's one less thing I have to think about.”

Montgomery took his lone loss of the season, finishing his senior year 48-1 and as a three-time state runner-up. 
 

For the second straight year, Roman Tuttle joined Chambers as a champion for Southeast of Saline. 

Just like last year when he beat two-time reigning champion Ian Giancola from Hoxie as a freshman, Tuttle had to go through another former champion –
Russell’s Xzpehren Donner – in the 120-pound title match. 

Tuttle dominated, earning a 20-3 technical fall to go two-for-two in his state championship bouts, pushing his career record to 73-1. 

He went 31-0 on the season, which got a late start after Tuttle battled in a knee injury that kept him out until early January. 

“Watching (Tuttle) is great, but it's even better in the room when we're in there wrestling,” Chambers said of Tuttle.

“He's taught me a lot. I never really thought I'd be looking up to a sophomore, but he's so freaking good that I still learn stuff from him. I’m just appalled by how great he is.”
 

ATCHISON COUNTY CROWNS TWO 

Moments before his 190-title match, Atchison County’s Elijah Webb was dividing his attention between getting focused on his upcoming bout and watching teammate Max Bottorff compete for a 175-pound crown. 

After Bottorff won convincingly for his first title, Webb could feel an extra boost of adrenaline. 

“I definitely want to say (Bottorff) winning gave me a confidence boost,” Webb said. “I was watching that match the entire time and just seeing it happen made me push through my match.”

While Bottorff took a 15-0 technical fall over Ellsworth’s Bo Kyler, Webb’s match with Silver Lake’s Paxton Willett went down to the wire. 

Willett led 7-5 heading into the final minute of the third period. Webb squared the match at 7 with 46 seconds left on a reversal. Webb scored two nearfall points when he rolled through and tilted Willett. Willett got an escape right before time expired but finished a point short. 

“That was my first time ever hitting that move in my high school season,”  Webb said. “I thought it was pretty risky but I knew I had time to do it. Otherwise I may not have won that match, so I did what had to be done and it worked for me.”
 

 

Webb finished 2-2 on the season against Willett, who beat Webb for the regional title. Webb, a junior, placed sixth as a freshman and fourth as a sophomore. 

Bottorff closed his senior season at 42-1, breaking through for his championship after losing a heartbreaker to Hoxie’s Duncan Bell in last year’s title match. 

Led by Bottorff’s and Webb’s titles, Atchison County tied for second as a team with Caney Valley at 99 points. 
 

BURESH COMPLETES UNDEFEATED SEASON, NABS SECOND STRAIGHT TITLE

Phillipsburg’s Blake Buresh completed a dominant senior season, capping a 45-0 campaign as a back-to-back state champion. 

Buresh earned an 11-1 decision over Hoxie’s Travis Johnson in the 157 final. 

“It meant a lot. This was obviously the goal after getting the first one,” Buresh said. “Winning it last year gave me a lot of confidence and I’ve worked a lot on my conditioning this season.”

Buresh beat Johnson four times on the season, including an 11-8 decision in the regional semifinals. 

“It got close at regionals and I knew I could have wrestled better at regionals,” Buresh said. “I just tried to be aggressive on my feet and hold him down for the most part."

Buresh said he is eager for the next level. He is headed to Iowa Western Community College. 

“I think I’m ready for it,” Buresh said. “I’m excited for it.”