Final Results

Samuel got 5th in 170, Trent got 3rd in 192, Max at 138 (who got hurt in the match that would have decided if he wrestled for 3/4 or 5/6) had to medical forfeit but still got 6th since he won his first two matches.

Congratulations on an amazing season Samuel, Thomas and all the Neumann wrestlers!

The cookie medal was almost as good as the real one.  Maybe.

 

Samuel at State

Samuel had made it to State both his Sophomore and Junior year but only won one match total.  His goal for his senior year was to medal.

He started it off right and won his first match!

Then he won his second match, which put him in the semifinals and guarenteed him a medal!

He lost the semifinal match which put him in  a match that decided if he'd wrestle for 3rd/4th or 5th/6th.

He ended up losing that match too so he went to the 5th/6th match.

He won the final match of his career and got 5th place!

 His final arm raise!

Fifth place!

On the big screen too.

Thomas at State

We were so happy for Thomas and proud of him when he made it to State!  He worked hard and peaked at the right time!

He ended up losing both his matches and getting knocked out of the running but it was a great experience for him.  He'll have those matches under his belt to help motivate him to work hard next year and work toward the goal of making it again!

He would have loved to win a match but I think he understood what a big deal it is to make it to State so he enjoyed the experience overall.
 

State Wrestling This and That

The pep rally was short but fun.

The signs looked great!

The cheering section was ready!

The cheering section got restless, but Father's smuggled in chocolate saved the day!

Neumann was in the top ten for awhile!

And in the meantime we watched so.much.wrestling.

Going to State!

 Photo credit: Coach John Welsch

Most Successful Wrestling Weekend

We think the weekend Samuel and Thomas both made it to State on Saturday and then Philip got 1st and Nicholas got 2nd on Sunday will go down as the most successful Vrana wrestling weekend ever.

This Picture

I love it for so many reasons.  The pure joy.  The triumph.  The muscles.  He'd just won a match at districts that kept him in the running to go to State.  But there's so much more to it.  There's so many years of hard work, so many losses and disappointments.  But he kept going.  He didn't give up.  He worked through the years of losing records until the wins started to come.  And it all led to this.

I also love you can see the curly hair mom clapping.  That's Kelly.  She's watched all the losses and wins too.  She's cheered him on through the hard matches and great ones.  And along the side?  That's Grandpa Lautenslager's arm raised up in victory.  Both of them, and all the wrestling parents, were just as proud of Thomas as Jeremy and I because they knew what went into that win.  The wrestling team isn't very big.  We all watch the all boys win and lose, happy and devastated.  From November to February we're a family and this picture shows that.

My aunt says most people only take a handful of really excellent pictures in their lives.  I don't know that this one is excellent as a picture.  But for all that it means to me, it's one I'll always love.