Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

CEDAR RAPIDS – Keaton Speicher entered the final district meet of his career on Saturday with a good feeling.

The West High senior walked out of the Class 3A, District 7 meet feeling even better.

Speicher won the 126-pound title on Saturday at Cedar Rapids Prairie securing a second consecutive state meet appearance with his first district title.

Back-to-back first-period pins sent Speicher (20-12) to the title match where he won an 8-4 decision over Clear Creek Amana junior Samual Stevens.

“I could definitely tell my mindset was a little different coming in this time,” Speicher said. “I felt really confident, more than I usually am, usually I have some doubt in my mind but today I was really confident and it really benefitted me. I feel like I was firing on all cylinders.”

Speicher was one of six state qualifiers for West High on Saturday as the Trojans crowned five district champions on their way to a third-place team finish.

West High rattled off five consecutive wins in district title matches after freshman Grant O’Dell finished second at 106 pounds.

Freshman Hunter Garvin, Speicher, Graham Gambrall, Will Hoeft and Landon Green all added titles for West High.

Speicher, Gambrall and Hoeft will all be making their second consecutive appearances at the state meet which opens Thursday at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines.

“It feels really good to get back,” Speicher said. “I am still trying to get my goal of placing at state this year and it feels good to get a district title this year.”

Speicher and Garvin set the tone early for an impressive title round performance for West High.

Garvin continued an impressive freshman campaign by rolling through the 120-pound bracket in his first district meet.

Second-ranked Garvin (36-3) pinned Ethan Armstrong of Liberty in 52 seconds in the quarterfinals and won a 14-6 major decision over Dayne Cordray of Fort Madison in the semifinals.

Garvin pinned ninth-ranked Kael Scranton of Clear Creek Amana in the title match in 2:34.

“Today was alright,” Garvin said. “I could have done a lot better the second match. I have stuff to work on. I’m just really critiquing everything with my technique and trying to get better at everything that I do.”

Speicher continued the championship win streak with the 8-4 win over Stevens in the 126-pound final.

Since his return to the West High lineup on January 17 Speicher has won 10 of 11 matches placing third at the Mississippi Valley Conference meet last month.

“I just kept coming back and trying to work hard in practice and I feel like I came back strong,” Speicher said. “It felt good to finish it today.”

Gambrall (35-9) followed with a 12-4 major decision over Johnny Washburn of Cedar Rapids Prairie in the 138-pound final.

Hoeft (34-6) won the 182-pound title with a 7-4 win over Logan Andeway of Cedar Rapids Prairie and Green (35-8) capped the strong afternoon for the Trojans with a 10-9 win over sixth-ranked Zach Beason of Mount Pleasant in the 220-pound title match.

Class 3A, District 7

At Cedar Rapids Prairie

Team scores – 1. City High 210; 2. Cedar Rapids Prairie 189; 3. West High 186; 4. Fort Madison 147; 5. Burlington 102; 6. Mount Pleasant 101; 7. Liberty High 85; 8. Clear Creek Amana 82;

(State qualifiers; Area Placewinners)

106 – 1. Ethan Wood-Finley (ICH) pinned Grant O’Dell (ICW) :57; 5. Jayden Massey (CCA)

113 – 1. Austin Kegley (CRP) pinned Elton Kruse (FM) 1:09; 3. Parker McBride (ICW); 4. Reece Hayden (ICH); 6. Mason Padgett (ICL)

120 – 1. Hunter Garvin (ICW) pinned Kael Scranton (CCA) 2:34; 4. Garrett Bormann (ICH)

126 – 1. Keaton Speicher (ICW) dec. Samual Stevens (CCA) 8-4; 4. Michael Santoro (ICH)

132 – 1. Conrad Braswell (CRP) dec. Duncan Delzell (BUR) 8-2; 4. Gable Mitchell (ICH); 6. Mike Luyeye 3:42

138 – 1. Graham Gambrall (ICW) major dec. Johnny Washburn (CRP) 12-4; 3. Ryan Ceynar (ICH); 4. Jarrod Alger (ICL); 6. Randal Mosier (CCA)

145 – 1. Andrew Rohret (CCA) major dec. Nathan Wallace (MP) 12-1; 3. Reece Caven (ICH); 4. Collin Leavy (ICW); 5. Darius Willis-Newell (ICL)

152 – 1. Kyle Hefley (ICH) tech. fall Justis Kruse (CRP) 15-0; 3. Kaleb Williams (ICL); 5. Mason Applegate (ICW)

160 – 1. Preston Terry (BUR) dec. Brandon Lalla (ICH) 3-2 TB-1; 2. Colton LaGrange (CRP); 3. Brandon Lalla (ICH); 5. Drew Snyder (ICL); 6. Joe Dixon (ICW)

170 – 1. Ashton Barker (ICL) pinned Joe Ring (ICH) 3:02

182 – 1. Will Hoeft (ICW) dec. Logan Andeway (CRP) 7-4; 4. Gavin Luze (ICL); 5. Drake Patterson (ICH); 6. Spencer Beltz (CCA)

195 – 1. Ashton Stoner-DeGroot (CRP) med. forfeit Sam Hayes (FM); 4. Jason Lemus (ICH); 5. Brett Pelfrey (ICW); 6. Quentist Alexander (ICL)

220 – 1. Landon Green (ICW) dec. Zach Beason (MP) 10-9; 3. Davryn Stewart (ICH)

285 – 1. Jacob Murry (ICH) dec. Danen Settles (FM) 4-2 TB-1; 5. Jordan Hughes (ICW); 6. Tommy Morlan (CCA)