Last year at the district wrestling tournament, Jon Bromeier (10) and Matt Jackson (12) came close to qualifying for state, Bromeier two matches away and Jackson one match away.

This year, Bromeier and Jackson both went 3-1 in the district tournament at Northwest High School, advancing them to the state wrestling tournament in Columbia, MO this weekend (Feb. 17-19).

“It’s a great feeling and I can’t wait to medal at state,” Bromeier said.

At the beginning of the season, head coach Brett Lieberoff had a goal of advancing four wrestlers to state. Even though Lieberoff did not match his goal, he was happy with the results.

“I think as a team we wrestled really well,” Lieberoff said. “It may not show it on the record, but everybody wrestled really well.”

One senior that was hoping to qualify for state this season was Brandon Brown (12). Brown was 2-1 going into his qualifying match, but came up short against a wrestler from Marquette.

“I’m happy getting two through [to state], but I would have liked to see Brown go,” Lieberoff said. “Brown and Jackson have been working hard all season.”

In the district finals, Bromeier, in the 125 lb weight class, and Jackson, in the 135 lb. weight class, both lost their third place matches, putting them in fourth place.

“It’s not something they have been doing two months out of the year,” Lieberoff said. “They have been training all season.”

Lieberoff is hopeful that Jackson and Bromeier can take down the tough competition they will face at state.

“They both have really tough first rounds,” Lieberoff said. “After that it’s really tough because it’s do or die.”