By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
The Ball dynasty has come to an end at Hoisington High School. At least on the wrestling mat. For more than a decade, the five Ball brothers - Brandon, Jonathan, Christopher, Joshua, and Josiah - have been piling up state championships and medals. Heading into Saturday's Class 3-2-1A finale, only Josiah lacked a state title. He joined the club with a 9-1 major decision against Decatur Community's Lukas Zodrow in Saturday's 138-pound finals in Salina.
"I definitely put the pressure on myself, but my brothers told me multiple times they'd still be proud of me no matter what happens," Ball said. "Coming back from an injury, they said it was up to me whether I wanted to do it or not. I'd already signed for track at Fort Hays, so it was do you even go out because you might get hurt and mess up your season."
Brandon won four titles for Hoisington, Christopher won three, Jonathan had a perfect senior season, and Joshua won a state title with a perfect season in 2021. Josiah battled injuries and tough competition from Hoxie but still had fifth and second-place finishes at state. He ends his senior season at 23-1 with the one loss coming by forfeit.
Larned senior Luke Fischer had his own injuries to contend with, missing his first two varsity seasons due to knee injuries. He went undefeated as a junior to win the 190-pound championship. He capped a 68-match win streak by winning the 215-pound title Saturday.
"It's a long time coming," he said. "I've been busting my behind for a long time. Losing those first two years was a really hard pill to swallow. I had some conflict this summer with my dad getting cancer. He's all good now, but it's been a lot of ups and downs in my career. I just busted my tail and did the right thing and ended up winning in the end."
Ball and Fischer wrestled on the same national team as elementary students. The duo was joined by Great Bend's Jace Schartz, Pratt's Taye Wilson, and Hays' Harley Zimmerman for many practice sessions in Great Bend. Schartz finished third at 157 pounds in Class 5A. Wilson completed a perfect season for a second title in Class 4A, and Zimmerman is 77-2 in his last two title seasons with a perfect record this year.
In girls' action, Great Bend senior Daizy Gomez pinned all four opponents at the Class 6-5A state championships in Park City to claim her first title. In Salina, Russell junior Jaden Ney needed a total of 82 seconds to pin her first three opponents. She defeated Santa Fe Trail's Hailee Crosland 4-1 to complete a perfect 38-0 season and win the 145-pound championship. Ney finished second a state as a sophomore and third as a freshman.
