MADISON — There was no shortage of fireworks at the Kohl Center over the weekend, with eight county wrestlers competing, four placing, three making the semifinals and one finalist.

River Falls’ junior Jacob Hutchins was the lone county representative in the finals, getting there in exciting fashion in the Division 1 190-pound bracket. Hutchins won 17-2 over Kenosha Tremper’s 36-14 Anthony Pereida, 13-6 over Waukesha West’s 39-9 Chetan Malkan and 23-7 over Beaver Dam’s 45-7 Landen Grow.

In the semis, Hutchins broke River Falls’ all-time single season wins record, finishing 50-7 with one year of competition left in the tank. Whenever he took to the mat, he came in ready to explode and consistently slammed his opponents into the ground.

“Finally he did what the coaching staff had been telling him that we believed he could do. All year long, we’ve seen that level possible for him, and it was just a matter of time when he realized he could do it and believed in himself,” River Falls Coach Cam Loomis said. “He did it in the only tournament that counts… There was kind of some buzz in the Kohl Center after his semi-final win.

“People around the State saw him and realized this Jacob Hutchins guy is for real,” Loomis said.

Hutchins lined up 51-0 junior Reed Falk of Middleton, where his run would end, as Falk won 10-3 to complete a perfect season.

Fellow junior Oliver Larson finished just one win behind Hutchins, ending the year at 49-8. Larson crushed 17-19 Rock West of La Crosse Logan/Central 16-0 before narrowly dropping a defensive bout 2-1 to 38-4 Bryson Busler of Watertown. Larson won three consecutive bouts in the consolation bracket to take fifth place while allowing just one point, winning 18-0 over 33-10 Perry Baehr of Kaukauna, 17-0 over West Allis Central’s 45-5 Deuce Sharp and 14-1 over Kenosha Indian Trail’s 45-11 Ezequiel Dominguez for a fifth-place finish.

“It takes a lot to do what Oliver did. He had goals of being in the State finals with Jacob, and Thursday night he had a heartbreaker and lost,” Loomis said. “He had to regroup and go get the next best thing. That’s just the type of kid he is. No matter what happens, he’s going to bounce back and be ready to go.”

The two are now atop the school’s all-time single season wins leaderboard.

“A couple weeks ago, I was looking at their record, and I was like, ‘Holy cow, I guess we could set some new standards for our program,’” Loomis said.

Larson and Hutchins’ runs have sparked some energy into the team and coaching staff. The Wildcats have a massive junior class that will become seniors and some hungry up and comers waiting for their time to shine.

“There is [a buzz] from the coaching staff. We have a lot of belief in these guys, and the group that we have coming back and the eighth graders that we know have the opportunity to earn a spot in the lineup,” Loomis said. “Just a matter of them taking advantage of the opportunities that we’re going to give them to get better in the offseason.”

Spring Valley/Elmwood brought three wrestlers to State, two of whom made semi-finals runs. Senior 215-pounder Jack Steinmeyer finished the year 40-10, moving through to the semis with 9-2 decisions over 39-19 George Seegmiller of Wittenberg-Birnamwood and 28-4 Brody Gilbertson of Cumberland. Steinmeyer met his match in the semis, losing 5-3 to Prairie Du Chien’s 51-9 No. 1 seed Jack Simmons, but bounced back with a first period pin over Cedar Grove-Belgium’s 42-11 Josh Anzia to finish an impressive third place.

At 165-pounds, 42-7 junior Asher Turner pushed into the semis himself, dominating 35-14 Collin Vanark of Lena 19-3 and clawing to a 4-2 win over 44-10 Jacob Dannenberg of Mineral Point. Turner was pinned late against eventual State champion Liam Richards of Oostburg, before being pinned against 37-5 Logan Peterson of Cumberland to finish fourth.

“Making State is an incredible accomplishment on its own, so having two semi-finalists was really special. Seeing Jack and Asher battle their way into the semi-finals meant they were among the top four in the entire state. That is no small feat. What made it even more emotional was that both of their semi-final matches were tied with around 30 seconds left. Both were right there with a trip to the finals within reach and both fell just short. It was heartbreaking because making the State finals is incredibly difficult, and they were so very close. I loved the effort from both of them. They left everything on the mat. Jack responded by finishing his senior season with a third-place medal, and Asher battled back to earn fourth. Those are finishes to be proud of,” Turner said.

SVE also saw Delia Larson make State in the girls 185 bracket as a freshman. Larson went 30-10 in her first season of high school action. At State, Larson was pinned by 49-5 Madeline Sorensen of Eau Claire North and 30-9 Sanaa Childs of Westosha Central. Larson started wrestling two years ago and instantly fell in love with the sport, a passion that took her to State in her first high school season.

“Seeing Jack Steinmeyer, Asher Turner and Delia Larson take the mat at State meant everything to our program. It is a reflection of the work these athletes have put in year-round and the commitment of our coaches, families and community. For a small school like ours, having three qualifiers on that stage is something special. It shows our kids that big goals are possible, regardless of school size,” Coach Turner said. “As for the team’s favorite part of the State experience, it was honestly just being there together. The atmosphere, the crowd, the energy. Delia, Jack and Asher all handled the moment with class and represented SVE the right way. The walk into the arena, the lights, the introductions. It is something they will never forget. Being able to share that experience as teammates made it even more meaningful.”

Prescott brought a pair of wrestlers to Madison. Senior Addy Allsop wrestled in the girls 114-pound bracket. Allsop finished the year with an impressive 43-12 record, but lost at State by first period pin in the opening round against Manitowoc Lincoln’s 42-4 Emjay Neumann and lost in the consolation bracket 19-10 to Brown Deer/Mess./Shore’s 43-5 Elaine Hay.

While Allsop got a tough bracket draw, she set out to help build Prescott’s girls wrestling program and accomplished that goal.

Freshman Bryce Feran in the Division 2 106-pound bracket took to the mat with a 43-11 record. He lost a back-and-forth 9-7 match to Rice Lake’s 39-6 senior Michael Sirek. In the consolation bracket, Feran lost another battle 16-11 against Coleman’s 32-13 junior Hunter Seefeldt.

For Ellsworth, sophomore 113-pounder Hunter Bench competed in Division 2. Bench (28-11) lost 8-4 against Wilmot Union’s 44-12 freshman Reece Vendegna. Later, in the consolation bracket, Bench ran into 57-2 No. 1 seed Collin Frey of Evansville and lost 14-2. Both Bench and Feran are underclassmen playing a major role in building up their respective teams. Expect the two to be a part of some wild duals in the coming years.