Leaving it All on the Mat
One of those schools, Pomona High, had a 1st place winner, though it was not one from their school, but Emerson Claeys, who attends Jefferson Academy.
The audience carefully anticipates as they watch the competitors to see who will be in first place. As the final person steps on the podium, the crowd cheers!
All schools that qualified to wrestle in the state championship attended the 2026 State Wrestling Championship. One of those schools, Pomona High, had a 1st place winner, though it was not one from their school, but Emerson Claeys, who attends Jefferson Academy.
“This year was really important for me not only because it was my senior year but also because I had a very good chance of winning state,” Claeys explained. “But because it was my senior year and it was my last year of high school wrestling, every single minute and hour meant something, and overall it was just an amazing tournament.”
To get ready for the state tournament, a lot of preparation needs to be done as it is the very last event in the wrestling season.
“Preparation for the state always starts in the pre-season, around August up to November, it’s all the main conditioning and strength building that is the base for the rest of the season,” Claeys said. “Exercise-wise, it’s just preparing for matches and staying healthy, but mentally it’s preparing for long tournaments and being consistent.”
Since this was his last event in high school wrestling, it can be sad or disappointing to know it is the end.
“I feel really sad, wrestling is such a hard sport that any and all suffering is a shared experience between teammates and friends and creates a close bond like family,” Claeys described. “Having to watch as everyone goes to college and you have to leave the underclassmen who look up to you is so difficult.”
However, Claeys still looks forward to the future in wrestling.
“This being my last state also means that I have new goals and a new bar has been set for wrestling in the future with new teammates, coaches, practice partners, and environment. It's not only a movement from high school to college, but a complete rearrangement of habits from high school,” Claeys added.
Now that he has finished high school wrestling, he can focus on college wrestling and other future plans.
“I feel happy and proud,” Claeys stated. “It was four long years of wrestling to get to this point, and finally achieving my goal is really exciting. But as I said, I’m also sad because I have to leave as a senior, but I’m also excited for the future and what college wrestling has to bring.”
