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Chloe Mantrom

Senoir Jonathan Cramer does stretches before parctice.

On Feb. 19, the wrestling squad concluded its season with a fourth place finish at the State Meet in Cypress, Texas. The Chaps finished the tournament behind Allen, Arlington Martin and El Paso Eastwood. Westlake had three wrestlers place: senior Hunter Roberts took fifth, junior Anderson Salisbury got a bronze medal for the 160-pound weight class and junior Jack Skudlarczyk claimed his second State title in three years for the 120-pound weight class.

Throughout the season, Westlake built up a lot of confidence through a rigorous schedule that included The Woodlands and Vandergrift, and used that experience to the best of their ability at State.

“We had a pretty tough schedule this year, but we were successful as a team,” Jack said. “It really gave us confidence that we were able to compete with the best kids in the state.”

Despite doing better than their fifth place finish in 2015, the Chaps still didn’t reach their ultimate goal for this year.

“Our goal was to win [State],” Jack said. “That is how it has to be, you have to believe you can win.” He added that they aren’t disappointed with their placement, but just wish they could’ve done better.

As Westlake moves to the off-season, they lose a lot of senior experience in Hunter Roberts, Hunter Hershey, Jonathan Cramer and Gabe Moreau. So with the the 2016 season now behind them, Westlake must now look to develop its younger wrestlers.

“We are going to be young next year,” Jack said. “This off-season we need focus on gaining experience, becoming better wrestlers and gaining strength.”