The Wayne Trace wrestlers traveled to Van Buren on January 19th, 2023, for the 45th Van Buren Invitational. The Raiders took eight wrestlers to the competition. As a team the Raiders finished seventh overall out of twenty schools. Four of the eight wrestlers took a spot on the podium as the top four placers of their weight classes.
At the top of the podium in the 120-pound weight class was Corbin Kimmel. The Junior is now a three-time champion of the tournament. Corbin pinned his way through the competition. Competitors pinned by Corbin Kimmel included Collin Tussing from Van Buren, Carter Breitgam from Fostoria, Branden Cross from Bluffton, and Cohen Lewis from Bowling Green. Kimmel is only the third wrestler to achieve the 3-time championship in the history of the school at this tournament.
Colton Kimmel, the 113-pound freshman ended the day as the runner-up for his weight class. Colton had a bye in the first round and followed that up with a pin over Colin Failor from Bowling Green. Keeping the momentum going, Kimmel pinned Barrett Hernandez from Fostoria and projected himself into the finals. Colton was defeated in the championship match by Abraham Baldwin from Upper Sandusky.
The 190-pound wrestler, Nate Osborn, finished the day in third place. Osborn won his first match by pin over Ben Heitkamp from Van Buren. The senior then faced Alex Balderson from Arcadia and was defeated by a pin and sent to the consolation bracket. Osborn then defeated Heitkamp again with a score of 4-3 to send him to the final match for third place. In the final match of the day, Osborn defeated Loudon Auchmuty from Columbus Grove with a score of 8-6.
Graiden Troth, the 150-poud wrestler ended the day in fourth place on the podium. The senior defeated Kizer Young of Bluffton by pin and then got stuck in a pin by Thomas Tyson of Elmwood. In the consolation bracket, Troth pinned Miles McDorman of Allen East and then pinned Tommy Zemaitis of Bowling Green. Troth was defeated in the final match of the day by Thomas Tyson of Elmwood by pin.
Other wrestlers who competed on behalf of the Raider Wrestling team included Kamryn Sutton at 132 pounds and Dakota Densmore in the 215-pound weight class. Asa Ames, the 165-pounder ended the day with a record of 2-2 and Blake Schultz completed the day with a record of 1-2.
