As the 2025-26 wrestling season draws closer to the postseason, the Sutton Mustangs traveled to Tri County High School for the 2026 Southern Nebraska Conference meet, where Sutton claimed a fourth-place team finish, scoring 93.5 team points.
Milford ran away with the team title, outscoring second place David City 131100, while Thayer Central held off the Mustangs for third place with 95 team points.
Senior Landon Scheidemann and junior Griffin Bergen proved to be the individual leaders, as both placed second in their respective weight classes.
In all, Sutton had seven total medalists when the dust settled over the SNC meet.
Scheidemann’s run in the 144-pound class gained him two straight wins to open his day, beginning with a 45-second pin over Tri County’s Jason Sullivan.
In the semifinal round, Scheidemann pinned Fillmore Central’s Caleb Nun in 3:35, before running into Centennial’s Evan Crawford, who claimed a 10-2 major decision win over Scheidemann.
Scheidemann scored 10 team points during his run.
For Bergen, his day in the 175-pound weight class also opened with a pair of wins, both by technical fall. The first over Justin Schwisow of Tri County, coming in 2:12, with the second tech fall coming over Bowen Schweitzer of Milford, with that win coming in 2:54.
In the finals, however, Bergen fell to Fairbury’s Konrad Kuzelka in 50 seconds to place the junior second, after scoring 10 team points.
Korey Poppe earned third-place honors and tallied seven team points in the 132-pound weight class, winning three of four matches along the way.
Poppe opened with a 1:04 pin over Superior’s Xavier Pierce, before Wilber- Clatonia’s Grant Eschit sent Poppe to the consolation bracket, where the Sutton senior finished with a pair of pinfall victories.
Poppe pinned Sandy Creek’s Caden Trollope in 2:16 in the consolation semifinals, before pinning Fillmore Central’s Wyatt Hatterman in 1:49 to place third in his class.
Brody Schelkopf also grabbed a thirdplace finish for the day in the 165-pound weight class.
Schelkopf opened with a 39-second pin over Cesar Galvan of Fairbury, before Milford’s Cory Langenberg gained a 39-second pin over the Sutton junior.
In the consolation bracket, Schelkopf earned a 1:39 pinfall win over Cooper Lefever of Fillmore Central, then placed third in the class with a 1:48 technical fall win over Superior’s Johnny Hinz.
A trio of fourth-place medals went to the Mustangs’ Jose Aranda, Aydin Banta, and Aaron Sanchez.
For Aranda, in the 120-pound class, a 1:19 pinfall loss to Kayden Bolejack of Fillmore Central began his day. In the consolation bracket, Aranda battled back for a 3:39 pin over Brockett Reed of Sandy Creek, before Centennial’s Carter Fritz pinned Aranda in the battle for third and fourth place, pinning Aranda in 1:48.
Aranda scored four team points with his fourth-place finish.
Banta’s run in the 215-pound weight class gained him two wins in four total matches. He opened with a 12-7 win over Jason White of David City, before falling to Thayer Central’s Cole Vonderstrasse by way of a 52-second pin.
In the consolation semifinals, Banta earned a 1:33 pin over David Hodges of Superior, before Tri County’s Nick Sullivan gained a 1:50 pinfall win over Banta to place the Mustangs fourth in his weight class, while scoring four team points.
Sutton’s final medalist was Sanchez, like Banta, Sanchez won two of four matches in the 285-pound weight class, opening with a 1:48 pin over Fairbury’s Payton Arner. Milford’s Garrett Schoen then pinned Sanchez in round two in 41 seconds to send Sanchez into the consolation bracket.
The Mustang’s big man earned an 11-0 major decision win over Emmett Crawford of Centennial, but dropped a tough 3-0 decision in the third and fourth place match to Thayer Central’s James Bonar to place fourth overall, and tally four team points.
TEAM SCORES: Milford 131, David City 100, Thayer Central 95, Sutton 93.5, Tri County 85, Fairbury 83.5, Centennial 77, Fillmore Central 76, Superior 73, Wilber-Clatonia 56, Sandy Creek 38.
LILY GRIESS | CLAY COUNTY NEWS
