Mount Ayr Record-News
Mount Ayr, Ringgold County, Iowa
Thursday, February 05, 2015

Members of the 2014-2015 Mount Ayr Community Raider Wrestling Team include:

Front Row, L-R: Katie Holmes, Jordan Roberts, Gavin Dine, Marcus Daughton, Jonathan Vanbuskirk, Trevor Anderson, Grant Staats and Ashley Paxson;

Second Row, L-R: Coach John Ford, Joe Ricker, Cauy Bickel, Logan Kelley, Justin Weehling, Cal Daughton, Coach Kurt Wallace and Coach Dylan Lane.

Photograph courtesy of Mount Ayr Record-News

Transcription by Sharon R. Becker, February of 2015

Mount Ayr Record-News
Mount Ayr, Ringgold County, Iowa
Thursday, February 12, 2015, Page 9

A pair of proud Raider senior wrestlers stand on the podium following last Saturday's sectional tournament at Southeast Warren. Joe Ricker (left) remains undefeated and is currently the top-ranked 285-pounder in Class 1A. Grant Staats (right) placed second to advance to Saturday's district meet at Interstate 35, Truro. The top two finishers at the district will advance to state competition.

It was a solid performance for the Raiders. Their lack of experience kept them from scoring any highter and having any more district qualifiers.

At 285 Joe Ricker had one of he easiest sectional brackets of his high school career. He was recently ranked number one in the state and he lived up to that ranking. Both victories were by fall and neither opponent made it through the first period.P>After a first-round bye Ricker faced faced Tristan Lloyd of West Central Valley. Lloyd did not have a chance as Ricker took him down, put him on his back for a five count and then pinned him in 0:42.

It was just as easy for Ricker in his first place match against Elijah Williams of Southest Warren. After headlocking Williams to his back, Ricker put his legs in and started power halting him to his back. He did a series of about 4 of these as he rolled to a 14-0 score. Mercifully the referee ended the contest with five seconds remaining in the first period.

Grant Staats at 145 got a workout in his three matches that qualified him for districts. In his first match he won by fall over Austin Beener of Interstate 35. Beener seemed susceptible to the double-leg takedown, and Staats used this move effectively against him to score four take-downs in the match. In the third period Staats was leading 14-3 when he ended the match in a time of 5:15.

In the semifinals, Staats' match with Alex Craig of Martensdale-St. Marys was close for awhile. Staats scored a takedown and gave up an escape in the first period. The second period was scoreless, but in the third period Staats really turned it on. He escaped from Craig, scored a takedown and got the fall in a flurry of about 30 seconds.

In the first place match Staats lost a major decision to Gabe Henderson of Southeast Warren. Henderson placed at state last year, and Staats was able to only score a reversal and an escape against him. Staats placed second when Craig of Martensdale-St. Marys won the third place match.

At 106 Jordan Roberts placed sixth. . . AT 113 Adrian Richards placed fifth; she lost her only match of the day to Tye Joint of West Central Valley by fall.

At 120 Marcus Daughton placed third. . . At 132 Devin Russo placed third. . . At 138 Jonathan Van Bruskirk placed fourth . . . The 152-pound class was probably the toughest weight class of the day; Cal Daughton placed fourth here. . . . At 160 Hunter Wilson placed fifth. . . At 182 Justin Weehling placed fourth. . . At 220 Logan Kelley placed fourth.

The Mount Ayr Raiders closed out the regular wrestling season with duals against Maryville, Missouri and Bedford/Lenox on Tuesday, February 3.

The Raiders split the two duals with a 51-28 win over Maryville and a 56-22 loss to Bedford-Lennox.

Trevor Anderson (top) and Justin Weehling pick up pins in the final dual of the season last week.

Photographs courtesy of Mount Ayr Record-News
Transcription by Sharon R. Becker, February of 2015

Mount Ayr Record-News
Mount Ayr, Ringgold County, Iowa
Thursday, February 16, 2015, Page 8

One Raider will advance to the state wrestling tournament this week in Des Moines. Mount Ayr 285-pounder Joe Ricker went undefeated in the Class 1A District 2 wrestling tournament Saturday, February 14 to capture the district crown and keep his season alive.

Ricker and Grant Staats had advanced to the districts. Staats, however, saw his season and high school career come to a close as he lost both of his matches to finish fourth.

The district tournament was about as easy for Ricker as the sectional tournament was. He won both his matches by a fall.

Ricker won the championship match with a 2:30 pin of Coy Maher of Riverside. He had wrestled Maher twice before so the Riverside wrestler was prepared for some of the Raider's moves. Despite the loss, Maher also qualified for state.

Ricker opens state tournament action at 6 p.m. Thursday, February 19, as the top-ranked heavy weight in Class 1A. He now has 46 victories and no defeats for the season and currently holds the school record for wins and pins in a career.

Grant Staats entered the tournament as a decided underdog to the other three wrestlers in the 145-pound bracket.

Staats ends a fine season with 37 wins and an outstanding high school career with over 100 wins.

Transcription by Sharon R. Becker, February of 2015

Mount Ayr Record-News
Mount Ayr, Ringgold County, Iowa
Thursday, February 26, 2015, Page 8

Joe Ricker's quest for an individual state wrestling championship came up just short as he was defeated in the finals of the state tournament. The tournament at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines ran from Thursday, February 19 through Saturday, February 21.

The 285 bracket was exceptionally tough this year in Class 1A as nine of the top ten ranked heavyweights made it into the tournament. Ricker had tough matches all the way through the tournament, and all of them went the distance. This was different for him this season as all but two of his 46 regular-season victories had been by fall.

. . . .The conclusion of the state tournament ends a brilliant high school career for the Raider heavyweight. He ends his career with two state placings. He is one of six Mount Ayr wrestlers to place second in the state tournament. Curt Braby remains the only Raider wrestler to ever win state.

Ricker had numerous tournament championship. He was Pride of Iowa conference champion all four years. He rewrote the Mount Ayr wrestling record book with numerious records including most career victories, most career pins and most career team points. He hold the school season records for most vicitories and most team points. He is in the state record books for his 104 career pins and his career 176 victories. He was a three-time Brute National All-American.

He has made his school and community proud of his achievements, and he will be remembered as one of the greats in Raider wrestling history.

Joe Ricker (fourth from left) is one of only six Raider wrestlers in history to place second at the state tournament.

Photographs courtesy of Mount Ayr Record-News
Transcription by Sharon R. Becker, February of 2015