South Tama County senior Logan Arp, right, tries to return Carter Fousek of Crestwood to the mat during their Class 2A 138-pound championship match on Saturday night at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines. Fousek became a four-time state champion with a 7-1 win. Looking on from Arp’s corner is head coach Nathan Van Dyke, left, and father Jason Arp. – Photo by Noah Rohlfing

A lot has changed in the handful of years since the last time the South Tama Trojans were wrestling for state titles on Saturday night in late February in Des Moines.

STC’s two-time champion Isaac Judge is now several years into a successful wrestling career with the Iowa State Cyclones, as is former state runner-up Brady Fritz at Wartburg College.

Current senior Logan Arp was an eighth grader tagging along with his dad and older brother Garrett in the Four Seasons wrestling room as the 2017-18 team worked out what would become their third place run at the individual state tournament that season.

Now four years later, STC head coach Nate Van Dyke and the Trojans have found their way back to their sport’s biggest stage, under the brightest lights with the biggest squad since their 2017-18 run.

This year the Trojans qualified four wrestlers for the state tournament including sophomores Amare Chavez (120) and Gavin Bridgewater (220), junior Rudy Papakee (195) as well as Arp (138) who returned for his third and final appearance.

South Tama sophomore Gavin Bridgewater, top, maintains the top position against Barrett Muller of Osage during their Class 2A 220-pound championship match on Saturday at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines. Muller won by fall in 3 minutes, 6 seconds. – Photo by Noah Rohlfing

South Tama’s tournament began with a victory from Class 2A No. 8 Amare Chavez, who made his debut at the state meet with a victory over No. 10 CJ Davis of Burlington-Notre Dame in the first round of action at 120 pounds. Chavez wrestled well from start to finish and recorded two takedowns as part of a 6-0 final margin. He will wrestle Friday in the quarterfinals against No. 2 Kale Petersen of Greene County, who advanced via a pin in 1 minute, 18 seconds.

STC head coach Nathan Van Dyke was impressed with Chavez’s growth this season to get to this point.

“He did an excellent job,” Van Dyke said. “It was dominant from start to finish, he was in control the whole match and he’s improved a lot and put a lot of work in.”

At 138 pounds, No. 3 Logan Arp put in a “workmanlike” performance Thursday to move on to the quarterfinals by defeating Tate O’Shea of Burlington-Notre Dame with a 6-3 decision.

The final first-round match of the day for the Trojans was won by No. 9 Bridgewater at 220 pounds, beating Marcus Herold of New Hampton/Turkey Valley with a technical fall (16-0) in 5:13.

South Tama County sophomore Amare Chavez, top, looks for leverage to turn Sioux Center’s Kade Bauer to his back during their consolation second round match at 120 pounds last Friday at the Iowa High School State Wrestling Championships at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines. Chavez won the match by decision, 7-1, on his way to finishing sixth in Class 2A. – Photo by Ross Thede

Rudy Papakee lost both matches to see his state tournament end Thursday at 195 pounds. His first match was a 12-7 defeat to No. 7 Cole Jeffries of Osage. He then wrestled in the consolation bracket against Curtis Erickson of Vinton-Shellsburg. Leading 5-4 in the third period, Papakee was pinned with just 1:09 remaining in the match.

Van Dyke said he told Papakee to remember how he felt Thursday and use it to come back next year.

“There’s nothing I can really tell him right that’s really gonna make him feel a whole lot better,” Van Dyke said. “Gotta use it for motivation moving forward.”

The high point of the tournament came Friday for the Trojans as both Arp and Bridgewater advanced through their quarterfinal and semifinal rounds to punch their ticket into the championships on Saturday night.

The second-ranked senior Arp celebrated his 3-2 semifinal victory over West Delaware’s second-ranked Brent Yonkovic by spiking his headgear, while the ninth-ranked sophomore Bridgewater capped his first season of high school wrestling by upsetting No. 3 Aiden Morgan of Davenport Assumption with a 2-0 triumph to reach the 220 finals.

South Tama County junior Rudy Papakee tries to scramble away from Osage’s Cole Jeffries during their first-round match at 195 pounds last Thursday at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines. Jeffries won the match by decision, 12-7. – Photo courtesy of Wendy Witt/Meskwaki Media

Arp avenged his loss to Yonkovic from the WaMaC Conference finals with an intelligent, safe performance in the 3-2 semifinal win.

“It means everything, it’s my last chance I’ve been working my whole career for this and now I still have one more to go,” said Arp, “My motivation was not even towards [Yonkovic], it’s just my last chance to do this and I’ve gotta go out and frickin’ get it done, that was my motivation.

“I ain’t running.”

Representing the Columbia Blue and Black in the 2A 220-pound championship match was South Tama’s second-leading scorer on the basketball team from a season ago. Bridgewater returned to the wrestling room after wrestling up until third grade, again in middle school, and now again as a sophomore despite being from a basketball family.

“The pressure to play basketball got to me so I played basketball, but seeing how many people wanted me to wrestle got me to do it and I’m really enjoying it,” Bridgewater said. “We grew up in a basketball family aside from my cousins, but once I got back in the (wrestling) room it just completely changed my whole mindset. It’s family. Once I got in the room, everyone in there’s family now, so being in the finals with another one of us and another guy going tomorrow too is huge.”

South Tama's Gavin Bridgewater placed 2nd in the 2A 220-pound division at the Iowa High School State Wrestling Championships at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines. -- Photo by Darvin Graham

“It’s a heck of a surprise,” Van Dyke said of having two finalists. “2018 was the last time we had two and it doesn’t happen a lot. We knew that was Logan’s goal coming in, but Gavin played basketball last year but we knew he was going to be a good wrestler. Nobody could have predicted this.”

On Friday Chavez suffered a loss by technical fall, 16-1, to No. 2 Kale Petersen of Greene County in his quarterfinal match, but bounced back with a 7-1 triumph over Kade Bauer of Sioux Center and a third-period pin of No. 7 Caelen Oakes-Sudhish of Southeast Valley to set himself up for Saturday’s medal rounds.

Chavez finished in sixth place at 120 pounds, losing both of his consolation matches Saturday afternoon – first a 9-2 decision to Carter Kolthoff and a 2-1 decision in the fifth-place match to Carson Less of West Delaware.

Chavez said the experiences he’s gotten at Wells Fargo Arena, as well as learning from Bridgewater and Arp, will help him make another run next season.

“It’s gonna push me a lot seeing myself and my teammates wrestle hard out there,” Chavez said. “Logan and Gavin are motivating me a lot, both guys are tough and experienced. It’s been a pleasure wrestling with them and I can’t wait to do it again next year.”

South Tama's Logan Arp placed 2nd in the 2A 138-pound division at the Iowa High School State Wrestling Championships at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines. -- Photo by Darvin Graham

First to take the mat Saturday evening was Arp who faced off against three-time state champion Carter Fousek of Crestwood.

In methodical rhythm, Fousek got the better of Arp scoring takedowns in each period en route to a 7-1 decision victory that stung with the heaviness of inevitability from the opening whistle.

Overwhelmed by the loss but able to compose himself, Arp summed up the mixed emotions of the match and said he left everything he had out on the mat.

“It means everything to me,” Arp said. “Been working for this my whole life, and it’s sad it finally came to an end and there’s nothing I can do about it.”

“It was the best feeling I’ve ever felt in my life [when I made finals]. I feel like I finally got here, and now it’s over.”

South Tama's Amare Chavez placed 6th in the 2A 120-pound division at the Iowa High School State Wrestling Championships at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines. -- Photo by Darvin Graham

Heading into the 220-pound final with confidence and, in his eyes, knowing he had a shot, Bridgewater started his finals match against junior Barrett Muller of Osage in good shape.

With a takedown in the first period Bridgewater built a 2-1 lead and had Muller in a difficult position early in the second period.

But, as often is the case in wrestling, one move can decide a match.

A reversal put Bridgewater in a bad spot and it quickly turned into a match-ending pin with 3 minutes, 4 seconds gone. A runner-up finish was a big step forward, but Bridgewater said he feels like he let one get away.

“It sucks that I didn’t get first, I knew I could beat that kid. I just put myself in a bad situation,” Bridgewater said. “There’s so much I want to work on now because I know what to work on and how I can get better.”

“It’s great to know I have all these people behind me and pushing me to get better.”

South Tama will look to return a strong core of wrestlers including two-time state qualifier Rudy Papakee and several from this year’s sophomore class including Bridgewater, Chavez and district qualifiers MaCael Bear and Eligh Branan.

2022 Iowa High School State Wrestling Championships – South Tama Results

2A-120 – Amare Chavez (37-9) placed 6th and scored 9 team points

Champ. Round 1 – Amare Chavez won by decision over CJ Davis (Notre Dame Catholic) 43-8 (Dec 6-0)

Photo courtesy of Wendy Witt/Meskwaki Media

Quarterfinal – Kale Petersen (Greene County) 13-0 won by tech fall over Amare Chavez (TF-16-1)

Cons. Round 2 – Amare Chavez won by decision over Kade Bauer (Sioux Center) 31-18 (Dec 7-1)

Cons. Round 3 – Amare Chavez won by fall over Caelan Oakes-Sudhish (Southeast Valley) 43-7 (Fall 4:11)

Cons. Semi – Carter Kolthoff (BCLUW-SH) 33-3 won by decision over Amare Chavez (Dec 9-2)

5th Place Match – Carson Less (West Delaware) 42-5 won by decision over Amare Chavez (Dec 2-1)

2A-138 – Logan Arp (43-3) placed 2nd and scored 18 team points

Champ. Rnd 1 – Logan Arp won by decision over Tate O`Shea (Notre Dame Catholic) 41-9 (Dec 6-3)

Quarterfinal – Logan Arp won by decision over Brody Hoversten (Iowa Falls-Alden) 18-6 (Dec 11-4)

Semifinal – Logan Arp won by decision over Brent Yonkovic (West Delaware) 40-6 (Dec 3-2)

1st Place Match – Carter Fousek (Crestwood) 22-1 won by decision over Logan Arp (Dec 7-1)

2A-195 – Rudy Papakee (26-14)

Champ. Rnd 1 – Cole Jeffries (Osage) 39-15 won by decision over Rudy Papakee (Dec 12-7)

Cons. Rnd 1 – Curtis Erickson (Vinton-Shellsburg) 30-18 won by fall over Rudy Papakee (Fall 4:51)

2A-220 – Gavin Bridgewater (40-7) placed 2nd and scored 19.5 team points

Champ. Round 1 – Gavin Bridgewater won by tech fall over Marcus Herold (NH/TV) 9-3 (TF-16-0)

Quarterfinal – Gavin Bridgewater won by decision over Tegan Carson (Central Decatur) 48-3 (Dec 5-0)

Semifinal – Gavin Bridgewater won by decision over Aiden Morgan (Assumption Catholic) 33-5 (Dec 2-0)

1st Place Match – Barrett Muller (Osage) 48-6 won by fall over Gavin Bridgewater (Fall 3:06)