After finishing first and fourth in their respective weight divisions, seniors Nate Titcomb and Oscar Archuleta qualified for the State wrestling tournament, where they failed to make it to the podium, ending their fourth and final year of wrestling at MSHS.

Titcomb swept Regionals for his 195-lb division, finishing first place and qualifying for State as a 4th seed.

“I had a pretty good record but I really showed up for Regionals,” said Titcomb. “I had three matches and I won all of them.”

Titcomb will receive the first Regional Champion plaque that any Manitou wrestler has achieved since 2008; his name and weight will be added to the board of plaques in the New Gym that dates back to 1977.

Archuleta came into Regionals with a record of 1-3, having only wrestled in four matches during the season after a dislocated shoulder put him out of competition.

“The season was fun while I was there,” said Archuleta. “I was able to help out the freshmen while I was injured.”

Despite this, Archuleta, who wrestles above his own weight in 160s, came out of Regionals with a 5-4 record, finishing fourth place in 160s and qualifying for State as a 12th seed.

“It felt really good. I was really happy to realize that I actually had some talent.”

Titcomb lost his first match at State on Thursday, Feb. 21, but followed up with a win on Friday. He was set to wrestle for tournament survival again that night, but lost and was knocked out of the tournament.

Archuleta lost his first two matches on points, knocking him out of State early as well.

Titcomb summed up his final year of high school wrestling, and the second year in which he went to State.

“The season didn’t end the way that I wanted, but it was still a pretty successful season,” said Titcomb. “It was fun and I was happy to make it to State again.”

Archuleta also explained his thoughts on his last season, which almost did not exist.

“You know, I was actually thinking about quitting this year, but my mom told me to stick it out for my senior year, and I end up making it to State.”

By Keegan Bockhorst