Twelve of the 13 WEM/JWP wrestlers placed in the top six at the Section 2AA Wrestling Tournament. The tournament was held Saturday, Feb. 21 at JWP High School.
WEM/JWP had two champions, senior Brady Murphy (139 pounds) and junior Aiden Gruber (152 pounds) and two runners-up, junior Trenton Huber (189 pounds) and junior Kavan Sheehy (215 pounds). All four will represent the Grizzlies at the Class A State Wrestling Tournament this week in St. Paul at Grand Casino Arena.
Placing third were 7th grader Otto Root (114 pounds), junior Trey Richards (127 pounds), and freshman Brenden Masso (133 pounds). Placing fourth were junior Parker James (145 pounds) and senior Charles Adams (172 pounds). Placing sixth were 8th grader Demien Reyes (107 pounds), seventh grader Finn Root (121 pounds), and sophomore Quinn Anderson (285).
Murphy pinned Blue Earth Area junior Layden Bassett in 27 seconds in the semifinals. In the championship he edged Kenyon-Wanamingo senior Luke Johnson, 2-0. Murphy is 31-7 heading to State.
“Brady Murphy can be described in one word: tough. He battled through an injury that made it difficult to even get into the referee’s position, yet he never wavered. Murphy wasn’t seriously challenged until the finals, where Johnson from KW created a few scrambles that briefly put his section championship in question. In the end, Brady’s grit and composure prevailed,” co-head coach Adam Roesler said. “No matter the sport or his health status, when Murphy steps onto the mat or into competition, you know he will give everything he has. He embodies what it means to be a true competitor. Our coaching staff was extremely impressed with his determination in earning the Section 2A Championship.”
Gruber dominated his weight class, recording a 16-9 decision over Triton freshman Cruz Cain and pinning Medford sophomore Gage Becker-Wolf in 20 seconds. In the championship, Gruber picked up a 19-4 technical fall of Westfield sophomore Cayden Maly. Gruber will head to State with a 12-7 record.
“Gruber didn’t sneak into the tournament - he dominated it. He rolled through the competition with a major decision, a pin, and a technical fall to claim the Section Championship,” Roesler said. “While he’s giving up some size at the higher weight, he competed with confidence and never looked deterred.”
Huber avenged two earlier season losses to advance into the Section finals. He recorded an 11-3 major decision over Triton senior Wylie Deml in the quarterfinals and decisioned St. Clair senior Luke Vaughn, 6-3, in the semifinals. In the championship, No. 1 seed NRHEG junior Ryan Schlaak improved to 33-2 with a fall in 49 seconds. Huber will advance to State with a 28-13 record.
Trent Huber’s story this season has....
To see more on this story pick up the February 26, 2026 print edition of the LifeEnterprise.