When the state wrestling tournament begins in Rapid City on Thursday, the Aberdeen Central wrestling team will be looking to bring home some championship hardware. The Golden Eagles bring a total of 16 wrestlers to the tournament, with 13 boys and three girls competing for individual state championships. The team will also compete in the dual team championships, taking on top-seeded Brandon Valley in the opening round.

Central wrestling coach Donnie Bowden noted that his individual wrestlers have the goal of getting on the podium.

“We’re just hoping to place above our seeds, and we’re just gonna see how high they get up the podium,” Bowden said.

The Golden Eagles have several wrestlers in the top eight entering the tournament, including all three qualifiers in the girls’ tournament. Madyson Gillen (31-8) will be wrestling at 113 and is seeded fifth, Katrina Gibson (32-8) will be competing at the 154-pound class and is seeded second, and Autumn Gauer (14-10) will wrestle at 285 and is seeded sixth.

On the boys’ side, Rayden Zens boasts a 41-4 record in the 126-pound weight class, Mason Schrempp is 32-6 in the 145-pound class, and Jacob Krenz is 37-10 in the heavyweight class. Both Zens and Schrempp are seeded third, while Krenz is seeded fourth.

The Golden Eagles will also have several other wrestlers looking to make the podium this weekend.

“We’ve got a whole other group of them that are seeded right there in that top-eight, top-nine,” Bowden said. “We’re looking to place quite a few and we’re looking to have a good weekend.”

Bowden knows his team can compete with the best wrestlers in the state on any given day.

“They have all shown glimpses this year that they can wrestle with the best, and we’re hoping that we can do a little bit more of that this weekend,” Bowden said.

The state tournament will take place in Rapid City at the Monument Thursday through Saturday.

Other area wrestlers to keep an eye on at the Class A state tournament this weekend include:

106: Owen Fischer, Milbank (29-9); 120: Ian Metz, Sisseton (13-1); 132: Holden Hawkins, Sisseton (36-10); 170: Barrett Schneck, Milbank (29-0); 182: Mason Shultz, Sisseton (28-9).