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The journey to every state tournament medal is unique.

Every one involves some level of hard work and sacrifice, the usual clichés. But each podium finish means something different to its respective place winner.

Below are stories of three seniors who claimed hardware Saturday afternoon.

Division 1

132 pounds

Janesville Craig senior Nate Ellis made the most of his final season.

Not only did he break through with his first trip to State, he ended his career on the podium at the Kohl Center, netting a sixth-place finish.

Ellis made it to Friday’s semifinal round where he fell to Thomas Severson of D.C. Everest, 8-3.

“Really, the goals all year have been: win conference and qualify for State and the other one was get on the podium,” Ellis said. “After I won my first two matches Thursday night, I got it. I wasn’t able to finish how I wanted to. But I gave it all I had.”

A 5-3 loss to Isaac Riddle (Germantown) in sudden victory Saturday morning relegated Ellis to the fifth-place match.

“It was so close. Giving up that two reversal with, like, five seconds left killed me,” said Ellis. “I knew I could beat him and I should have. It is what it is.”

In the fifth-place match, he dropped an 8-1 decision to Oshkosh West’s Reese Thompson.

Throughout the weekend, Ellis had nearly two dozen family members cheering him on. Some came from as far as Tennessee and Florida.

“We had a big section for all these matches. It was nice to those supporters there, that’s for sure,” Ellis said. “It was nice to get them all together and to have them here supporting me.”

With his competitive responsibilities completed, Ellis plans to shift his focus off the mat.

“I’m done, so now I can hang out with my family and I can eat,” Ellis said.

What’s on the menu?

“Whatever’s in front of me, I guess. I’m just ready to bulk back up and feel good again.”

Division 2

145

Max Ward’s first state tournament medal was a long time coming.

This year marked the fourth trip to Madison for the standout from Elkhart Lake-Glenbeulah/Howards Grove. He was winless in his three previous appearances.

Ward dropped his quarterfinal match to Ryan Hannah (Viroqua) on Friday via a 5-1 decision.

After making his way back through the consolation bracket, Ward ran into Hannah again. This time, with third-place on the line.

Saturday’s matchup was much closer, but Ward fell 3-1 in a tiebreaker.

“I just wanted to beat him this time because he beat me in the quarterfinals. He’s a great wrestler,” Ward said. “It’s a good match to go out on.”

Though the last match of his high school career ended in defeat, Ward was able to keep things in perspective. He’s headed home with some hardware. Not bad for a guy who came to Madison this weekend in search of his first state tournament win.

“It feels great, especially the way I did it,” Ward said. “The two wins I had down here were a tech fall and a pin, so it feels good.”

Division 3

145

Last offseason, Johnson Creek’s Weston Wichman had surgery scheduled to repair a torn labrum in his right shoulder.

The procedure would, in all likelihood, end his senior season before it even started.

But as the story goes, former Olympian Ben Askren, one of the owners of Askren Wrestling Academy in Hartland, helped persuade Wichman to pursue rehab rather than going under the knife.

Even so, Wichman’s return to the mat, much less the state tournament, was far from guaranteed.

Through hard work and the support of countless individuals, Wichman returned to competition at regionals two weeks ago. He carried a perfect 6-0 record into this year’s state tournament.

Wichman, a three-time state qualifier and former state runner-up, was determined to reach the top of the podium.

However, a gold medal wasn’t in the cards.

Wichman dropped a semifinal match to Nathan Roach of Ladysmith Friday night, his first loss of the season.

Saturday morning, he bested Riley Blair of Fennimore in the consolation semifinals 7-3.

Later on, Stratford’s Jake Drexler pinned Wichman in the first period of the third-place match.

Given all he has gone through, fourth-place in the state tournament in nothing to shrug at. But for Wichman, ever the fierce competitor, the result stung.

Though he was far from satisfied, Wichman eventually brought himself to acknowledge that he was pleased with his effort.

“The goal was to give it 100 percent and I did,” Wichman said. “It didn’t turn out the way I wanted to but I gave it all I could.”

To say wrestling is everything for Wichman is an understatement.

“It’s pretty much been my life,” Wichman said. “I’ve missed a lot of stuff. I haven’t done a lot of things because I’ve had wrestling, which I’m fine with. I enjoy wrestling. I would turn down a lot of stuff to go to a wrestling practice.”

His future plans are still up in the air. But Wichman knows the sport is part of them.

“I’ll wrestle in college,” Wichman said. “I’ll wrestle as hard as I can and hopefully make a life out of wrestling.”