The Wrangell High School wrestling team captured the Division II team title at the Southeast Showdown in Juneau on Friday and Saturday, Oct. 23-24, behind three individual champions and a dominant weekend on the mat.

The Wolves placed second in the boys overall standings of Division I and II schools, also coming in second in the girls overall standings of larger and smaller schools according  to the tournament scorekeeping.

As a squad, Wrangell compiled a 39-18 match record and recorded 28 pins across the two-day event held at the George Houston Gymnasium at Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé. 

Tournament coaches voted Wrangell’s Jackson Carney and Kourtney Barnes as the event’s outstanding wrestlers.

Carney remained undefeated on the season in the 152-pound class, pushing his individual record to 16-0. Barnes and Jenna Meissner also claimed individual championships in their respective weight classes (132 and 107) to pace the Wolves.

Meissner finished 3-0 on the weekend, highlighted by a dramatic come-from-behind victory. After trailing by approximately 11 points in one match, she rallied to turn her opponent over and secure a fall.

“She is just a fighter,” head coach Jack Carney said. “She doesn’t look like it when she walks out there, but rather when the whistle blows ... she kind of answers. When she gets in her different headspace, it’s kind of fun to watch.”

Wrangell held off conference challengers including Mt. Edgecumbe, Sitka and Petersburg to secure the top spot among Division II programs. The host Crimson Bears, competing in Division I, earned the overall boys and girls team championships. 

“We started off a little slow, but we figured things out and the freshmen and sophomores did what they needed to do,” Carney said.

Beyond the three champions, younger grapplers delivered key team points. Freshman Thomas Rohr-Wickman earned five wins over the weekend, pushing his season mark to 10 victories. Freshman Michael Barnes took fifth place in the 145-pound bracket with four wins, two coming by fall.

Lucas Stearns bounced back from a close defeat to capture third place, finishing the tournament with a 4-1 record, while freshman Jayden Daugherty battled back to win his bracket after dropping out of championship contention.

“I’m feeling really good about our competition, and I’m really excited about the schools that are performing at a high level, because that’s just getting us sharpened up,” Carney said.

The Southeast Showdown drew approximately 250 wrestlers across Southeast Alaska and Anchorage.

Wrangell travels to Anchorage next for the Mountain City Christian Academy tournament on Friday and Saturday, Oct. 30-31. The event serves as the premier regular-season showcase for small-school programs across the state.