Liberty boys wrestling: A Jays dynasty
LIBERTY, Mo. — The Liberty Boys’ Wrestling dynasty commenced in the 2018/2019 season when the Jays finished second place behind the CBC Cadets at the Class 4 state championship. It was a close score, 169.5 finishing first and 159.5 finishing second. Liberty’s point total would have been enough to win the previous seven state championships. Since then, the Blue Jays have dominated the Missouri high school wrestling world, with four straight Class 4 titles, smashing the competition and sending multiple D1-level wrestlers to college wrestling programs yearly.
Below, we will highlight a few members of the current team who will go for Liberty’s fifth state title in 2024. Through mid-January, the team is ranked #1 in Class 4 again.
Missouri Class 4 State Boys Wrestling Results 2019-2023
2019: (1) CBC, 169.5 (2) Liberty, 159.5 (3) Park Hill, 146.5
2020: (1) Liberty, 241 (2) Park Hill, 146.5 (3) Staley, 121
2021: (1) Liberty, 226 (2) CBC, 117 (3) Jeff City/Nixa, 81
2022: (1) Liberty, 214.5 (2) Seckman, 114, (3) Staley, 92.5
2023: (1) Liberty, 218 (2) Fr. Howell Central, 90 (3) Staley, 88
Recent Jays state champions include four-time winner Jeremiah Reno, who went 179-0 in high school; three-time state winner Kyle Dutton; and two-time state champion Wentric Williams III. Recent state champions include Kage Lenger, Christopher Coates, and Greyden Penner. It is a cauldron of excellence in the Liberty wrestling room.
The Jays wrestle in the biggest and the baddest regional and national tournaments they can early in the season, including the Dan Gable Donnybrook in Iowa, the West Jesuit Ironman in Ohio, and the KC Stampede, which has over sixty teams from ten different states. Liberty has won the Stampede the past two seasons. By the time these wrestlers get to district competition, they have already wrestled through an intense gauntlet of tremendous opponents.
“We make our schedule as tough as possible because we want those early season losses,” says Jays head coach Dustin Brewer. “We want to be able to come back after a tournament or come back after a duel and be like, okay, this is where we need to get better. Without a tough schedule, it’s hard to make improvements. So, it’s good for us. It is good for our team and good for us individually if we take a loss in the early season and come back and find ways to improve.”
“I’ve learned from the coaches that when you’ve lost a match, you haven’t really lost because you can learn something from it,” says senior Gavin Linsman. “Now it’s time to go figure something else out that you might need to work on when you lose. You get shown your weaknesses, so you can work on those things. And that’s something I feel like I have learned from my coaches.”
Linsman has wrestled since age four. He is going for his fourth consecutive state title this year. He is ranked #1 in the state at 144 pounds and will likely wrestle at 150 pounds for the state. He has committed to attend North Carolina State next season to wrestle for the Wolfpack. In his free time, off-season, he likes to do trail runs in the woods, play pickleball with his friends, and go to church, something he tries to do every weekend, in-season or not. His faith is important to him.
Linsman grew up in St. Louis but has thrived since becoming a Liberty Blue Jay.
“I like being part of a team where everybody’s chasing the same goal and is determined to win. Everybody is focused. It really pushes you as an athlete to excel. Everybody on the team is working to win. Everybody’s pushing each other to be their best every day in the wrestling room. We all want to succeed, and we all want to see each other succeed. So, we’re going to push each other as hard as we can—that is the coolest thing about our practice room,” says Linsman.
For returning state runner-up at 285 pounds, junior Trenton Bindel, the wrestling season means changing gears. The all-state football lineman must quickly refocus after a long football season.
“It’s kind of like a switch in my brain,” says Bindel. “I’ve gone through football, and it’s football mode, but when wrestling season hits, it’s just that flip switches, and that is like kick it off to getting in wrestling shape. I’ve been working with my coaches a lot and putting in a lot of extra work this year, trying to push the pace.”
As of late January, Bindel is ranked #3 in the state out of all wrestlers at 285 pounds in all classes. He finished fourth at the Dan Gable Donnybrook and fourth at the KC Stampede. Excellent early season work.
Two of Bindel’s brothers, Trevor and Ace, were also All-State in football this season.
“We’re very competitive as a family,” says Bindel. “So, we all push each other to the best possible. My twin still comes in and wrestles me. And we go at it in practice, but like we just have a friendly competition between all of us.”
“The coaches do an amazing job. I think our coaching staff is one of the best in the state, and they push us to be the absolute best we can be,” says Bindel.
Another outstanding junior on the Jays squad is Peyton Westpfhal, ranked #1 in the state at 175 pounds. He is nationally ranked, winning the KC Stampede, finishing second at the Donnybrook, and sixth at the Walsh Ironman. He is a two-time Fargo All-American. Westpfhal is already committed to attending Mizzou to be part of the outstanding Tiger program.
Being part of the Jays team has helped Westpfhal develop a lot. “Especially my freshman year, I learned that no matter how good you are, there’s always going to be someone better,” says Westpfhal. “Even people on my own team. There are a lot of nationally ranked-guys here. Because our team is so good, we have to travel a lot and get to a lot of big, hard tournaments where we get to push ourselves there, too. So, being a part of this team is great.”
“When I’m out there, I’m not just trying to win for myself; I’m trying to get a bonus for the team,” says Westpfhal. “That’s definitely what wins titles for teams. It’s not only about yourself but about doing what’s better for the team.”
Ranked #2 overall in the state at 126 pounds is junior Devon Harrison. He finished fifth at the Donnybrook and the KC Stampede this season. He has been All-State two times, state runner-up at 113 pounds, and finished as a Fargo All-American.
“I feel like we have the best coaching staff in Missouri,” says Harrison. “Coach Brewer is a great head coach. He pushes us all and makes sure we’re doing the things that we need to do to be the best that we can be. Then our assistant coaches like Bricker Dixon and Kenzie McClain and my dad, Earl Harrison, push us in different areas that we need to work on every day.”
“It is pretty exciting being on a team like this,” says Harrison. “Most kids don’t get to experience it. Being on the best team gives you confidence.”
Senior Hunter Taylor is ranked first in the state at 120 pounds and is committed to attending Oregon State University next year. He was the state champ at 113 in 2022 and repeated as champ at 120 in 2023. He is ranked in the top four nationally. This season, he won the KC Stampede and the Donnybrook. He finished second at the Walsh Ironman. He is also a two-time Fargo National Champion.
“It’s my senior season, so it’s a little bit different from the previous ones,” says Taylor. “As One of the older guys, I’m looked at as more of a leader. So, I have helped the younger guys. I’ve been working with our freshmen, trying to get them prepared for their first season. But that helps me become better at wrestling just by helping them. Teaching is the best. It makes me think a little bit more about different positions.”
Taylor looks forward to the future at Oregon State. His dad is from Montana. With the mountains, the hunting, and the fishing there, Corvallis seemed like a natural fit for him. But he still has business to take care of during his senior season on the Jays, with the apparent goal of winning another individual title and a team title.
“Multiple teammates succeeding at the state tournament and peaking the state tournament to place high or win is what scores you points,” says Taylor. “So, watching them get first, or second, or placing at the state tournament, whatever their goals are, and seeing them reach their goals, is amazing.”
Besides the championships and accolades, all the members of the Jays wrestling team are in the unique position to have an opportunity to learn a lot about themselves and how they will face their future.
“Wrestling made me the person I am today,” says Gavin Linsman. “It made me a hard worker. When I go to a job interview in the future, I love knowing that having been a high-level athlete in wrestling is something people will want to see because it shows that I’m a hard worker and persistent. These are things you learn through wrestling. When things get hard, you just have to keep working. Wrestling has taught me that. And I don’t know that I could have learned as much in other sports as I’ve learned these things from wrestling.”
Best of luck to the team on reaching their goals and winning championship number five this season. We know for the long-term, the coaching staff at Liberty High School is creating a wrestling dynasty that the community can be proud of and creating and fostering an environment that develops great people.
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