5A regional qualifies 23 for state wrestling tourney

Braves, Pirates, Sabres sending six wrestlers to Park City

Feb 24, 2025

Piper senior Tannar McDaniel flung Basehor-Linwood’s Hudson Vanderweide to the mat in the fifth-place match at the 5A East regional wrestling tournament. Vanderweide held on for a 1-0 decision.

Twenty-three wrestlers from five Wyandotte County high schools earned a place in the state tournament with their performance at the KSHSAA 5A regional tournament held Friday and Saturday at Basehor-Linwood High School.

Bonner Springs, Piper, and Sumner high schools will each be sending six wrestlers to the competition in Park City, Kan., starting Friday, Feb. 28.

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Piper’s squad got its top placement from senior Keith Slaughter, who finished third in the 144-pound weight class. Slaughter is a three-time state powerlifting champion who qualified for state in wrestling his sophomore year, but missed the tournament last year.

All-state defensive back Tannar McDaniel just started wrestling in his senior year, but his athletic gifts and work ethic translated well from the field to the mat. He qualified by placing sixth in the 175-pound class.

Turner senior Kaden Roebuck is headed back to the state tournament for the third time. He placed sixth at state last year and qualified third in this year’s regional. Roebuck pinned Kael Westgate, a Shawnee Heights senior with a 30-12 record, in just 46 seconds in the placement match.

Bonner Springs senior Frankie Garcia is also headed to his third straight state tournament. Garcia lost in the semi-final to former Braves teammate Jeremy Welch, but recovered to win his last two matches, besting Leavenworth’s Samuel Vasquez in the 126-pound third-place match. Welch — now wrestling for Lansing — won the regional title.