HIGH SCHOOL

Bettendorf’s Griffin Liddle reaches finals of 16U freestyle wrestling national championships

Cody Goodwin
The Des Moines Register

Griffin Liddle’s wrestling days are likely numbered. He is a coveted football recruit, a 6-foot-3, 275-pound defensive lineman who’s mean as all get out. He holds offers from Iowa, Iowa State, Michigan State, Minnesota and Nebraska. He will make one of those programs really happy.

He could also probably make any of those schools' wrestling programs really happy, too.

Liddle, a rising junior at Bettendorf, stormed to the finals of the 16U men’s freestyle national championships in Fargo, North Dakota. He went 5-1 and finished as the national runner-up at 285 pounds, losing only to one of the nation’s best at his weight.

In doing so, Liddle further cemented his status as one of the state’s premier athletes. His defensive line play helped Bettendorf to the state semifinals last fall. He reached the Class 3A state finals in wrestling, then followed that with 16U state titles in freestyle and Greco-Roman.

Up in Fargo, Liddle bullied his opponents the same way he bullies offensive linemen.

He won his first five matches by a combined 39-10, scoring three pins and a technical fall. In the finals, he dropped a decisive 11-1 match to Illinois’s Hayden Copass, who’s now a two-time 16U national champ and is ranked No. 4 nationally at heavyweight by Flowrestling.

Liddle’s current athletic path is similar to that of Austin Blythe and Tristan Wirfs. Blythe, a four-time state wrestling finalist and three-time champ for Williamsburg, started for the Los Angeles Rams in the Super Bowl in February. Wirfs, a 2017 state champ for Mount Vernon, is emerging as one of the nation’s best offensive linemen at Iowa.

► More this week:How Iowa's offensive tackle Tristan Wirfs grew (and grew) to be a massive star

So, yes, Liddle’s wrestling days are likely numbered. He’s a consensus three-star football prospect who’s among the country's best defensive linemen.

But he’s also, after this weekend, one of the country’s best heavyweight wrestlers. He will likely crack the national rankings after his showing in Fargo. He has just two years left at Bettendorf before he goes all in on his football pursuits.

In other words, enjoy his wrestling while you still can.

Bettendorf's Griffin Liddle, red, wrestles Interstate 35's Ryley Snell during the U16 Greco-Roman state championships on Sunday, May 5, at Southeast Polk High School. Liddle won by fall in the second period.

Iowa takes 11th in 16U team race

Liddle was one of five Iowa high school wrestlers to earn All-American honors at the 16U men’s freestyle national championships.

The others: Waverly-Shell Rock’s Lucas Walker, fourth at 220 pounds; Underwood’s Nick Hamilton, fifth at 138; West Delaware’s Wyatt Voelker, sixth at 195; and Ankeny’s Trever Anderson, eighth at 106.

Together, they combined to score 20 total points, good for 11th overall in the team race. Pennsylvania ran away with the team title, with 61 points. Minnesota (51), Ohio (50), Georgia (42) and Illinois (40) rounded out the top five.

Here are more takeaways from the action:

Waverly-Shell Rock’s Walker impresses on national stage

In the span of six months, Lucas Walker went from missing out on the state tournament to becoming an All-American.

Walker, a rising-junior at Waverly-Shell Rock, took fourth place at 220 pounds at the 16U men’s freestyle national championships. He went 5-2 overall, winning three straight matches in the wrestlebacks to earn a spot in the top four.

Along the way, Walker beat Washington’s Gage Cook 1-1, thanks to criteria. Cook entered the tournament ranked No. 16 nationally at 220 pounds by Flo. Walker’s stock should rise after this week’s performances.

Not bad for a kid who took third at districts.

► MORE WRESTLING COVERAGE FROM THE DES MOINES REGISTER

Hamilton follows strong freshman season with All-American showing

Underwood’s Nick Hamilton was one of Iowa’s best freshmen last winter. He went 50-3 and reached the Class 1A finals at 138 pounds. He played a key role in the Eagles’ fourth-place team finish and expects to be a crucial part of their future success.

On Monday, Hamilton showed he’s not only one of the best in the state, but also in the nation.

He went 6-2 and placed fifth at 138 pounds at the 16U men’s freestyle national championships. He won three straight matches to reach the quarterfinals, then won twice more in the wrestlebacks to advance to the top six.

In his six victories, Hamilton outscored his opponents 47-9. His only losses came to the wrestlers who placed third and fourth at the weight.

Prior to the weekend, Hamilton couldn’t be found in any national polls or recruiting big boards. After this past year, folks may want to start paying attention.

Voelker slides to sixth

Wyatt Voelker nearly joined Liddle on the big stage Monday afternoon.

The rising sophomore at West Delaware reached the 16U national semifinals at 195 pounds, outscoring his first four opponents by a combined 31-4 while recording two technical falls and a pin.

But he followed that up with three straight losses to slide all the way to sixth place.

Voelker is already considered the No. 35 overall prospect in the 2022 class by Flo. He reached the semifinals and ultimately placed fourth at the Class 2A state tournament last February while wrestling at 170.

He’s a big boy with a bright future ahead, and his showing in Fargo only added to those expectations.

West Delaware's Wyatt Voelker, red, gets his hand raised after winning a match during the U16 Greco-Roman state championships on Sunday, May 5, at Southeast Polk High School.

Ankeny's Anderson makes podium

Ankeny’s Trever Anderson followed his state championship in February with an All-American showing this week.

The rising sophomore went 5-3 and placed eighth at 106 pounds at the 16U men’s freestyle national tournament. After falling to New Jersey prep Evan Tallmadge, the eventual champion, Anderson won three straight matches in the wrestlebacks to secure a spot on the podium.

That’s no small feat, considering the 16U and Junior national championships are widely considered the toughest high school tournaments in the country. Anderson, considered the No. 58 overall prospect in the 2022 class, flashed his mettle along the way, winning all three wrestleback matches by a combined eight points.

Like Hamilton and Voelker, he is part of Iowa's incredibly talented 2022 class. This weekend showed why.

Cody Goodwin covers wrestling and high school sports for the Des Moines Register. Follow him on Twitter at @codygoodwin.

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16U Men’s Freestyle National Championships

Team Iowa All-Americans