AFNORTH’s Logan Conrad gets on top of Alconbury’s Luis Payares during their bout at the DODEA-Europe wrestling sectional at Ramstein High School, Germany, on Feb. 1, 2025. Conrad won the match and went on to finish third in the 126-pound weight class. (Jennifer H. Svan/Stars and Stripes)
RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany – With another year of DODEA Europe high school wrestling nearly in the books, more than 140 wrestlers took to the mat on Saturday hoping to extend their seasons for a few more days.
Up for grabs at the Ramstein High School sectional was an automatic qualification to the European wrestling championships, which start Thursday in Wiesbaden.
Among those punching his first ticket to the tourney was Lakenheath’s Adrian Hill. The junior pinned his way to Euros, winning each of his three matches on Saturday by fall. Anyone leaving to get a refreshment during Hill’s bouts missed the action: Hill ended up pinning his first two opponents in a little over a minute, while his final match, against Spangdahlem’s Hudson Hulet, lasted one minute and 46 seconds.
“I just went in and handled business,” Hill said afterwards.
Hill, in only his first year of competitive wrestling, has strung together an undefeated season. He credits his Lakenheath teammates for helping him train and close the gap on those more experienced in the sport.
“I have great training partners,” he said.
Some weight categories, like Hill’s, were loaded with six or more entrants, with the top three in those brackets earning automatic bids to the championship. For sparser-filled weight classes, wild-card entrants from Ramstein and two other DODEA-Europe sectionals also held on Saturday, will be selected over the next few days to fill out the championship brackets in Wiesbaden.
At Ramstein, 26 girls wrestled across eight different weight categories, and qualified separately for the championships.
Ramstein junior Lilianna Greene said it was the most girls “by a long shot” she’s seen competing at sectionals.
“It’s growing for us,” she of a sport she’s been a part of for 11 years and counting.
Greene has gone undefeated this year, with no points scored against her so far, she said.
“It’s been a pretty good season,” she said.
In her first bout, she pinned Baumholder’s Alyssa Meas in 22 seconds, and in the finals, she beat Alconbury freshman Maya Reyes with a 1-0 decision.
Ramstein junior Lilianna Greene battles Alconbury freshman Maya Reyes in a bout on Saturday, Feb. 1, 2025, at the DODEA-Europe wrestling sectional tournament at Ramstein High School, Germany. Greene won both her matches at the meet to continue her unbeaten streak this season and qualify for the European championships in the 105-pound weight class. (Jennifer H. Svan/Stars and Stripes)
Spangdahlem senior Caleb Truscott defeated Ramstein’s Julian Paucar by a 9-5 decision in the 126-pound championship bout on Saturday, Feb. 1, 2025, at the DODEA-Europe wrestling sectional tournament at Ramstein High School, Germany. Both Truscott and Paucar qualified for the European championships. (Jennifer H. Svan/Stars and Stripes)
Ramstein’s Spencer Jackson won the 175-pound weight class championship match against Lakenheath’s Wesson Roney by an 8-1 decision, on Saturday, Feb. 1, 2025, at the DODEA-Europe wrestling sectional tournament at Ramstein High School, Germany. (Jennifer H. Svan/Stars and Stripes)
Ramstein senior Isaac Martinez out-dueled Kaiserslautern junior Peyton Allen to win the 157-pound bracket at the DODEA-Europe wrestling sectional tournament at Ramstein High School, Germany, on Feb. 1, 2025. Martinez took the match by technical fall, 23-6. (Jennifer H. Svan/Stars and Stripes )
James Bennett, an AFNORTH senior, won the 150-pound weight class championship match with a pin against Ramstein freshman Xavier Schumacher, on Saturday, Feb. 1, 2025, at the DODEA-Europe wrestling sectional tournament at Ramstein High School, Germany. (Jennifer H. Svan/Stars and Stripes)
Greene will have some company at Europeans. Ramstein dominated the girls’ competition, taking first in every weight class except two.
Sophomore Alejandra Sanner took the 130-pound bracket for the Royals, getting a pin on Lakenheath’s Peyton Caranta in 2:16 for her second win on the day.
“It’s an art form” she said of wrestling. “I love it so much. I could do it forever.”
A few wrestlers qualified for the championship in a new weight class, deciding to see how they fare either up or down on the scale.
Spangdahlem’s Hulet dropped weight, from 285 to 215 pounds, by changing his diet and exercise routine over the summer.
“I didn’t like how slow we wrestled,” he said. “I like to shoot for legs; they don’t do that in the 285 (pounds).”
Coming into sectionals, he lost two of 14 matches, he said, but now has to face Hill again at the European championships.
Ramstein senior Kydan Echard won’t be defending his 150-pound title from last year after bulking up for football this fall and moving up to 165 pounds. The heftier weight class hasn’t fazed him. Echard is undefeated this year and topped off sectionals on Saturday with a pin of Lakenheath’s Matthew Mihalyi.
“It’s my last year,” he said. “I have nothing to lose. I’m just here to have fun, do my job, support and win points for my team and hopefully win a championship.”
Spangdahlem sophomore Troy Truscott tussles with Lakenheath junior Christian Dey in the 132-pound weight class during the DODEA-Europe wrestling sectional tournament at Ramstein High School, Germany, on Saturday, Feb. 1, 2025. Truscott finished second in the bracket behind Kaiserslautern’s Joshua Kim, while Dey was third. All three qualified for the European championships in Wiesbaden. (Jennifer H. Svan/Stars and Stripes)
Alconbury junior Kieran Quiqley outlasted Ramstein’s Ryan Parvin during their match at the DODEA-Europe wrestling sectional tournament at Ramstein High School, Germany, on Saturday, Feb. 1, 2025. Quigley went on to win his bracket at 144 pounds, punching his ticket to the European championships, which start Thursday, Feb. 6, in Wiesbaden. (Jennifer H. Svan/Stars and Strip)
Kaiserslautern’s Joshua Kim, right, faces off against Spangdahlem’s Troy Truscott in the 132-weight class championship round at the DODEA-Europe wrestling sectional at Ramstein High School, Germany, on Saturday, Feb. 1, 2025. Kim won by a 9-3 decision. Both Kim and Truscott qualified for the European championships. (Jennifer H. Svan/Stars and Stripes)
Ramstein junior Rhys Barlow battled Alconbury’s Jacob Stuhler at the DODEA-Europe wrestling sectional at Ramstein High School, Germany, on Saturday, Feb. 1, 2025. Barlow ended up pinning Stuhler in one minute, 35 seconds to take the title in the 138-pound bracket. (Jennifer H. Svan/Stars and Stripes)
Ramstein’s Kydan Echard looks at the referee en route to pinning Lakenheaths Matthew Mihalyi in one minute, 53 seconds at the DODEA-Europe wrestling sectional at Ramstein High School, Germany, on Feb. 1, 2025. Echard won his 165-pound weight class and Mihalyi was runner-up. (Jennifer H. Svan/Stars and Stripes)
Spangdahlem senior Emma Simpson battles against her teammate, freshman Alexis Farmakis, at the DODEA-Europe wrestling sectional at Ramstein High School, Germany, on Feb. 1, 2025. Simpson went on to win the match and finish second overall in the 140-pound girls’ weight class. (Jennifer H. Svan/Stars and Stripes)
