West Delaware’s Jax Miller breaks through with district wrestling championship

MANCHESTER — West Delaware’s Jax Miller narrowly missed out on the boys’ state wrestling tournament in 2022 and qualified as a district runner-up in 2023.

On Saturday, in his home gym, the junior Hawk found himself in uncharted territory and for good reason.

Facing top-seeded Jerren Gille of Dubuque Wahlert in the 138-pound final, Miller prevailed with a 4-2 decision and avenged his loss to Gille in the 126-pound final at last year’s district tournament.

At last, Miller reached the top of the podium and earned a district championship.

“It feels good,” Miller said. “I’ve never done it before. It’s nice to get it done.”

West Delaware head coach Jeff Voss believes Miller’s quest for a district championship got started after improving last season.

“He made some big steps last year to get to the state tournament,” Voss said. “He made some even bigger strides this year to climb the ladder a little bit further.

“Everything he’s getting is because he’s worked real hard, and he’s earned it.”

For Miller, every season has been tough, but he’s fought to get better during every practice and every match.

Saturday was no different.

“It’s been a grind my entire high school career,” Miller said. “I just came out here and had fun, scored points and got better.

“That’s one thing we preach at West Delaware is just getting better every day.”

Two other Hawk grapplers who got better on Saturday were freshmen Lucas Peters at 106 pounds and Kooper Waugh at 126. Both advanced to Des Moines with district titles.

Voss said the Hawks’ freshman class isn’t only passionate about wrestling but is also experienced.

That showed on Saturday.

“They love wrestling,” Voss said. “When you have passion for a sport, you can get a lot better. That’s what those kids have done all year.

“They persevered today and all season, but I think they are just getting started.”

The Hawks qualified seven wrestlers for next week’s state tournament at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines and finished in third place in the district with 188 points. West Delaware also qualified Jarrett Engel at 113, Brayden Maury at 120, Blake Mather at 157, and Brent Yonkovic at 175.

New Hampton/Turkey Valley took home the team title with 208 points, while Benton Community came in second with 194 1/2.

The Chickasaws qualified eight for state, with Jax Shekleton, Karson Kolbet, and Braden McShane winning district titles at 150, 157, and 215, respectively. The Bobcats will take five to Des Moines next week, and Elijah Kupka, Brady Patterson, and Troy Kupka were champs at 132, 144, and 190. Benton Community’s additional two state qualifiers were Garrett Kuch at 106 and Brenden Heying at 165.

As for next week, Voss and the Hawks are planning to “let it fly” inside Wells Fargo Arena.

“Our approach is always the same,” Voss said. “We use the next two practices to get better, and we will go out and keep our routine, getting ourselves to compete at our best.”

Miller is ready to compete with his six teammates on the state’s biggest stage. Competition begins Wednesday.

“It’s awesome,” Miller said. “We’ve had a lot of guys that have wanted to get to state. It’s nice to have teammates with me down there.

“We all like to have fun and that’s kind of what wrestling is about.”