By ALEXANDER SIMONE

Staff writer

With four returning state qualifiers, Hillsboro wrestling coach Scot O’Hare has high hopes for this season.

“We feel pretty good about the group we have,” he said. “We obviously have a pretty good core of returning wrestlers coming back.”

With returning state qualifiers 138-pounder Garrett Helmer, 152-pounder Jordan Bachman, and 160-pounder Tristan Rathbone, as well as 138-pounder Ryder Norstrom, wrestlers are well distributed between weight classes.

“It’s always a challenge if you have two wrestlers who are close to the same weight,” he said. “It’s nice because they become good workout partners for each other. At the same time, you want to get them separated in your lineup, which usually means one of them either has to wrestle up or cut some weight and wrestle down.”

The team has 16 athletes, as well as Norstrom and two more Canton-Galva students wrestling for the Trojans. With so many wrestlers, O’Hare has few issues filling weight classes.

“It fluctuates,” he said. “I’d love to be able to hold numbers up around 20 or more, but sometimes it’s just enrollment and interest of the kids. It fluctuates, but I feel pretty good about the number we have now.”

Bachman and Rathbone are ranked top-10 in their weight classes and came close to medaling last year at state, but O’Hare says the Trojans know there is work to do to reach their potential.

“We have some high expectations with some of the kids in this group, that we not only get to state, but that we take home some state medals,” he said.

The Trojans did not attend their first scheduled tournament, scheduled for Thursday.

Their next tournament is Friday, with Marion County duals Dec. 18.