The No. 8 ranked Pratt Community College wrestling team headed to Wichita, Kan. to participate in the Reece Wright-Conklin Jet Invitational hosted by the No. 25 ranked NCAA Division II school, Newman University. The Beavers displayed their skill and competitive spirit by placing two wrestlers on the first-place podium.

The path to success for PCC was filled with heightened competition even after a number of teams were unable to attend due to harsh weather. Each wrestler competing for Pratt faced an opponent out of a nationally ranked school from either the NJCAA, NAIA, or NCAA Division II level.

One of Pratt's first-place performances came from Brayan Balderrama's championship in the 125-pound weight class. Balderrama ran through the NCAA Division II No. 16 ranked Fort Hays State University's Broderick Green in his first bout of the day to earn an immediate spot in the championships. He then took down Blayne Harris from No. 12 Cloud County Community College by way of a 6-2 decision that made him the top 125-pounder at the event.

Also achieving a first-place finish was 197-pounder Chris Henderson, who went 2-0 during the event as well. Both of Henderson's wins during the day were major decisions. The first coming against Mathew Cruickshank from No. 12 Cloud County (19-11). He proceeded to earn a win in the championship bout against Jacob Stoneberger from No. 25 Newman (14-6).

157-pounder Luke Culbertson also represented the blue and white in the open. Culbertson took home a fourth-place finish after finishing the day 2-2. His two defeats came only by way of NCAA Division II wrestlers from nationally ranked programs. He started the tournament with a decision victory (8-1) against Conference foe Johnathon Herndandez from Neosho County Community College. His first loss came in the semifinals to the No. 3 ranked 157-pounder in the country, Tyler Mies, from the hosting Newman team. Culbertson bounced back with a pin fall victory over Kansas Wesleyan University's Isaiah Frederick in the second period. To finish the day Culbertson wrestled against Conrad Vajnar from No. 16 Fort Hays State in the third-place bout, where he fell after an unfortunate 13-6 decision.

"We came to get some matches in before the Christmas break. I am proud of our efforts in this tournament. Though the numbers were low, we saw some competition we have not seen from earlier contests. Now it's time to focus on finals and enjoy some time with our family," said Head Wrestling Coach Ken Kepley.

PCC wrestling will return to action after the Winter break on Jan. 5 when they travel to participate in the Cusatis Open in Hastings, Neb. The event will begin at 9 a.m.