Senior James Schwank receives his medal for his fourth place finish at the State Wrestling Tournament. finished fourth for Missouri Military Academy at 171 pounds in the Missouri Class 2 State Wrestling Tournament on Saturday in Columbia, Mo., capping his two-year MMA career with a 59-10 record. Schwank, who finished the season at 36-4, opened with a 16-1 win over Trevor Fultz of Notre Dame-Cape Girardeau, then fell to eventual state runner-up Blaine Conner of Platte County, 14-12, in a match where MMA coach Capt. Ali Syed felt a pin by Schwank was not called.
In wrestlebacks, Schwank pinned Forest Davidson of Moberly in 3:30; edged Mark Phillips of Hancock in overtime, 7-5; and received a default walkover from Gabe Hollander of Owensville, whom he lost to in the 2009 state meet. He lost a 3-1 decision to Taylor Baird of Excelsior Springs in the third-place match.
“James wrestled well in each match at state. I am very proud of his effort and work ethic,” said Capt. Syed. In the district tournament Feb. 13, Schwank finished second, losing to Dan Scherrer from MICDS, who is ranked first in the state, in the championship match.
Highlights of the season included first-place finishes at 171 or 189 in the Mexico Invitational Tournament, Owensville Tournament, Fulton Tournament and St. Louis Priory Tournament.
“He is by far one of the best wrestlers I have coached here at MMA,” said Capt. Syed. “He conducts himself very well on the mat, always showing sportsmanship.
“He was a very well-respected by all the wrestlers and the coaches in Missouri. We are very proud of everything he has done here at MMA and we hope he will continue to wrestle in college.”
Schwank was 1-2 in the 2009 state meet, falling to Hollander. He was third in the district last year, finishing at 23-6.
“James is one of the hardest-working wrestlers on the team, and he sets a great example as a team captain,” said Capt. Syed. “He trains hard every day to get better as a wrestler, and more importantly pushes other guys to give it their best in practice.”
He is the son of Richard and Shellan Schwank of Godfrey.
