Starting off their season on top, the Marlow High School Wrestling team continues to strive towards improving their skills.

Being ranked number two in the state for this season, the Outlaws have a lot of pressure to live up to their title.

This year, the main goal is to achieve a state championship for both the team and individual wrestlers.

In the past two years, the wrestling team has made it to state and received back-to-back runner up.

Adding to their history, the last two years have now brought the Outlaw Wrestling team record to three state runner-up titles.

Past having three events in November, the MHS Wrestling team started their district season on Tuesday, December 3, traveling to Blanchard High School to wrestle the Lions in a dual.

Despite the Outlaws losing to the BHS Wrestling team 39-35, they set their minds to practice harder.

Although the team has much to improve on before state, sophomore Case Rich, wrestler for the 120 pound weight class, explained why he feels this season will be a successful one.

“I’m feeling pretty good about this season because it just started and our team is looking pretty good,” Rich said. “We had three people out at our dual, but we still kept it pretty close, so it’s looking up.”

Wanting the best of his team, Head Coach Andy Howington, who has coached for the MHS Wrestling team for the past five years, has a different opinion.

Recalling the team’s last dual, Howington described a few steps the wrestlers will need to take before being able to advance in this season.

“We want to go and win it this season, but with the way we started out, that won’t happen,” said Howington. “To win, the kids have to work harder and be as hungry as they were before.”

Noting the effort the team is giving now, junior Carson Moore, wrestler for the 195 pound weight class, stated what he feels the Outlaws need to accomplish to make it to state.

“Right now, I’m nervous because we are one of the teams that are expected to go out and put on a show at state. Even though we lost to Blanchard, I think it was kind of  a wakeup call for us. We’re second in the state and I think everyone has just been coasting on that,” said Moore. “I think we need to get more mentally tough, and we need to have more of a heart for the sport. We need to work harder in practice by finding who we need to be drilling with in practice to make ourselves better.”

The Outlaws will attend the non-district Mid America Nationals Tournament in Enid, Oklahoma on Friday and Saturday, Dec. 13-14, where the top teams from Oklahoma, Texas, Kansas and Missouri will wrestle each other.

Following this, the MHS wrestlers will travel to Harrisonville, Missouri on Friday, Dec. 20 for a tournament between over twenty schools.

The next event set to continue their fight towards state will be the MHS Wrestling team versus Watonga in a dual at home on Tuesday, Jan. 7.