Fargo, North Dakota.  A place most people only recognize as a small dot on the map most commonly known for bitterly cold winters.  Making it to Fargo might not mean much to many, but for a handful of Malad wrestlers, Fargo represented far more than a small speck on a map.  Fargo, North Dakota meant a shot at an All-American Wrestling title. 

The 2024 US Marine Corps Junior and 16U National Wrestling Tournament, the largest wrestling tournament in the world, was held July 13-20 for the very best wrestlers from each state.  To qualify for the tournament, a wrestler must place in the top four of their weight bracket at the USA wrestling tournament of their state in Greco or Freestyle wrestling.

The qualifying tournament for Idaho held in April saw three Malad Dragon wrestlers, Drake Morrison, Oakley Maddox, and Roper Higley, punch their ticket to the national tournament.  Higley qualified with a 4th place finish in the Juniors 150lb Greco bracket.  Wrestling in the 16u 150lb division, Maddox won 1st place in Greco and 2nd place in Freestyle to earn his spot at the Fargo tournament.  Morrison won 1st place in both styles at 144lbs in the 16u division. 

From that time, these three athletes have spent days and weeks on the mats practicing and preparing for the high level competition they were sure to face there.  The day finally arrived when Coaches Thomas Maddox and Devin Morrison loaded up the Malad wrestlers, along with several other Idaho wrestlers, to make the 16 hour drive to join over 8,000 wrestlers from across the country.

The seven days of wrestling could only be described with words like tough, grueling, elite, high-level, and awe-inspiring.  The very best wrestlers from all 50 states competed for the prestigious All-American honor, an honor granted only to those placing in the top 8 of their bracket.  While all three of the Malad wrestlers competed and represented Team Idaho well, only Morrison claimed the title of All-American as he secured a 5th place finish.

“This tournament is the highest level of competition for high school wrestlers. We are incredibly proud of our wrestlers for all of their hard work and how well they represented Malad wrestling,” shared Coach Morrison.  Drake Morrison said of his first experience at the tournament and bringing home a medal, “I am very grateful to everyone that has supported me while I worked towards this goal. My coaches and teammates have helped me prepare so I was ready to be at my very best. Fargo is an awesome experience wrestling with the best in the country and I am excited to be back there in the future with my teammates.”