Highland Wrestling Wins First State Title With 3 Champs

When Highland High School's wrestling team stepped onto the mat at Denver's Ball Arena, they carried more than just their individual dreams. They carried a three-letter reminder that would make history: W.I.N., standing for "What's Important Now."

That question got answered Saturday night when the Huskies secured their first-ever state wrestling team championship in school history. Highland scored 111 team points, barely edging North Fork's 105.5 in one of the tightest title races Colorado has seen.

Senior Wyatt Chase set the tone in Saturday's finals, pinning his opponent in just 90 seconds at 190 pounds. Those bonus points proved crucial in a competition where every takedown mattered.

Junior Carter Jensen followed with a dominant 16-3 victory at 132 pounds, nearly locking up the team title. Minutes later, senior Tyler Varra put an exclamation point on the historic night with a 16-0 technical fall at 144 pounds, giving Highland three individual state champions.

The victory tasted especially sweet for wrestlers who'd fallen short the year before. Chase had finished second at state as a junior, as had Varra. Jensen placed sixth. As a team, Highland finished fifth, watching another school celebrate.

This year, every wrestler on the eight-person roster contributed. Freshman Robert Olson and senior Korbin Hoke added fifth-place finishes, squeezing out points that became the difference between celebrating and coming up short.

Why This Inspires

The Huskies' motto captured something powerful about team sports. When individual championship dreams ended for some wrestlers, they could have given up. Instead, they battled through consolation rounds, scoring points that would ultimately tip the scales toward a team title.

Varra wrestled his finals match knowing teammates had fought through disappointment to keep the championship dream alive. "We had guys that battled," he said after his victory. "Every single one of those points counted."

Coach Jake Varra credited the championship to "extreme hard work and a whole lot of hours." But the real story lives in those three letters the team repeated all season: What's Important Now. For Highland, the answer turned out to be each other.

The team that asked themselves the right question all season long found the perfect answer on championship night.