Nathan Simhiser and Jon Carey scored second-place finishes Saturday as the Hillsboro Trojans placed fifth in the Central Kansas League tournament at Hoisington.

After a first-round bye in the 132-pound division, Carey scored consecutive wins by fall over wrestlers from Hesston, Larned, and Smoky Valley to reach the championship match. He wrestled Pratt’s Cody Hoy to a draw in regulation, but lost the match in sudden victory.

Simhiser competed in a round-robin format in the 195-pound division, taking second with a 3-1 record. He scored fall wins over wrestlers from Pratt, Hesston, and Lyons, while losing a 5-3 decision to Nils Peterson of Smoky Valley.

Coach Scott O’Hare was pleased with the improved effort the Trojans displayed.

“I thought our guys competed pretty well,” O’Hare said. “We were definitely more prepared and looked better than last weekend. This was as competitive as any tournament we have attended this year and probably as solid as the league tournament has been since we started with this format.”

The Trojans will wrestle in the Class 3-2-1A regional tournament Friday and Saturday at Russell. Hoisington is the only ranked team, and of the 84 wrestlers ranked by the Kansas Wresling Coaches Association, just 11 will be in Russell.

“We really need to focus on cleaning up on some technique and getting more aggressive with finishing things,” O’Hare said. “On Saturday we had a few instances where our guys did some things out of character that ultimately cost them in good tough matches. We will take some time to discuss match strategy to make sure we win the close matches when something is on the line.”

CKL Tournament Results

Hoisington, Feb. 14

Mack Bartel, 106 lbs, 0-5, 6th place; Tristan Donaldson, 120, 0-5, 6th; Travis King, 126, 2-3, 4th; Jon Carey, 132, 4-1, 2nd; Ian Alumbaugh, 138, 2-2, 5th; Tyson Reimer, 145, 2-3, 5th; Jesse Meier, 170, 3-2, 3rd; Levi Mendoza, 182, 3-2, 3rd; Nathan Simhiser, 195, 3-1, 2nd; Franklin Jost, 220, 1-4, 5th; Ryan Stepanek, 285, 0-5, 6th.