DES MOINES — Cole Nelson dropped both of his matches Saturday at the state wrestling tournament.
Ordinarily, consecutive losses might be a reason for negativity, but not in this case, as the end result was a sixth place spot of the awards podium this evening.
Nelson (38-9), ranked sixth, began Saturday against third-rated Keaton Zeimet (41-3), a Central DeWitt junior who was third at state last year at 106. Zeimet, who went on to finish third, won by fall in 1 minute, 17 seconds.
That sent Nelson into the fifth place match against Spirit Lake Park sophomore Jonathon Burnette (38-3), rated fourth. Burnette had lost a 3-2 decision to Bondurant-Farrar junior Rylie Anderson (37-6) before slipping past Nelson, 3-2. Nelson had previously dropped a 5-3 decision to Burnette in the quarterfinal round.
The Perry standout had qualified for state as a freshman, but missed the podium after finishing with a 1-2 mark.
