He had fallen short of his goal for a top-3 finish but Clifton Luber was not sulking.
After losing his third-place match 7-2 to Warrenton's William Filipek, the final match of his career, the Camdenton 215-pound senior jogged off the Mizzou Arena floor and gathered his composure in a nearby tunnel.
"It was the last wrestling match of my life and I went as hard as I could," Luber said. "It wasn't the finish I wanted but I gave it everything I had."
There was no doubt about his all-out effort. Luber had an open cut on his nose after his bandage had fallen off during the match's final moments, he was poked in the eye earlier in the match, and he was dealing with a hyperextend elbow suffered a few weeks earlier.
Luber said his fourth-place finish is something he'll remember for the rest of his life.
"Definitely," Luber said. "I have no regrets."
Shane Hardman spent Saturday dealing with the disappointment of not wrestling for a gold medal, the No. 1 goal for his senior season.
In the Friday semifinals, he lost 8-6 in overtime to Farmington's Justin Heberlie, who went on to beat Belton's Glendal Whitney 2-1 in overtime for the 189-pound championship on Saturday.
Hardman lost his next match via pin to Ozark's Trenton Hosick — who Hardman had beaten in districts earlier this month — but responded by pinning Pacific's Larry Schimsa in the first round to take fifth place in the final match of his career.
"It was not really what I wanted," Hardman said. "I had hoped to win a championship but I was happy with getting a pin in my final match.
"I've had a pretty good career. It was a fun ride with Coach Darby and the rest of the team."
The only non-senior among the local group was Versailles' Isiah Clark. The sophomore in the 135-pound division lost 20-5 in the semifinals to eventual champ Jordan Orr of Brookfield.
Clark dropped his next match 1-0 to Maysville's Seth Buhman but closed out the day with a 9-3 win against Lexington's Dallas Lamphier.
"I wanted a top-3 finish but this at least gives me confidence for next season knowing I can compete with anyone," Clark said.
Of the six Tiger wrestlers that qualified for state, Clark was the lone Versailles competitor remaining Saturday. But the future is bright among that group of Clark, Zach Vogt, Mitchell Dornan, Mathew Nienhuis and Wesley Davidson because none are seniors.
"I think our youth showed a little bit," Versailles coach Nicholas Ward said. "I would have liked to see us be more aggressive. Hopefully, this gives us confidence and experience for next year."
Although the high school careers of Luber and Hardman are over, the rest of their lives are just beginning. Both plan on joining the service academies.
Hardman will attend the Air Force Academy and said he'll try to make the football team as a walk-on. Luber said he plans to join the Navy and have a career in politics.
"They're the high-character guys that we look for in our wrestlers," Lakers coach Patrick Darby said. "Weíll give up a state championship to have kids this well-rounded."
Columbia, Mo. —
