DES MOINES – Kennen Roadcap won two matches and lost two during his two-day experience at the Class 1A state wrestling meet at Wells Fargo Arena.
Roadcap represented Montezuma with pride and dignity during his two days on the mats.
Kennen, who started the state tournament with a 35-5 record, opened on Wednesday with a 6-0 decision over Taylor Herzmann of MFL Mar-Mac.
When you go to state, you’re looking to compete against some of the state’s best wrestlers, and that was the case for Roadcap in his second match in the championship bracket.
The opponent was the number three seed, Masin Knipp of Columbus Catholic. Knipp, 36-6 coming in, worked Roadcap for a fall in 3:29.
So, it was on to the consolation bracket for Roadcap, who still had a shot of wrestling back to as high as third place.
Roadcap started well, pinning Marcus Silva (26-14) of Lawton-Bronson, in 3:49.
In what turned out to be his final match, Roadcap was decisioned 5-1 by Jack Hiland of Bellevue. So, Kennen fell shy of appearing on the medals stand, but he put his mark on the overall spirit of the event on Wednesday and Thursday.
Unofficially, Roadcap finished his senior year with an outstanding record of 37-7.
Montezuma Activities Director Tim Burgess said, “Kennen has officially wrapped up a great career on the mat! We are proud of the accomplishment and the hard work he put into making his senior season such a success!”
Roadcap received the traditional sendoff before going on to state: A walk through the hallways of the elementary, junior high and high schools, with students applauding, high-fiving and cheering him on.