Jordan won all four of his individual state titles at St. John Arena while wrestling at Graham in the early 1980s and his Falcons have never lost a state duals tournament there.
The drive for a fourth title begins Sunday at 11 a.m. The finals in all three divisions begin at 7 p.m.
“There is something special about St. John,” Jordan said. “It is where Graham won its first state title. … St. John just has its own aura which makes it a great atmosphere to wrestle.”
Graham enters as the top seed and will face off against eighth-seeded New Lexington. The semis are scheduled to begin at 3:30 p.m., and while the Falcons have a wealth of experience back, they also have some newcomers to the state tournament.
The balance of the team has helped the Falcons soar through the regional tournament, losing two matches. Graham is ranked in the top five nationally in every poll.
“The key to having a great dual meet team is having kids that want to wrestle for each other,” Jordan said. “It is a little bit different at the individual state because the kids are wrestling for their best performance, which usually results in a good team performance as well. The key to winning is to wrestle as a team. That is the only way to win it. Everyone has to do their part every match to make sure the team comes out on top.”
While the Falcons are looking for four titles in a row, Versailles will be making its second appearance after advancing to the semis in 2013.
“This year’s seniors were freshmen when we last made state,” Versailles coach A.J. Bey said. “Making it back to state has been a goal for them all year. Being two-time state dual qualifiers is something they can say that no other class from Versailles wrestling can say.”
Versailles was in position to return but ran into Covington and Mechanicsburg in the regional tournament the past two years.
“The atmosphere will be new to most of the kids,” Bey said. “I am sure there will be some nervousness. I think it is a good thing we don’t wrestle until the second round. The kids can sit in the stands and watch the first round and take it all in.”
Versailles, the No. 6 seed, opens at 1:15 p.m. against No. 3 Apple Creek Waynedale.
“I am not upset with the sixth seed. Could we be a higher seed? Maybe,” Bey said “I think our kids will show up and wrestle the same way no matter what the seed.”
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