When the all-class state wrestling tournaments begin Thursday, 27 athletes will be looking to defend their 2025 individual championships.
Another five wrestlers will look to get back on top of the podium after coming up short last year, making for a loaded field at this year's tournaments.
Related: 2026 state wrestling brackets released
An impressive 10 Class A wrestlers are back to defend their titles from a year ago, including five guys in the hunt for Hardin. Freshman Jesse Grossman, sophomore Bruno Pallone and juniors Cale Nedens and Cody Kills On Top are each looking for repeat championships for the Bulldogs. Chris Grossman, another junior, is also looking for his second straight title after winning a Class AA crown last year at Billings Skyview.
Jesse Grossman was the lone eighth-grade boy to win gold last year, setting him on a path to potentially become Montana's first five-time boys champion. And Pallone could put himself on a historic trajectory, as well. After winning the 190-pound championship last year and wrestling at 215 this season, Pallone could become a four-time champion at the highest combined weights of any wrestler in Montana history.
Outside of Class A, fans will be keeping a close eye on Makael Aguayo at Billings West and Cael Floerchinger at Great Falls High. Aguayo is the reigning 138-pound Class AA champ and is gunning for his fourth individual title wrestling at 150 pounds this season. West has crowned four-time champions each of the past two years (Keyan Hernandez in 2024 and Zach Morse in 2025).
Floerchinger is just a junior, but he won titles in 2024 and 2025. He's the top-ranked guy at 126.
Class B/C features only five guys looking for repeat titles, but three sophomores — Circle's Anson Taylor of Circle and Huntley Project's Ethan Reynolds and Blake Ramaeker — are looking for their second championships. Ramaeker won a 2024 title before a runner-up finish last season, while Taylor and Reynolds are coming off 2025 championships at 103 and 110 pounds, respectively.
And six girls are seeking repeat bids, headlined by Meadow Mahlmeister of Billings Senior and Hayley Petersen of Simms. The two juniors have both won two individual gold medals, and titles this year would put them on pace to become the first four-time champions in Montana's brief — but illustrious — girls wrestling history.
A list of returning state wrestling champions is below. The weight to the left is the weight at which they're wrestling this year. Past years in which they won titles are listed in parentheses.
Please report any errors omissions to scores@montanasports.com.
Class AA
Reigning team champion: Billings West (three-time)
110 — Keegan Hunt, sr., Butte (2025 — 103)
118 — Jackson Roby, sr., Billings West (2025 — 110)
126 — Cael Floerchinger, jr., Great Falls (2025 — 126, 2024 — 113)
144 — Danny Green, jr., Billings Skyview (2024 — 103)
150 — Makael Aguayo, sr., Billings West (2025 — 138, 2024 — 132, 2023 — 103)
157 — Bode Hazlett, jr., Butte (2025 — 144)
190 — Gabe Rosales, jr., Billings West (2025 — 175)
Class A
Reigning team champion: Laurel (two-time)
118 — Jesse Grossman, fr., Hardin (2025 — 103)
118 — Tyson Syth, jr., Sidney (2024 — 103)
118 — Aramis Rivera, sr., Billings Central (2025 — 118)
126 — Kaius Rivera, so., Billings Central (2025 — 110)
138 — Brody Ketterling, sr., Lockwood (2025 — 126, 2023 — 120)
144 — Chris Grossman, jr., Hardin (2025 — 132, at Billings Skyview)
150 — Cale Nedens, jr., Hardin (2025 — 150)
190 — Holden Hoiness, jr., Laurel (2025 — 165)
215 — Bruno Pallone, so., Hardin (2025 — 190)
285 — Thor Fulgham, jr., Sidney (2025 — 215)
285 — Cody Kills On Top, jr., Hardin (2025 — 285)
Class B/C
Reigning team champions: Huntley Project (B, four-time), Circle (C)
118 — Anson Taylor, so., Circle (2025 — 103)
126 — Ryan Wiggins, jr., Forsyth (2025 — 118)
132 — Ethan Reynolds, so., Huntley Project (2025 — 110)
132 — Timothy Schmidt, sr., Eureka (2025 — 126, 2023 — 113)
144 — Blake Ramaeker, so., Huntley Project (2024 — 113)
157 — Khye Gamas, sr., Glasgow (2025 — 157, 2024 — 152)
Girls
Reigning team champions: Billings Senior (AA, three-time), Miles City (A), Baker (B, two-time), Simms (C)
105 — River Cote, jr., Ronan (2024 — 100)
110 — Hayley Petersen, jr., Simms (2025 — 110, 2024 — 107)
120 — Bella Downing, sr., Kalispell Flathead (2024 — 120)
120 — Taylor Lay, sr., Helena Capital (2025 — 130, 2023 — 120)
125 — Madalyn Deiter, jr., Great Falls CMR (2025 — 125)
140 — Meadow Mahlmeister, jr., Billings Senior (2025 — 135, 2024 — 126)
145 — Graylee Fox, jr., Miles City (2025 — 140)
170 — Jayda Harbaugh, jr., Baker (2025 — 170)
