GREAT FALLS — Conrad senior Tegan Jones is currently ranked as the top wrestler at 190 pounds in Class B/C and has been right on the doorstep of individual titles at the past two state wrestling tournaments.
Last winter in Billings, he placed fourth after finishing third the year prior.
Jones said that last year, especially, was tough. But it allowed him to learn a lot.
"Lost my semis match and that was really hard," Jones said on Jan. 31 at St. Ignatius. "Got great coaching behind me, so picking up on everything that they're teaching and just trying new stuff, I think, and keeping it more loose, more fun. Not worry about the rankings or what people are saying — that's fan mentality."
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As Jones alluded, he doesn't care about his top ranking. Instead, it's all about a belief in himself as head coach Luke Schlosser — a four-time state champion from Conrad — said.
"He believes in what we're doing," Schlosser said. "Goes out there and supports our team really well. He's a good captain. He does a phenomenal job."
Jones takes great pride in leading his team as captain, he said.
"I love my teammates. I was a captain in football, too, and that just means a lot to me," Jones said. "Like, watching these kids develop over the year — over these three months — in football, too, those three months, seeing them develop as people, as students, as athletes, it means the world to me."
While Jones leads his teams in competition, he stands out outside of that, as well.
"I really enjoy school, I love learning," Jones said. "I'd love to be an orthopedic surgeon. I want to go on a pre-med track this next year. I'm not sure where yet."
Jones said he wants to take that route because of his uncle being an orthopedic surgeon.
"Just hearing him talk about it, I really like helping people, especially in these rural areas like Conrad where we have 1,500 people," Jones said. "Like, you can't get a specialist in there, and I want to change that."
Additionally, Jones took part in the Montana legislature's page program because his grandfather, Llew Jones, is a state representative.
"I jumped on the opportunity, I thought it'd be pretty sweet," Jones said. "We were there for a week and it was really neat. I learned a lot about our own system. ... It's very similar to a national system except a smaller scale."
Before the state wrestling tournament hits First Interstate Arena in Billings Feb. 19-21, Jones and Conrad have the divisional meet coming Friday and Saturday.
