Results from today at the Ron Russo Classic. Taking first today was Emmaline Kouw. Amaya Brott and Audrina Knoper fell just short of placing today.

The Dux competed today at the Jim Mooney Invitational in Williamston, a tournament loaded with top-tier wrestlers and high-quality matches from start to finish. Our guys battled through a tough field and came away with several strong individual performances.

Individual highlights:

• Aiden Chavez went 3–1 and earned a 4th-place finish

• Sam Taylor finished 5–1, placing 7th

• Austin Ulberg went 4–1, also placing 7th

• Nolan Overway battled his way to a 6th-place finish

A special moment on the day as Austin Ulberg became the 12th wrestler in Zeeland West history to reach the 100-win club, an incredible milestone and testament to his work ethic and consistency.

The Dux are back in action Wednesday at Grand Rapids Union, taking on Unity Christian and West Catholic as the season continues. @duxsports_

The Dux are on the way home after competing in the JV invite at Portage Northern! The guys are walking home with some hardware tonight. @duxsports_

Aiden Talsma - 3rd

Darnell Moore - 3rd

Jackson Vanderveen - 3rd

Vicente Sek-Nunez - 3rd

Kenny Howe - 4th

Max Burkhour - 5th

The Dux competed tonight in OK Black Conference action, falling to Hamilton 53-24, followed by a crossover loss to Wayland 65-15. Despite the team's results, there were several strong individual performances across both varsity and JV teams.

Varsity Individual highlights: Going 2-0 on the night were Aiden Chavez and Austin Ulberg.
Finishing 1-1 were Sam Taylor, Thyson Touch, Cam Stryker, Nolan Overway, Audrina Knoper, and Emmaline Kouw, each contributing competitive matches throughout the evening.

JV Individual highlights: Jackson Vanderveen and Aiden Talsma both went 2-0, while Nate Chavez finished 1-0. Jon Albin wrapped up the night at 1-1.

The schedule stays busy as the JV team heads to Portage Northern on Friday, the boys varsity travels to Williamston for the Jim Mooney Invitational on Saturday, and the girls team competes Sunday at Kalamazoo Central in the Ron Russo Classic.

The Dux competed in five duals at the Tim Horn Invitational, battling through a deep field and finishing the day in 7th place. 

Team Results
Round 1: Holland West Ottawa defeated Zeeland West 47–35
Round 2: Otsego defeated Zeeland West 48–28
Round 3: Forest Hills Northern defeated Zeeland West 52–27
Round 4: Holland defeated Zeeland West 43–33
Round 5: Zeeland West defeated Kalamazoo Central 51–21 

Individual Records: 

Going 5-0 were Aiden Chavez and Austin Ulberg. Going 4-1 were Tyson Touch and Damian Calderon. Also going 3-2 were Kye Chayer, Nolan Overway, and Lachlan Thoreson. 

Today was a competitive day that provided valuable mat time and some strong tests against quality opponents. The Dux showed up today as they continue stacking things together throughout the season.

We had a lot going on today across all three programs. The boys' varsity team traveled to Hudsonville to face a strong field featuring several highly ranked teams and individual wrestlers from around the state. The Dux battled through five duals, falling to Hudsonville 66–18, Harper Creek 75–0, Hartland “B” 75–5, Cedar Springs 61–18, and Comstock Park 53–24. While the results didn’t fall our way, the day provided valuable experience against high-level competition and highlighted some positives to build on, as well as areas for continued improvement as the season progresses.

The JV team competed at East Kentwood, showing resilience throughout the day. Aiden Talsma and Ben Daniels both finished as runner-up in their brackets, while Dante Wass earned a 3rd-place finish, continuing to build confidence and consistency.

The girls' team traveled to Grand Haven, where Emmaline Kouw put together an outstanding performance to become champion of her bracket. Amaya Brott also battled through tough matches and finished 6th, gaining valuable tournament experience.

Go Dux.

The Dux wrestled a full slate of competition today, wearing the two-piece uniform that represents the Air Force. The day featured a mix of tough matchups, quality wins, and valuable mat time as the team continued to compete through a long schedule. One of the highlights came in round one, where Zeeland West earned a narrow 34-30 win over Coopersville when it came down to the last weight class to win the dual, along with several strong individual performances across all four duals.   

Team results on the day: 

Round 1: Zeeland West def. Coopersville 34–30 

Round 2: Wayland def. Zeeland West 68–12 

Round 3: Hamilton def. Zeeland West 63–9 

Round 4: Zeeland West def. Ravenna 36–35

Individual records for the day: 

Going 3-1 on the day were Tyson Touch: 3–1, Samuel Taylor, and Lachlan Thoreson. Going 2-2 on the day were Damian Calderon and Kye Chayer.

The Dux girls traveled to Montague today for the Lady Mat Cat Invitational and put together another gritty day of competition. Emmaline Kouw dropped a close semifinal match and finished the tournament in 4th place, while Audrina Knoper showed great resilience, rebounding after an opening-round loss to battle back and earn a 5th-place finish. Amaya Brott wrestled tough throughout the day and came up just one round short of placing, falling in the blood round. Proud of the fight, growth, and perseverance shown by this group. These hard-working ladies will be back on the mat next Saturday at Grand Haven for the Adam H. Provencal Memorial, a special tournament held in honor of a former wrestler whose legacy continues to impact the wrestling community.

The Dux competed today at Grand Rapids Northview. Zeeland West went 2-3 on the day and placed 8th out of 16 teams, earning wins over Wayland (53-30) and Grand Rapids Christian (41-29), while falling to Kent City (69-11), Allendale (59-23), and Muskegon (55-24). 

Individual highlights:
Aiden Chavez led the way with a perfect 5-0 performance. Austin Ulberg followed with a strong 4-1 day. Xander Adkins, Damien Calderon, Daniel Lozano, and Lachlan Thoreson each finished 3-2, contributing key wins and competitive matches throughout the tournament.

The Dux girls traveled to Niles Brandywine today for the 2nd Annual Bobcat Classic and turned in a strong team performance. Emmaline Kouw led the way with a 1st-place finish, while Madi Galaviz earned a 3rd-place finish after a solid day on the mat. Amaya Brott and Audrina Knoper battled hard throughout the tournament and came up just short of the podium, gaining valuable experience against tough competition.

The Dux traveled to Holland High School tonight for a quad and faced a challenging night of competition. Zeeland West fell to Holland 60-21 and Northview 45-29, with several hard-fought matches and valuable learning moments throughout the evening.

Undefeated on the night for varsity were Cam Stryker, Sam Taylor, Austin Ulberg, Kye Chayer, and Emmaline Kouw, each delivering strong performances.
Finishing 1-1 were Damien Calderon, Jackson Burkhour, Lachlan Thoreson, and Madi Galaviz, contributing key wins and competitive bouts.

On the JV side, Nolan Overway, Dante Wass, Santiago Hurtado Zaragoza, and Thyson Touch went undefeated, while Jackson Vanderveen and Max Burkhour finished the night 1-1.

The Dux varsity squad is back in action Saturday at Grand Rapids Northview for a team tournament beginning at 9:00 a.m., while the girls varsity team travels to Niles Brandywine for the 2nd Annual Bobcat Classic, also starting at 9:00 a.m.

The Dux competed today at the Ottawa County Championship in Coopersville, turning in several strong individual performances. Aiden Chavez finished the day 2–1 and earned a runner-up finish, dropping a close match in the finals. Sam Taylor and Austin Ulberg both battled through tough brackets to finish 4th place, while Cam Stryker, Jackson Burkhour, and Lachlan Thoreson came up just short of reaching the podium after competitive bloodround matches.

Meanwhile, the girls' team traveled to East Kentwood for the Kent County Championship (Girls Division). Emmaline Kouw went 3–1 on the day and earned a 3rd-place finish, while Audrina Knoper finished 2–2, narrowly missing a podium spot.

Strong effort across the board and plenty to build on as the season continues. Go Dux!

What a fantastic day in Zeeland for the expanded Gene Kraai Memorial Invitational. With 16 teams filling both Zeeland West and Zeeland East, the atmosphere was electric, and the wrestling quality was outstanding from start to finish. The Dux battled through five duals on the day:

• Round 1: Zeeland West 47–28 Ortonville Brandon

• Round 2: Dowagiac 57–22 Zeeland West

• Round 3: Hart 72–12 Zeeland West

• Round 4: Jenison 40–27 Zeeland West

• Round 5: Zeeland West 42–34 South Haven

Individual highlights:

Austin Ulberg led the way with a perfect 5–0 performance. Aiden Chavez turned in a strong 4–1 day. Daniel Lozano (3–2), Dawysen Breining (2–3), Damian Calderon (2–3), Jackson Burkhour (2–3), Cam Stryker (2–0), and Kole Walker (2–0) all contributed significant wins throughout the event. And a special shoutout to Nolan Overway, who delivered a fantastic, gritty come-from-behind win that fired up the entire team.

One of the best parts of the day was watching our athletes cheer, support, and encourage one another from the first whistle to the last. The bench energy was outstanding, and the team culture continues to grow stronger each week. A massive thank-you to all the volunteers, parents, athletic directors, table workers, and assistant coaches who made today possible. Expanding the Gene Kraai Memorial to 16 teams was a huge undertaking, and it couldn’t have happened without everyone’s support and hard work. Proud of the effort, proud of the fight, and excited for what’s ahead. Go Dux!

The Dux kicked off the 2025 wrestling season tonight with an exciting home opener. In the first dual of the night, Zeeland West battled Muskegon in a back-and-forth matchup that came down to the final few bouts, ultimately falling 42–30. The team regrouped quickly and came out with purpose in round two, earning a 51–24 victory over Wyoming Kelloggsville.

Undefeated varsity wrestlers: Sam Taylor, Austin Ulberg, Thyson Touch, Kenny Howe, Jackson Burkhour, Nolan Overway, Amaya Brott, and Emmaline Kouw all turned in strong performances to open their seasons 2-0. Varsity wrestlers going 1-1: Nathan Chavez, Kye Chayer, Brayden Compagner, Remo Berendsohn, Madi Galaviz, and Evelyn Elenbaas each contributed solid matches and valuable points throughout the night.

JV Highlights: The future of the program looked sharp as well, with undefeated performances from Ben Daniels, Aiden Talsma, Dante Wass, Vicente Sek-Nunez, Jackson Vanderveen, and Brock Wolters. Jerry Thomas-Teran also wrestled hard, finishing the night 1-1.

A promising start with plenty to build on as the season gets rolling. The Girls Team is heading to Middleville Thornapple Kelloggsville on Friday, and the Boys Varsity team is back in action on Saturday at home for the Gene Kraai Memorial, with a fantastic opportunity to keep the momentum moving.