The Kearsley wrestling team fought its way to the MHSAA state quarterfinals Feb.27 and went up against No. 4 ranked Gaylord, losing 36-32.

The Hornets had 14 wrestlers compete in the match, with six of them winning in the quarterfinals.

Winning wrestlers were seniors James Davis and Jakob Chapman, juniors Travis Wildfong and Aaron Ruhstorfer, sophomore Dylan Terrence, and freshman Malik Davis.

In the 119-pound match, Ruhstorfer thrilled the crowd with a comeback that gave Kearsley a chance at advancing to the semifinals.

Before Ruhstorfer went up against Gaylord’s Trent Hibner, Kearsley was down 26-32.

Early in his match, Ruhstorfer  was getting beaten but then came back to force overtime.

Eventually, Ruhstorfer beat Hibner in overtime, which gave Gaylord a six-point lead with two matches remaining.

In the next match, Chapman pinned his opponent to tie the team’s at 32 points apiece.

However, Gaylord won the final match, turning Kearsley away from a semifinal appearance.

This is the Hornets second time making it to the quarterfinals. The Hornets made their first appearance in 2004.