Jared Porter: Diamond may be on track for its first state wrestling finalist

Mar. 2—There are few prep wrestlers in Missouri who have as much momentum as Landon Clement heading into the Class 1 state tournament.

The Diamond junior has again qualified for state after accomplishing the feat a year ago. But this time around, he's aiming to clinch his first podium finish.

And possibly more.

Believe it or not, Diamond has never had a wrestler make the state finals despite the successes the program has experienced under head coach Bill Gray in recent years.

The Wildcats have had a pair of state placers the past two seasons in Kolbe Jones (fourth place) and Owen Gray (sixth place). Owen, the son of Bill Gray, broke a 12-year drought of state placers for Diamond with his podium finish in 2019.

But this year could be the one that Diamond takes its next big step with a state finalist. Clement is seemingly on the doorstep of accomplishing the feat as he's ranked second at the 182-pound weight class and has a No. 1 seed heading into the state tournament.

Clement improved to 35-1 on the season after capturing a Class 1 Sectional 2 championship over the weekend in Versailles. He first logged a 7-2 decision over St. Paul Concordia's Benjamin Stumbaugh before downing Butler's Issac Rodriguez by a 5-3 decision in the semifinals. In the finals, Clement handled 1-seed Chris Corley of Tipton by a 10-3 decision.

"He finished 1-2 at state last year, but he now knows what it takes to win there," Bill Gray said. ""All of the lights and glamour of the state tournament, that won't have him big-eyed."

And don't sleep on Diamond's other two state qualifiers either.

Tyler May also has experience on his side as a returning state qualifier. He's seeded second at state with a 32-5 record at the 220-pound weight class after finishing runner-up at sectionals.

Then there's first-time state qualifier Ty Douglas, who's 29-7 at the 195-pound weight class after placing third at the sectional tournament.

"I would obviously love for any of these three guys to help this program take its next step forward by making the state finals," Bill Gray said. "These guys are picking it up here at the end of the year. So anything is possible. We think we have a good plan going into state, and we can't wait to get out there and compete."

The Class 1 state tournament is slated for March 10 at Cable Dahmer Arena in Independence.

Contact Jared Porter on Twitter at @JaredRyanPorter.