The Panther wrestlers had a little extra snap in their step as they poured into the Panther Athletic Center for summer wrestling camp June 14-15.
Jeff Vesta was the guest coach for camp this summer. Coach Vesta coaches at Labette Community College. He is a three-time All-American, NJCAA National Champion, NCAA most falls award winner, and a six-time Fargo All-American.
Coach Vesta led the wrestlers through warmups and several technique drills.
“You guys have the basics. I’m going to show you some higher level stuff today,” said Vesta to the 7-12th grade group.
More than 25 participants attended, eager to learn from such an accomplished wrestling technician. “This is not the kind of sport where you can just sit around in the summer and expect to win next year. I take every opportunity to improve,” said Drew Liles, a freshmen wrestler at GBHS.
Great Bend Coach Nathan Broeckelman added praise to the guest coach. “Vesta is showing a front headlock series that I am particularly interested in incorporating with our high school team. He is very effective at scoring from the front. I have coached and followed Vesta’s career for eight years and have been very impressed at his ability to score 5 point moves,” he said.
Senior Keaton Sander said he saw some new things at the camp. “I saw some new things from Coach Vesta. Some of the technique is simple but I will have to work on it a lot before I can use it.”
The high school squad appeared reenergized after returning from a two day trip to Colorado where they competed in the Falcon Dual Tournament. More than 15 teams from three states converged on the Highland Ranch High School athletic facility. “It was a great opportunity for our athletes to compete against serious wrestlers for other states. Kids we don’t see anywhere else,” said Brockelman. “It was a great bonding experience for our kids”.
Braxton Schooler a junior wrestler valued the experience. “I wrestled nine times, all out of state kids. The Colorado kids have a different style,” he said.

The high school squad is energized after returning Saturday from a two day trip to Colorado where they competed in the Falcon Dual Tournament. More than 15 teams from three states converged on the Highland Ranch High School athletic facility. “It was a great opportunity for our athletes to compete against serious wrestlers for other states. Kids we don’t see anywhere else,” said Head Panthers Coach Nate Brockelman. “It was a great bonding experience for our kids”. Braxton Schooler a junior wrestler valued the experience saying, “I wrestled nine times, all out of state kids. The Colorado kids have a different style.”