By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Hayden star wrestlers Jude Krentz and Caleb Menke will face a lot of tough opponents over the 2025-2026 season, but very few any tougher than they see every day in practice when the two Wildcats square off against each other.
Hayden senior Jude Krentz (top) captured the 190-pound title in Saturday's Shawnee Heights Invitational while improving to 15-0 on the season. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Hayden senior Caleb Menke (top) captured the 175-pound title in Saturday's Shawnee Heights Invitational while improving to 16-0 on the season. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
And both Krentz, a senior 190-pounder, and Menke, a junior 175-pounder, feel like that regular competition in practice has helped them post a combined 31-0 record this season after both Hayden wrestlers claimed championships in Saturday's Shawnee Heights Invitational.
"It's awesome because we both push each other all the time, all the time,'' said Krentz, who posted a fourth-place finish in Class 4A as a junior.
Menke, a returning state qualifier, agrees.
"Jude, honestly, is probably one of the best training partners that I could ever ask for,'' Menke said. "We push each other every day in practice, sometimes even getting to the point where we get after each other a little bit and get into a couple of scuffles, but at the end of the day it makes us better and we love each other for it.''
Both Krentz and Menke, who helped Hayden's football team advance to the 3A state football championship game for the third straight season, said it takes them awhile to transition from the gridiron into football mode.
But now both Wildcat standouts said they feel like they're ready to make a run at state titles later this winter.
"Normally it probably takes me probably about three weeks because in football you're trying to maintain all your weight and you're trying to stay in shape to where you can go really hard for a short period of time where wrestling you've got to go hard for a long period of time,'' Menke said. "So typically it takes me about three weeks to a month to get ready, but normally after Christmas break I'm good and ready to rock and roll.''
"I'd say it's about one to two, maybe even a three-week progress of just constantly drilling hard, and it's more of a constant movement in wrestling where you always get a few seconds between plays in football,'' said Krentz, named the Shawnee County defensive player of the year in football. "Wrestling is contant, it's in-fighting and you're always pushing the pace.''
And after suffering both of his losses at state in a 42-2 season a year ago, Krentz feels like a state crown is in reach this season.
"It was in reach last year,'' Krentz said. "There were some mental mistakes, little mistakes that can easily be fixed. It's just a matter of pushing through and keep pushing every day instead of getting complacent.''
Both Hayden wrestlers were in top form in Saturday's Shawnee Heights meet, with Menke going 5-0 with four pins en route to improving to 16-0 on the season while Krentz, after receiving a first-round bye, posted two straight wins by fall and a 17-1 technical fall to improve to 15-0.
Both Krentz and Menke are ranked No. 2 in the state in 4A by the Kansas Wrestling Coaches Association, with Menke also No. 7 in the All-Class rankings.
Host Shawnee Heights also got a pair of individual championships, from junior Dallas Owens at 138 pounds and junior Brody Brown at 150 pounds, as the T-Birds finished second as a team to Junction City in a tight 197-187.5-point battle.
Brown improved to 24-2 on the season while Owens is now 16-8.
Rural dominates Seaman Duals
Class 6A power Washburn Rural posted a perfect 5-0 record to win the championship in Friday's Seaman Duals, posting all five wins by a minimum of 20 points.
Rural, third in 6A last season, opened its day with a 58-23 win over Pittsburg before taking a 53-21 win over Salina Central, a 50-27 decision over Hays, a 56-23 win over Seaman and a 44-24 victory over Basehor-Linwood.
Junior Blues 113-pounder Andrew Peterson, 120-pounder Ryder Harrison, 144-pounder Landen Kocher-Munoz and 150-pounder Brodye Kocher-Munoz all went 5-0 on the day.
Peterson won by fall in all five of his matches while two-time state champ L. Kocher-Munoz posted four pins and a 21-5 technical fall.
Host Seaman went 2-3 on the day, posting a 48-29 win over Pittsburg and winning on a tiebreaker over Salina Central after both teams scored 39 points.
Viking 157-pounder Brennen Bowers and 165-pounder Landen Miller went undefeated on the day.
