Searcy (LP) The Searcy High School wrestling team has been gifted with much success this season, but due to an injury to their wrestler in the 220 weight bracket they were hard pressed to find a replacement to better their chances at a state championship.  They found their replacement in a previous wrestler Ryan Kleypas.  Kleypas had left the team two years prior to work and pursue a passion of bodybuilding.  Ryan weighs in at 205 pounds and now wrestles the 220 bracket.  Currently hosting a 5-2 record Ryan has only lost to the current first seat wrestler.


Most believe the reason for his losses are due to the fact that he has not wrestled since his sophomore year and is not well conditioned for the cardio aspect of wrestling.  Although, he is not the best when it comes to endurance Ryan is one of the strongest in the state sporting astounding bench and squat maxes.  With a bench max of 345 and a squat max of 465 Ryan is well ahead of most competition when comparing strength.  This alone is the reason Ryan is expected to be one of the top competitors in the 220 bracket.


He works very hard to work on his cardio and is very intent on fixing this weakness, he explains, “we run so many sprints each day I can’t put a number to it.”  Ryan was coaxed into wrestling by coach Evans and Jordan Slaughter after the previous 220 wrestler suffered an injury putting him out for the season.  


The importance of having each bracket filled is immense for a team competing for state, because there is no way to attain points from a bracket without a wrestler in said bracket.  Each weight class can bring in a maximum of 6 points and by having brackets unfilled a team is at a great disadvantage.