Sophomore Landon Earp from Chandler High School is set to battle it out on Thursday in the quarterfinals of the OSSAA State Wrestling Championship at the State Fairgrounds Arena in Oklahoma City.
This is Earp’s second time qualifying for State. He placed fourth last year as a freshman, wrestling in the 106 weight class, according to assistant coach Halley Harris. Earp is wrestling at 113 this year and went 34-11. He wrestled Rhett Nelson from Oklahoma Christian School in regionals, pinning him in 54 seconds to place third and win his ticket to the Big House.
For the quarterfinals, Earp faces off against Corlin Cass of Pawhuska, who he’s wrestled before, said Harris.
“He got pinned by him, so he’s wanting some revenge,” she said. “I feel like he’s got a really good chance. He works really hard and he definitely has a love for the sport. He’ll battle it out for sure.”
It’s a sentiment shared by head wrestling coach Robert Gray.
“He’s going to wrestle tough, but he should be able to get on the podium. He’s got some tough matches, but he’ll do alright,” Gray said. He added that if he keeps it going, Earp could be the second wrestler from Chandler to place in State four years in a row. The last was Jerry Don Best, who was a four-time state champion from the Class of 1991.
If Earp wins on Thursday, he’ll advance to the semifinals on Friday. He’s the only wrestler from Chandler High School to win a spot at the State Championship this year.
Last year, he competed alongside two seniors.
Landon Earp is the son of Shane and Jaclyn Earp, both CHS alumni from the Class of 2000. Shane also made it to State as a wrestler during his high school career.