COLUMBIA - Sam Hrabovsky and Owens Uhls moved on with relative ease, while Jackson Caswell did it without stepping foot on the mat.
The Fulton trio advanced to this morning's Class 2 quarterfinals during Thursday's first round of the 89th MSHSAA Wrestling Championships at Mizzou Arena. Hrabovsky - a sophomore and returning state champion - and Uhls, a freshman, posted a pair of impressive wins at 120 and 106 pounds, respectively.
Meanwhile, Caswell - a junior - was the recipient of a forfeit victory at 113.
"Owen, Sam just competed like we expect them to," Hornets head coach Ryan Morts said. "They're just solid - neither one of them gets shook by anything, they're not nervous."
North Callaway matched Fulton by sending three wrestlers on to the Class 1 quarterfinals this morning. Advancing for the Thunderbirds were senior Jordan Delashmutt at 220, junior Jadon Henry at 138 and senior Chet Cunningham at 152.
"I thought the three that got through knew what they had to do coming in and they took care of business," North Callaway head coach Ross Rosenbaum said. "They had favorable draws - we were the higher seeds in all the matches and just wrestled smart and wrestled tough."
The Hornets' two other state qualifiers - sophomore Eston Dews at 126 and senior Steven Johnson at 220 - overcame first-round losses to move on with wins in first-round wrestlebacks.
North Callaway's two remaining qualifiers - sophomore Grant Wright at 145 and freshman Blake Whipple at 120 - were eliminated after falling in their first-round wrestleback matches.
In the inaugural girls' state championships, Fulton freshman Rylee Baker reached the semifinals at 103. Sophomore Paige Clines dropped into first-round wrestlebacks at 167 after bowing in her quarterfinal match.
Hrabovsky (32-0) opened his pursuit of a second consecutive perfect run to a state title by pinning St. Joseph Lafayette freshman Austin Allen in 1 minute, 9 seconds. Hrabovsky captured a state championship at 113 with a 42-0 mark in 2018.
Hrabovsky crafted a commanding 9-1 advantage over Allen on Thursday before scoring the pin with just under a minute left in the first period.
Hrabovsky - who missed the start of the season with a dislocated kneecap and didn't return until December - will face Logan-Rogersville sophomore Gabriel Brandenburg (36-8) in the quarterfinals.
Uhls (51-1) tallied a 6-1 lead over Chillicothe sophomore Sheldon Rader before locking up a swift pin in :53. Uhls' quarterfinal opponent will be Ste. Genevieve freshman Gavin Gross (31-13).
"This is not nearly as big of a tournament as those guys have both wrestled in," Morts said of Hrabovsky and Uhls. "This is just a state tournament - they're wrestling in nationals and stuff like that.
"They just continue to handle business like they have."
Caswell (48-5) prevailed in his first-round match after Nevada sophomore Lane Brooks was disqualified for not making weight.
Despite not wrestling Thursday, Caswell already owns an edge over his quarterfinal foe - Excelsior Springs junior Ethan Day (36-5). Caswell collected his first state medal by defeating Day for third place at 106 last year.
"If anything, I think it's better," Morts said of Caswell's forfeit win. "He's not expending any energy, no nerves. I think he's fine.
"I think he'll be ready to come in here and have a tough match. He knows that and he's prepared for it."
Delashmutt (35-9) got off to a slow start in his first-round match against Berkeley senior Kevon James. After a scoreless first period, Delashmutt took a 3-0 lead before pinning James in 3:17.
"After the match, Jordan just told me, 'Hey, I could feel him, that he had good hips and he was strong, so I wasn't going to force anything - I knew I'd beat him on the mat,'" Rosenbaum said. "We got our escape and then once the kid got tired, we hit our double-leg, took him to his back and finished the match."
Delashmutt will clash with Lawson junior Wyatt Becker (34-10) in the quarterfinals.
Henry (29-2) advanced with a gritty 12-4 major decision over Diamond junior Cameron Addington. Henry has been dealing with a painful joint sprain between his sternum and clavicle that sidelined him for a significant stretch during the second half of the season and forced him to forfeit the district championship match last weekend.
Henry will meet Whitfield senior Wade Raeman (35-7) in the quarterfinals.
"Jadon's wrestling with an injury that I don't think a lot of kids in this tournament would be wrestling with - it just speaks volumes to how tough he is and how much he loves this sport," Rosenbaum said. "He wants to give it a go, so as long as he can protect himself and go out there, we're going to let him do that."
Cunningham (40-15) also came out in convincing fashion by producing an 18-4 major decision over Bishop DuBourg senior Grant Pawlak.
"We scored on him in that second period, so the third period the kid gassed and we just wanted to get as many points as we could," Rosenbaum said. "We just kept letting him up and taking him down.
"That kept us out of trouble and got us the big win there."
Cunningham's quarterfinal opponent will be Mid-Buchanan sophomore Creed Webster (39-4).
Dews (36-18) dropped a 9-7 overtime loss to Sullivan freshman Ty Shetley in the first round, but bounced back to pin Benton sophomore Connor Timmons in 4:07 in first-round wrestlebacks.
Johnson (33-19) suffered a narrow 1-0 loss to Lincoln Prep freshman Louis Moten in his first-round match, but also rebounded with a pin of Sullivan junior Trevor Hamblin in 3:59 in first-round wrestlebacks.
"I think (Eston) was nervous - kids are going to say they're not nervous, but I think he was," Morts said. "For him to bounce back and wrestle a lot better in that second match was good.
"I think Steven was nervous, he's never been here, but then he comes back and wrestles really well against this (Hamblin) kid."
Wright (26-20) was pinned in the first round by Principia senior Garrett Sheets in 1:17. He exited the championships after being pinned by Penney senior Derek Aikin in 3:44 in first-round wrestlebacks.
Whipple (29-22) lost a 17-0 technical fall to Whitfield sophomore Logan Ferrero in the first round. He was then ousted after being pinned by Seneca sophomore Clayton Swadley in :50 in first-round wrestlebacks.
"Both of them had phenomenal seasons - I couldn't be prouder of who they are and what they accomplished," Rosenbaum said of Wright and Whipple. "I asked them both after their matches, I took them out and had them look around (Mizzou Arena) and said, 'Look what you got to do today and then I want you to think about where you were a year ago.'
" They'll take this and they'll run with it. I look for them to carry North Callaway wrestling for the next couple of years."
Baker (22-3) - receiving a first-round bye - pinned Camdenton freshman Taylor Mustain in :53 in her quarterfinal match. She moves on to meet Lafayette (Wildwood) freshman Faith Cole (20-0) in today's semifinals.
"Rylee had an excellent match," Morts said. "She had lost to (Mustain) earlier in the season, but she went out there and was ready. They wrestled around for a little bit, then Rylee took her down and she put her in a cradle and pinned her."
Clines (20-7) - also earning a first-round bye - was pinned by Lafayette (Wildwood) sophomore Josette Partney in 1:09 in the quarterfinals.
"Paige had a tough match - she had lost to this girl earlier too," Morts said. "They were wrestling around and Paige tried to do a foot trip, lost her balance coming up and got tossed in a headlock.
"Paige will be fine, she just needs to stay focused and wrestle hard (today)."
Clines will face McCluer sophomore Alexus Yancey (28-7) in first-round wrestlebacks. Clines pinned Yancey for a district title Feb. 2.
After Thursday's competition, Fulton was in a three-way tie with Centralia and Oak Grove for ninth place in Class 2 with 19 points apiece. Monett sat in first place with 34 points.
In Class 1, North Callaway was tied with Hancock for 21st with 10 points apiece. Lathrop was in first place with 32 points.
Class 1 and Class 2 quarterfinals are scheduled for 8:30 this morning, followed immediately by second-round wrestlebacks. Semifinal matches and third-round wrestlebacks are set for 6 tonight.
Girls' first- and second-round wrestlebacks will be at 12:15 this afternoon. Semifinal matches and third-round wrestlebacks will take place at 5.
Girls' fourth-round wrestlebacks are scheduled for 8:30 a.m. Saturday, followed by Class 1 and Class 2 fourth-round wrestlebacks at 9:30. Girls' third-place matches are set for 11:30, with Class 1 and Class 2 third- and fifth-place matches to follow at noon.
State championship matches will begin at 4 p.m.
Ryan Boland can be reached at (573) 826-2422, or on Twitter @FultonSunSports.