No Limits Wrestling Club Competes at the Tacoma Dome in First Season as a Program

No Limits Wrestling Club competed at the Tacoma Dome during the weekend of February 22, 2026, entering athletes in the WSWA Folkstyle State Championships for the first time as a program. Founded in September 2025, the club is in its first season and brought athletes across a wide range of age groups and weight classes.

The majority of No Limits competitors were between the ages of 6 and 12. For many wrestlers, the event marked their first experience competing in the Tacoma Dome, a venue known for its size, noise, and long tournament days.

First-Time Competitors in a Demanding Environment

Fourteen No Limits athletes wrestled in the Tacoma Dome for the first time. Twelve were first-year wrestlers, nine had less than twelve months of experience, and four athletes began wrestling during the December middle school season at View Ridge Middle School in Ridgefield, Washington.

Despite their relative inexperience, No Limits wrestlers remained competitive throughout the tournament. Many matches were decided by narrow margins, with athletes staying in position, remaining active in scrambles, and wrestling through full periods.

Training Approach and Fundamentals

Training at No Limits Wrestling Club centers on repeated drilling of core fundamentals. Athletes work from a limited set of techniques, emphasizing stance and motion, hand fighting, finishes, mat returns, and basic turns.

Practices are structured around repetition and positional awareness rather than introducing a high volume of techniques. The goal is to help wrestlers remain composed under pressure and make sound decisions in competition.

Coach Kassi Irelan said the results from the weekend reflected the program’s overall approach.

“I’m just so proud of all of these kids,” Irelan said. “What we really wanted to prove is that less is more. You can accomplish so much more with bread-and-butter fundamentals you can do in your sleep than with 50 moves you sort of kind of know and realistically won’t ever be put in a position to use at the level we’re at. We run our program as a deliberately developmental wrestling academy. We are not an open mat. We’re here to develop athletes with a system that has proven to get them technically proficient and mat-aware in a short amount of time. There is such a thing as working too hard on the wrong things, and nothing breaks my heart more than seeing a kid come up short of their goals because nobody ever prioritized steering them to work hard on a few things instead of too many.”

WSWA Folkstyle State Results

At the WSWA Folkstyle State Championships, No Limits Wrestling Club produced multiple podium finishes.

Brayson Higdon earned a first-place finish in the 10U 56-pound division, completing the tournament with 26 team points.
After being a runner up last season and then winnig a freestyle and greco state title he had high hopes for this year. As a first year 10u he  has experienced some ups and downs and had some injuries that have kept him from competing as often as years past. He was able to get healthy at the right time and show up when it mattered most. He wrestled a great tournament, wrestling and winning the state finals against the same kid he wrestled his first match of the season.

Eli Sassa won the 10U 93-pound division, earning his third state championship and finishing with 30 team points. Coach Brandon Higdon said Sassa “had a great season, continuing to show his dominant strength and athletic ability. He’s been forced to sharpen his technique this year and had several big matches with high-caliber kids. He walked away this weekend with his second state title in three years.”

Liliana Cannon placed second in the Girls K–2nd 49.8–53-pound division, finishing with 19.5 team points. According to Higdon, Cannon “wrestled a great tournament, falling short in the finals by only a few points to a national champion. She was able to close the gap from the first time they wrestled earlier this year, and we’re looking forward to some big things from her.”

Fynn Andre placed third in the 14U 175-pound division, contributing 18 team points. Higdon noted that Andre “came to us in January and walked into the Tacoma Dome for the first time this year. His explosive speed and grit were on full display.”

Jackson Caldwell earned a third-place finish in the 10U 53-pound division, finishing with 17.5 team points. “Jackson had a solid showing in a very competitive weight class,” Higdon said. “He’s had very competitive matches this season with both the first- and second-place finishers.”

Shelby Ayers placed fifth in the Girls 6th–8th grade 93-pound division, earning 13 team points. Competing in her final WSWA state tournament before moving on to high school, Ayers wrestled with a clear focus on her plan. Coach Brandon Higdon said the staff intentionally put her into positions she was not always comfortable in to help build confidence. Ayers closed the weekend by winning her final match at the Tacoma Dome and securing a fifth-place finish.

Hudson Davidson placed third in the 10U 49-pound division, accumulating 20 team points. Higdon said Davidson “continues to show he is very comfortable in the scramble and is not someone you can count out. He’s accomplished a lot this season in a short amount of time.”

Vincent Loconto placed fourth in the 14U 175-pound division, contributing 18 team points. Higdon said Loconto “came to us in January and wrestled in the Tacoma Dome for the first time this weekend. He battled every second and wrestled hurt. His final match was against a teammate, and he lost by one point. The two have gone back and forth all season and always have exciting matches.”

Levi Hurliman, the oldest No Limits competitor entered at WSWA State and competing in his final year at Open State, placed sixth in the 16U 144-pound division and earned 13 team points. Coach Brandon Higdon said Hurliman “had an impressive showing. After losing his second match, he battled back, trusting his explosive speed and strength. He’s not someone you can ever count out. After suffering a knee injury in his last match of the day, Levi was forced to medically forfeit his final match, earning a sixth-place medal.”

Jett Morales, the youngest placer for No Limits at WSWA State, placed fifth in the 8U 53-pound division and earned 21.5 team points. Higdon said Morales’ “explosive speed carried him through the bracket and to an impressive fifth-place finish.”

Owen Miller placed seventh in the 10U 63-pound division, scoring 12.5 team points. Higdon said Miller “has experienced extreme growth this season after making the jump from rec league to a serious commitment to competing. He lost to the number one seed in his third match, then battled back through the bracket, handling the emotions and pressure. He walked out of the Tacoma Dome for the first time winning his final match and bringing home a state medal, the first of many.”

Five of the club’s WSWA placers were competing in the Tacoma Dome for the first time. Four of those athletes were first-year wrestlers.

WIAA State Championship Results and Championship Week Grind

The WIAA state tournament week began Wednesday night, with many teams arriving in Tacoma ahead of competition. Matches started Thursday and continued through Friday and Saturday before concluding on Sunday, creating a four- to five-day championship stretch inside the Tacoma Dome.

No Limits Wrestling Club athletes competed throughout the WIAA State Wrestling Championships.

Eden Hornby finished third after returning from an arm injury that ended her previous freestyle season early. After recovering, she worked consistently throughout the year and recorded several key wins. She closed the tournament with a third-place finish by pin.

Lucy Hornby finished as a state runner-up. After placing fourth the previous season, she advanced to the finals as a sophomore. She controlled her first two matches by sticking to her plan and scoring from the bottom position. In the finals, a takedown in the third period gave her opponent a two-point lead. Although the result fell short of her goal, Lucy completed a strong season marked by steady improvement and consistency and remains a model for younger athletes in the room.

Kiale Broyles placed third after pinning and tech-falling her way to the semifinals. Her only loss came to a returning two-time state champion, who went on to earn a third title. Broyles finished the tournament with two additional pins.

Israel Girabaldi earned a sixth-place finish following a consistent performance across the weekend.

Hunter Shirley captured the 2026 Mat Classic state championship.

The coaching staff emphasized that the results over the weekend would not have been possible without the commitment of families who arrived as early as Wednesday night and stayed through the final whistle on Sunday. The extended hours, long days, and significant downtime between matches made for a demanding weekend, and the program expressed sincere appreciation for the parents who supported their athletes throughout the entire championship stretch.

Program Size and Growth

No Limits Wrestling Club currently has 84 registered athletes and averages between 45 and 50 wrestlers per practice. The club serves families from Clark County and Cowlitz County and draws participants from communities along the I-5 corridor.

The program focuses primarily on youth development, particularly athletes between the ages of 6 and 12. Toward the end of the winter season, new registrations were waitlisted to maintain manageable practice sizes and ensure proper instruction for newer wrestlers.

Coaching Staff

No Limits Wrestling Club is coached by Brandon Higdon, Kassi Irelan, Tony Davidson, Brad Caldwell and Matthew Miller.

Higdon and Irelan are former WIAA state placers. Irelan is a retired collegiate wrestler who competed at McKendree University and Warner Pacific University and has experience at the national level, including participation on a Washington Dual Team and a USA Marine Corps Junior National Fargo All-American finish.

Davidson, Caldwell and Miller assist with daily instruction and match preparation across age groups.

In addition to expanding support on the floor, the club places a high priority on who is allowed to share responsibility for athletes and represent the program. No Limits Wrestling Club does not allow just anyone to step into a coaching or support role at competitions. All individuals assisting on the floor are vetted, credentialed through USA Wrestling, and aligned with the program’s expectations. This approach ensures athletes are supported by adults they know and trust and that safety, consistency, and accountability remain central at every event.

Summary

Across both WSWA and WIAA competition at the Tacoma Dome, No Limits Wrestling Club athletes competed in a high volume of close matches and earned podium finishes at the youth and high school levels.

For a first-year program with a young roster, the results reflected a consistent training approach centered on fundamentals, repetition, and match awareness, supported by a significant commitment from athletes and families throughout a long championship week.