For the Montana wrestling community, this is the weekend when the state stands still.

The 12 mats sprawled across Rimrock Auto Arena at MetraPark in Billings will have thousands of eyes resting upon them as wrestlers attempt to etch their names in the record books at the MHSA All-Class State Wrestling Tournament. There will be monumental victories and devastating losses all in the name of everlasting glory — a state championship.

Flathead Valley grapplers will begin their quest for the podium with first-round matches on Friday at 10:20 a.m. and first-round consolation and quarterfinal matches scheduled for 1:30 p.m. The first day will conclude with second-round consolation matches at 4:30.

Day 2 will consist of four rounds with the championship matches proceeding the Parade of Finalists at 3:15 p.m.

The amount of local wrestlers in the finals remains to be seen, but the sheer amount of qualifiers has the Flathead Valley in position for a historic weekend.

CLASS AA

After qualifying 21 wrestlers, including three divisional finalists, the Flathead Braves are on the brink of a big weekend in Billings.

Trae Vasquez (113), Payton Hume (132) and Matt Gash-Gilder (170) reached the finals at the Western AA divisional seeding tournament and eight more Braves placed in the top five, including Dyan Guzman’s (126) third-place finish.

“The confidence has always been there. I know they’re going to go out there and fight for a full six minutes,” Braves head coach Rich Vasquez said of his qualifiers, 13 of which are underclassmen.

“Our main goal is to finish in top half of the group, but ultimately the effort is what I’m looking for. Get the experience, get some wins and get some things to talk about down the line.”

It’s Trae Vasquez that may have the biggest expectations of all. Ranked second at 113, Vasquez has just two losses this season and is coming off a 9-2 Western AA divisional title victory. For the freshman, it’s championship or bust.

“He’s worked hard to get where he’s at. Every time he steps on the mat I think he feels he’s favored to win, and I feel that way too,” Rich Vasquez, Trae’s father, said. “He’s been growing up; he’s wrestled some tough guys for sure. His confidence is there, mentally I think he’s there and physically too.”

In another bright freshman campaign, Hume’s latest defeat turned some heads across the Treasure State. Hume fell by just two points, 7-5, to top-ranked senior Jace Kovalicky of Missoula Sentinel.

With Guzman, a senior ranked fourth at 126, poised to make a run of his own, the Flathead Braves are ready to bring the pride back to a program with a successful history.

“Going into the season we talked about what it takes to successful. You need to focus on the mental side, the film study and the overall attitude,” Vasquez said.

“You can just see the excitement in the school and that feeds into the kids. You see them starting to turn the corner. They’ve believed and they’ve wrestled great.”

The Glacier Wolfpack are sending 10 wrestlers to Billings, two of which were crowned divisional champions.

“Our goal is to get as many guys on the podium as we can. Every one we brought is focused and prepared to compete,” Glacier head coach Ross Dankers said.

Sophomore Justin Gibson (103) is coming off a tough 2-1 divisional title over Cameron Hegel of Missoula Sentinel. He was in the semifinals of last year’s tournament before placing fifth as a freshman.

“I’m excited for Justin,” Dankers said. “He’s put in his time. He’s one of those guys who does what it takes to win a match. He’s focused on his technique and his strategy.”

Quinn Barber (152) also won the divisional title with a commanding 8-3 victory over Chance Stack from Sentinel.

“Quinn is in a really good spot. He’s been extremely focused and turned the corner. He’s made a big change to his work ethic and put in all the extra work it takes to be successful. I’m excited for him.”

Cody Decker (138) and Eli Horn (285) both took third place at the seeding tournament and look to keep their momentum rolling into Billings.

“One thing we do is make sure we’re focused on the basics, Dankers said. “When you get in an exciting environment you don’t want to any thing new or unfamiliar. You stick to what you know best and that’s when you find success.”

CLASS A

The Class A team results may look something like this: Havre, Sidney, Columbia Falls. That’s how they finished last year, and that’s how they’re ranked in the latest Class A poll. But the Mat Cats have been hard at work in preparation for the state tournament, and after capturing their third straight divisional title while sending 17 wrestlers to Billings, they are ready for the hostile MetraPark.

“The kids have had a great week of practice, and we’re excited with what we’re going to show and what were going to bring to the tournament,” Columbia Falls coach Jessie Schaeffer said.

“Obviously if the brackets fall where we’re going to have some big matches with Sidney and Havre, we want to win, but our biggest focus is take care of yourself. Right now, this is what each individual has been looking forward to, winning a state title.”

Haze Bell (126), Kaleb Gravelin (132), Shonn Roberts (138), Colton Gove (145), Storm Kemppainen (160), Mikey Denison (182) and Spencer Ross (285) took home divisional titles a week ago. The seven are joined by ten other top-five finishers looking to shake up the final standings in Billings.

Libby, sending just five wrestlers, has defending state champion Garret Chapel (170) and Zach Crace (152) coming off divisional titles. Despite last year’s success Chapel is ranked second behind Sidney’s Cody Johnson.

The Polson Pirates and Whitefish Bulldogs both qualified eight wrestlers. The Pirates had four second-place finishes at the divisional tournament, and Cameron Brown (113), ranked fifth, took home the lone individual title.

CLASS B/C

Big things are happening in Eureka. After a historic Western B/C divisional tournament where the Lions won their first team title in 20 years, Eureka has nine wrestlers in Billings, two of which are ranked in the top-two of their respective classes.

Zach Durden is ranked second at 120 and won his second straight divisional title. Garret White is the top-ranked wrestler at 126 and captured the other divisional title for the Lions.

Kahden Bakkila (103) and Joe Fehr (182) were also divisional finalists, placing second.

Bigfork qualified a single wrestler. Vinny Quirk (205) avenged last year’s divisional runner-up finish by pinning his opponent in just 36 second for the title. He will be making his second straight trip to Billings.