A lot can be said about the dynamic of a wrestling room, where partners help sharpen an athlete’s skills and the team gets a lift with the strategic placing of grapplers at certain weights.

There’s also the gladiator side of it.

“I think for me, it’s the individuality,” Columbia Falls junior Justin Windauer said. “I just like that everything you do, whatever happens, it’s your fault. You have nobody else to blame; it’s just you out there.

“That’s what I like about it. And it’s a big reward when you win, even more than team sports I think.”

Windauer played slot receiver and safety for the Columbia Falls football team last fall, and it's safe to say he enjoyed the Wildcats’ run to the playoffs.

But the mat is where it’s at for the 4.0 student.

“He and I had that great conversation,” said his coach, Jessie Schaefer. “Yeah, he says, it’s a team sport, but I’m able to work towards my goal and my outcomes, and I put the work in. If it doesn’t happen, I can’t make excuses.

“He really loves that part of it. He likes the pressure, you know? I think he thrives on the pressure.”

Wrestling is a family sport, going back at least as far as Windauer’s father Dave, a state champion for Columbia Falls in 1990.

“I think I started when I was 5,” he said. By then his brother Ben, now a linebacker at Montana Tech, was wrestling ahead of a high school career capped by a 170-pound State A title as a senior.

Justin Windauer is on a similar path, but seems poised to reach the pinnacle earlier. He’s ranked No. 1 at 138 pounds in Class A ahead of this weekend’s all-class meet in Billings.

His 39-4 record is blemished by the pursuit of better competition: Twice he went up a class to face Helena Capital standout and defending AA champion Carson DesRosier. The other two losses came to 145-pounder Trae Thilmony, a Thompson Falls senior on the verge of a third straight B-C title.

“My coaches gave me a choice where I could go up and wrestle him,” Windauer said after the latest matchup with Thilmoney, and the Whitefish Duals on Jan. 27. “And my thought was, might as well.”

The 9-8 loss came down to the final 15 seconds; Windauer scored a takedown to knot the match at 8-8, but a move to cut and take down Thilmony one more time ended in an escape for the Bluehawk.

“I wrestled him when we were little,” Windauer noted. “And I wrestled him at the beginning of the season. It was a good match, but I still lost.”

As far as state goes, the nemesis would be Sidney's Zander Dean, who scored a 6-1 decision in the 126 finals a year ago. But Dean, who also beat Windauer in the 113-pound semifinals in 2020, is up at 145.

For the record Dean was second at 113 that year; Windauer was third. Last year the two went 1-2. The natural next step for Windauer is a state title, and while Sidney has its usual fleet of champions and owns the last four team titles, his team — ranked fifth in the last Class A coaches poll — can aim high.

The Matcats advanced 16 wrestlers to state.

“We’ve had a lot of injuries this year,” Windauer said, noting the loss of 113-pounder Winslow Peters. “But I think we’re looking pretty good.”

Josiah Kilman and Tyler Gilfrey are Western A Divisional champs at 132 and 120; Dylan Delorme was third at 120, as was Chris Rathjen at 132; and Brandon Roll was second at 170. Windauer counted off some moore: Logan Riley, Blake Hoerner (126) and Rowdy Crump (138), all going to state.

“We have a lot of guys that have the potential to place,” he said. “It’s just a matter of feeling good on that day and performing at the state tournament.”

“He’s making our kids in our room better, too,” Schaeffer said. “We’ve noticed improvements right around his weight class. He’s a fun kid to coach; he has so much talent. Aad it’s always fun to see what he does out there on the mat.”

Three pins at divisionals are no surprise.

“It’s just how dedicated he is to the sport,” Schaeffer said. “He’s put in so many hours and years. It’s really paying for him. Now you see this quiet confidence, and he’s just taking kids apart. It’s just so cool. Fun to watch.”