SHELLEY – One of the most decorated and accomplished area high school wrestlers of the past decade has signed a letter of intent to attend the University of Providence in Montana and continue his wrestling career.

The area’s top high school athletes, coaches and teams were honored Monday night at the third annual Post Register Sports Stars Awards ceremony.

The High Country Conference announced its all-conference wrestlers and wrestlers of the year on Thursday.

One of the most successful prep wrestling careers ever seen in eastern Idaho came to a close in the only appropriate way -- on top of the state championship podium.

When you bring home the bacon for the first time in 35 years, the family is sure to be shocked.

Though exceedingly rare, there have been occasions when lightning has struck out of a clear blue sky.

The taste of silver apparently wasn’t to the liking of Ririe freshman Gabe Sommers.

NAMPA — One win streak came to an end just as another one started at Saturday’s state wrestling championships.

NAMPA — A wrestling season that almost didn’t happen ended with a 5A/4A state tournament where guts and endurance were paramount. With all the action crammed into one day, Idaho’s best wrestlers had to dig deep to find championship glory at the Idaho Center.

The state wrestling tournament gets underway at the Idaho Center in Nampa on Friday with a bit of a different format.

At Arco, the Butte County boys basketball team moved into the 1AD1 District 5-6 championship game with a 70-66 overtime win over top-seeded Grace on Wednesday.

At Idaho Falls, the Thunder Ridge boys basketball team closed out the regular season Friday night with a 53-46 win over Idaho Falls.

At Blackfoot, after a disappointing loss to Blackfoot on Wednesday, Skyline girls basketball coach Ty Keck said his team was down, but ready to get refocused for Thursday's rematch.

Here's the latest on the girls basketball district tournaments.

At Hillcrest, the Hillcrest girls basketball team advanced in the 4A District 6 tournament with a 54-41 win over Bonneville.

At Terreton, Carlee Johnson's running 3-pointer just inside the half-court line with four seconds left lifted the West Jefferson girls basketball team to a 41-40 victory over Firth in the 2A District 6 tournament.

At Rexburg, the Madison boys basketball team had little trouble with Skyline in a 57-26 non-conference win.

5A District 5-6 tournament

At Challis, North Fremont's girls basketball team completed its regular-season slate with a blowout win over Challis.

At Ririe, the Ririe girls basketball team remained unbeaten in the Nuclear Conference with a 46 -40 win over second-place West Jefferson on Wednesday night, securing the top seed in next week's district tournament.

The Idaho High School Activities Association is making some changes to the winter state tournaments.

At Hillcrest, the Rigby boys basketball team held off the Hillcrest 59-55 Saturday night in a tightly-contested nonconference game.

At Bonneville, Macy Larsen scored 30 points as the Hillcrest girls basketball team held off Bonneville 56-48 in a close 4A District 6 matchup.

The spotlight hangs from the video board like a yo-yo, hovering some 15 feet above the wrestling mat, illuminating the navy blue surface and its white, circular center. The rest of the gym is bathed in relative darkness, just enough that the spectacle feels like something that belongs in the…

Like any eastern Idaho wrestler, Shelley's Kolton Stacey grew up with his eye on the Tiger-Grizz Invitational.

At Ashton, the state No. 1 North Fremont boys basketball team kept its record unblemished with a 44-24 win Thursday night over Firth.

Girls and women’s wrestling has been a growing sport for the past two decades.

At Rexburg, the Madison boys basketball team built a big lead during the middle of the game and ran away with a 64-43 win over rival Rigby.

The Watersprings Fab 5 has gotten a lot bigger.

At Ashton, the North Fremont boys basketball team cruised past Aberdeen Saturday and continued its spotless start to the season with a 62-44 win.

At Highland, the Thunder Ridge girls basketball team continued its blistering start to the season with a 53-42 road win over Highland.

More spectators will be allowed into high school athletic events beginning this week following a new order by Governor Brad Little that seeks to permit athletics to “continue in a way that is productive and safe for all participants, while including spectators.”

On the state stage, east Idaho wrestling has become a small school play.

At Rexburg, a big third quarter propelled the Thunder Ridge girls basketball team to at 62-40 win over Madison on Friday.

At Skyline, Mattie Olson poured in 34 points and connected on six 3-pointers to lead the Skyline girls basketball team to a 72-56 win over Bonneville Wednesday night in the conference opener.

The Tiger-Grizz wrestling tournament is one of the top competitions in the state, so when the tournament hosted a girls division for the first time last year, it seemed it was only a matter of time before the dominoes started to fall.

The Idaho High School Activities Association is scheduled to vote Tuesday on whether to officially sanction girls wrestling.

The National Wrestling Hall of Fame selected South Fremont’s Sawyer Hobbs as the Idaho Dave Schultz High School Excellence Award winner earlier this month, making him the first South Fremont wrestler to win the award.

As a two-time state wrestling medalist, South Fremont’s Cesar Tavarez figured he would pursue the sport at the collegiate level.

The Post Register’s second annual Sports Stars Awards had a different look Wednesday night as area high school athletes were honored during a virtual Facebook live ceremony.

Kenneth Copley, one of the top athletes in a loaded Sugar-Salem senior class, signed a letter of intent to wrestle at NAIA Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Prescott, Arizona.

Wrestling coaches from the High Country Conference selected all-conference teams for 2019-2020.

With a calm and efficient first round pin over Weiser's Rylee Willet at the Ford Idaho Center on February 29, Sawyer Hobbs cemented his legacy as one of the best prep wrestlers in eastern Idaho history.

Traditionally, anything can happen in a matchup of two heavyweights.

Feeling low? Need an emotional kick.

Lightweight of the Year: Kohl Nielson (56-4), 132, North Fremont.

Cordingley was eight pounds light when he climbed on the scales at the Ford Idaho Center in Nampa for the state tournament.

While his Cougar's finished fourth in 2019, it was a strong fourth to be sure.

NAMPA — The Ririe Bulldogs matched the longest dynasty in Idaho wrestling history at the Ford Idaho Center on Saturday, winning their sixth-straight team championship in front of a packed house.

NAMPA — There are two ways to enter a party.

At Nampa, South Fremont leads the 3A team standings and Ririe leads the 2A team standings after day one of the Idaho high school state wrestling championships at the Ford Idaho Center.

The state wrestling championships are Friday and Saturday as hundreds of competitors converge on the Idaho Center in Nampa. Here’s a by-the-numbers look at area athletes and teams.