The Big Horn Basin Wrestling Camp brought in athletes of all ages to the Powell High School gymnasium from June 3-5, with wrestlers improving their skills via instruction from local area coaches and athletes.

“We’re always looking for the growth of the program and wrestlers,” coach Nick Fulton.

Throughout the week, younger wrestlers got the opportunity to work with both high school coaches and high school wrestlers, with Fulton noting the importance of the high schoolers teaching throughout the week.

“It’s pretty cool to work with the future of Panther wrestling in that fashion,” Fulton said. “It helps them get a better understanding of the sport.”

He noted that it is important for the high schoolers to interact with kids and help teach them, as the younger wrestlers look up to the older athletes.

“They’re good role models for these kids,” Keister said. “It gives the youth some real buy-in to the high school program. The high schoolers are really good with those guys, they look up to them. It resonates throughout our club program.”

In addition to the high schoolers helping teach the younger athletes, Fulton and the staff were able to bring in Cody Phelps, an NJCAA national champion this year at 133 pounds from Western Wyoming Community College in Rock Springs.

Phelps came in to both help the young wrestlers, alongside the high school wrestlers in the evening during their camp session.

“Cody was a junior college national champion and exposed them to a different technique,” Fulton said. “We wanted to expose them to something else. He worked with my high school guys a lot, they’re continuing to get better and continuing to learn.”

Fulton said that the instruction and continued involvement in the gym is important for the high school team heading into the 2024-25 season, as the Panthers have high goals set for the team.

“We’re trying everything we can this offseason to put ourselves in a good position next February,” Fulton said. “We have high goals for our high school team this year, we don’t want to look back in February and say we were wishing we did something else.”

He said that the high schoolers took a lot out of the experience, with it being continued growth for the athletes.

Wrapping up the camp, the high schoolers and the younger campers took center stage, as a dual setting pitted young athletes against each other, with high schoolers coaching and officiating the matches in front of a crowd under the light.

“I think that’s the highlight of camp for those little guys,” Fulton said. “From a coaching perspective we want them looking forward to being Panther wrestlers. We set it up where the high schoolers coach and officiate it. It’s enjoyable and I think the parents and spectators enjoy it. It’s an enjoyable way to end camp.”