—Submitted photo Brody Teske of Fort Dodge and Pocahontas Area’s Elle Ruffridge stand together at the All-Iowa Sports Awards banquet on Saturday in Des Moines.

DES MOINES — What started with a simple congratulatory message on social media quickly led to a sincere friendship between two of the most accomplished athletes in area history.

Brody Teske and Elle Ruffridge crossed paths only briefly at first, and their careers may appear to have very little in common. What the undefeated state champion wrestler from Fort Dodge and Iowa’s all-time girls basketball scoring leader from Pocahontas Area instantly realized, though, is that elite athletes from all walks of life can — and often do — speak a universal language.

Teske and Ruffridge were both at the All-Iowa Sports Awards Banquet on Saturday night. Teske, a Dodger senior-to-be, was named the 2016-17 wrestler of the year. Ruffridge, who recently graduated from PAC, earned the same honor for basketball.

A picture them standing together surfaced on Facebook after the event. This wasn’t a chance meeting of iconic Messengerland preps, but rather, the latest opportunity to compare notes and — more importantly — simply enjoy each other’s company.

”After I broke the scoring record against Manson (Northwest Webster), Brody sent me a message of congratulations (on Twitter),” said Ruffridge, who just arrived at Missouri State University on Sunday for the early stages of what will be her freshman season. ”So when it got close to state wrestling, I wanted to make sure to return the favor and wish him luck. We started communicating from there, and a friendship started to build.

”We’ve hung out a few times since then, and it’s good to talk to someone who has really high goals like me. He gets it; he knows my lifestyle and the amount of work I put into my sport, because he’s the same way. It’s great to his perspective on things. We’ve talked about the recruiting process and everything else. That bond and friendship is something I really appreciate.”

The feeling is mutual for Teske, who became the first Dodger in school history to win three consecutive state wrestling championships last February.

”Elle is super cool and great to talk to,” Teske said. ”We have a lot of fun just hanging out. We can relate to what (each other is going through), and we’ve connected in a lot of ways.”

Teske has even made the 45-minute drive over to Ruffridge’s gym in Pocahontas a few times this past spring, adding, ”we shoot hoops together. I only have one loss in my career on the court — she beat me in P.I.G.”

Ruffridge called Saturday’s ceremony at the Iowa Events Center in Des Moines ”a terrific celebration for Iowa athletes.”

”It was amazing. Everyone was so nice, and it was surreal listening to (guest speaker) Shaquille O’Neal. You’re surrounded by the best of the best in our state, which is really cool. It was a blast.”

Teske added, ”it’s an honor to win the award and represent Fort Dodge in this way.”

Dodger Sam Cook was named the All-Iowa Sports Awards male athlete of the year in 2016. On Saturday, Ruffridge became the female recipient of the same honor.