KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Senior Cal Hartman mentioned to Fort Dodge wrestling coach Bobby Thompson this past offseason that he would love to see the Dodgers compete in a dual tournament.

So when second-ranked FDSH got an invitation to compete in the St. Pius X Warrior Duals right before Christmas, Thompson jumped at the opportunity.

“The tournament director called me in June and asked if we would be interested,” Thompson said. “It was initially scheduled for next weekend (Dec. 30), but we were informed that was a no-compete week for us, so they moved the tournament to this weekend.

“We have wrestled in dual tournaments before, but we had gotten away from it (in recent years) to compete in more invitationals.”

Hartman, who is ranked sixth at 175 pounds, had said something to Thompson about making a trip somewhere for a dual event.

“Cal is a very team-oriented guy,” Thompson said. “It’s been a while, but we thought it would be beneficial to this group. So I thought let’s do it.”

There will be six programs from five different states. The Dodgers are joined by host St. Pius X, Bentonville (Arkansas), Mexico High School (Missouri), Marlow (Oklahoma) and Overland Park-St. Thomas Aquinas HS (Kansas).

Fort Dodge is traveling 241 miles one-way to compete in their final event of 2023. The Dodgers are coming off their second straight Don Miller Invitational championship last Saturday at FDSH, where they crowned five champions.

Third-rated seniors Dru Ayala (120) and Damarion Ross (190) earned their third Miller Invitational titles overall.

No. 8 senior Kane Butrick (132) and top-ranked sophomore Dreshaun Ross (215) won their second titles. Top-rated junior Koy Davidson (138) picked up his first Miller crown.

Thompson is hoping the long trip will help build team unity and propel the Dodgers into the new year.

“We’re hoping to see some more growth and bonding as a program,” Thompson said. “It will be good for the young kids to continue to learn about the Dodger Way.”

PROBABLE DODGER LINEUP

106 — Trace Rial, fr., (12-10); 113 — Hunter Kasperbauer, so. (8-8); 120 — Dru Ayala, sr., (17-1); 126 — Sam Davidson, so., (1-3) or Bo Marsh, fr., (6-12); 132 — Kane Butrick, sr., (16-4); 138 — Koy Davidson, jr., (18-0); 144 — Rylee Brown, so., (14-8); 150 — Open; 157 — Jesse Egli, so., (13-9) or Jayce Skow, fr., (0-0); 165 — Bo Cowell, sr., (8-5); 175 — Cal Hartman, sr., (15-5); 190 — Damarion Ross, sr., (17-2); 215 — Dreshaun Ross, so., (19-0) or Joe Constable, fr., (4-1); 285 — Luke Fierke, so., (16-5).