Messenger photo by Britt Kudla: Fort Dodge's Trace Rial is a returning Don Miller Invitational champion.

It’s both a first and a last for the Fort Dodge wrestling team on Saturday, as the Dodgers host the 51st annual Don Miller Invitational.

It will be the first time this season the fifth-ranked Dodgers will entertain the home crowd, and the last time they will wrestle in 2025.

“It’s a good way to end the first part of the season,” said FDSH head coach Bobby Thompson. “These kids get to wrestle in front of their home crowd, which is always a great experience.”

Competing with the Dodgers will be Humboldt, Algona, Webster City, Emmetsburg, Ankeny Centennial, Sioux City Heelan, Decorah, Iowa City West, Sioux Center, and Sioux City East.

Action begins at 9:30 a.m. in the Dodger gym, with finals at approximately 2 p.m.

“The field is a good mix,” Thompson said. “Ankeny Centennial has some solid kids. Algona and Decorah have good squads.”

Fort Dodge placed fourth last season in the Miller Invite, with individual titles from Trace Rial, Koy Davidson and Joe Constable.

The Dodgers won back-to-back Miller titles in 2022 and 2023.

Top-rated (IAwrestle) senior (285) Dreshaun Ross is going for his third championship after being injured last season and earning gold as a freshman and sophomore on his home mat.

Third-rated senior Jesse Egli (190) will be chasing his first gold after a runner-up performance here last year and two bronze medals as an underclassman.

“For the young guys, we want to be making gains every outing,” Thompson said. “Find out where you are at and work on things over the holidays.

“The seniors need to go out and wrestle aggressively for the home crowd, given this is their last Miller Invite.”

Humboldt captured the team title last season, with top-rated junior Broedy Hendricks (190) bringing home a championship.

The last time the Dodgers were on the mat, they competed in the Iowa City West duals last weekend. Fort Dodge had a triangular canceled against Des Moines Lincoln and Des Moines Roosevelt on Thursday due to inclement weather.

No. 10 senior Rylee Brown (157) and Egli are chasing career milestones. Brown is sitting at 97 career victories, while Egli is at 95.

Ross (9-0) enters the tournament on a 113-match high schoool win streak and has 120 career victories. He is sitting 18th on the program’s all-time win list, tied with 2005 graduate Christian Abrams.

PROBABLE DODGER LINEUP

106 — Knox Ayala, fr., (7-3); 113 — Damien Yeoman, so., (5-5); 120 — Trace Rial, jr., (6-4); 126 — Hunter Kasperbauer, sr., (1-6); 132 — Brody Reimers, fr., (0-3); 138 — Angel Sandoval, sr., (0-3); 144 — Mason Zuspann, so., (0-0); 150 — Amari McCaleb, so., (3-5); 157 — Rylee Brown, sr., (7-3); 165 — Caiden Fraher, sr., (5-5); 175 — Mykel Benedict, fr., (2-7) 190 — Jesse Egli, sr., (7-3); 215 — Cael Adams, so., (1-8) 285 — Dreshaun Ross, sr., (9-0).