Another Jackson County Central wrestler will be attending Augustana University.
Senior Nolan Ambrose signed his national letter of intent to attend the Sioux Falls school and wrestle for the Vikings.
There are three former Huskies on this year’s roster at Augustana, redshirt freshman Payton Handevidt and freshmen Logan Butzon and Caleb Vancura. Another JCC grad, Cooper Moore, is a graduate assistant coach with the Vikings.
Ambrose is projected to wrestle at either 141 or 149 pounds for the Vikings.
"We have a lot of kids from the Jackson County Central program, so it was natural for us to go after Nolan,” said Augustana coach Jason Reitmeier, a Worthington High School graduate. “JCC is a proven winning program and Nolan is a proven winner. He's tough in all positions, finding ways to score and win. He's also super competitive in the classroom which makes him a great fit for Augustana and our program."
Ambrose is a four-year starter and captain for the Huskies.
He’s a three-time state champion, winning at 106 pounds in 2021 when he had a 40-2 record; at 113 (52-0) in 2022 and at 132 (40-3) in 2023. Ambrose missed about a month of last season with a hip injury.
He’s been a member of two state Class 1A team champions and was academic all-state as a junior.
There are also three Martin County West grads competing for the Vikings, juniors Payton Anderson and Jaxson Rohman, along with sophomore Connor Simmonds.
Rohman is rated first in the country at 125 pounds in the preseason ratings by the National Wrestling Coaches Association.
Nolan, the son of Jeremy and Kassie Ambrose, is undecided on an area of study.