CLARKS — The microphone was fine.

It was Norm Manstedt's voice that was cracking as he choked back tears and thanked the volunteers, wrestlers and fans for 40 years of the High Plains Invitational on Saturday.

Manstedt, the wrestling coach at Clarks (now a part of High Plains High School) since 1969, started the tournament with one mat, 10 teams and big hopes.

The now-annual, 16-team, 200-plus-wrestler meet has become the standard in Nebraska.

A group more than two times the size of Clarks (pop. 341) squeezes into every corner, every hallway, every inch of space in the tiny gym for two days every year.

"This is tradition and really great wrestling," said Gaylen Kamrath, longtime David City coach. "The kids, the coaches and the fans get up for this one like no other. Some of us have tried to talk Norm into going to a bigger place, but it wouldn't be the special meet it is if we did move.

"And every coach knows, if you want to place at state, you have to place here."

Madison, with four individual champions, won the team title, followed by Plattsmouth, Bennington, Gothenburg and Grand Island Central Catholic.

Teams come from as far away as Mullen. The Gothenburg team stays at Manstedt's house.

"My son (Eric) is the coach at Gothenburg," Norm Manstedt said. Some teams stay in motels in Columbus and Central City.

"We'll keep doing this as long as the teams keep coming," Manstedt said.

“And the best thing is they come back every year â€- bless them.”

The legendary tournament has seen three champions go on to become national college champs. Twenty of the team champions have gone on to win state titles, and 236 participating wrestlers eventually won state titles. Oddly, some teams have won the state title, yet not won the High Plains meet.

Pride and tradition pushed Corbey Grause to the 135-pound title Saturday. The High Plains senior scored a roof-shaking single-leg takedown in overtime to beat Kyle Ruh of Madison in the title match.

"I had to win since this is my last chance," Grause said. His father Dallas won a Clarks Invite title in 1976. His brother Corey never won at the winter tournament but won a state title in 1993.

"I was around this tournament all my life, as a towel boy, wiping up blood and the mats, and the last couple of years as a wrestler," Grause said. "I watched my brother, at least 10 uncles, and other relatives wrestle in this tournament."

Zach Starostka, who won the 160-pound title for Grand Island Central Catholic, kept a family tradition alive, too.

His father Marc won a Clarks Invite title in 1984 and a state title in 1983. GICC freshman Jeremiah Starostka, Zach's younger brother, finished second to Kurt Ruh of Madison in the 145-pound class Saturday.

Phil Pisasale, who won a state title in 1976, has been officiating at the tournament since 1984. Manstedt introduced Pisasale to a local Clarks girl about the same year.

"Teresa and Phil got married a little bit later, but Phil has been coming back to this tournament ever since."

Pisasale said he wouldn't miss the tournament.

"It's a classic," he said. "A hot, tiny gym. All this great competition, and the place is chaos when a wrestler makes a big-time move on the mat."

Centennial's Breckin Coffee, who took the 152-pound title from Ryan Ludlow of Plattsmouth, said there was only one drawback to wrestling in the meet.

"A lot of us wore these throwback singlets, the same uniforms that our guys wore some 40 years ago," he said. Coffee's dad Mike wrestled in the Clarks tourney and was part of the Centennial 1986 state championship team.

"These uniforms are kind of tight and they don't stretch the way our regular singlets do," Breckin Coffee said. "But what the heck. It's all for tradition and the pride from wrestling here."

Reach Ken Hambleton at 473-7313 or khambleton@journalstar.com.