Nathan Broeckelman, Barton Wrestling Head Coach

Bio

Nathan Broeckelman embarks on his third season as the head coach of the Barton Wrestling program. and begins his 19th year coaching wrestling in the state of Kansas.

Rebuilding the foundational progress in his first season, Broeckelman continued to elevate the program during the 2024-25 campaign. Under his guidance, Barton qualified five athletes to the NJCAA National Tournament, improving from a 53rd-place finish in 2023-24 to a 37th-place showing.

Competing with another big squad of X athletes, Broeckelman’s guys placed eighth at the NJCAA South Central District Championships, bettering their prior ninth place finish in year one. The performance was highlighted by a standout showing from sophomore Jarret Mader in the 149-pound weight class, along with an additional qualifier selected by virtue of an at-large bid.

Despite still in the rebuilding stages, the Cougars showed another big improvement in dual action finishing 3-16 in dual meets, including a 1-6 mark in the KJCCC.

Equally impactful off the mat, Broeckelman’s squad once again led the Barton Athletic Department in community outreach, logging over 27 different service events throughout the academic year.

In his first season at the helm, Broeckelman quickly revamped the program with 16 new members.

Guiding the Cougars to a ninth-place finish at the NJCAA South-Central District Championship with five placers, Broeckelman qualified his first national qualifier with CJ Neuman’s (165-division) fifth place district result punching a ticket to the NJCAA National Championship.

Amid a busy season and rebuilding the program, the Cougars under Broeckelman’s leadership volunteered nearly 25 community service opportunities resulting in nearly 1000 hours of donated assistances or interaction within youth around the area.

Becoming the third head coach in the program’s 8 years of existence, Broeckelman made the leap into collegiate coaching after serving as the head coach for eight seasons at Great Bend High School with prior stints at Greeley County High School and Manhattan High School.

Among his many Great Bend accomplishments of leading the Panther girls and boy’s programs were a state runner-up on the girls side with the boys finishing in the top five at state three of the four years to go along with another sixth place finish.

A two-time state champion and four-time placer in his own high school career in Norton, Broeckelman has coached five state championships, 42 to state medalists, and 35 state qualifiers.

From his success as a wrestler through his coaching success, Broeckelman is a steward of the wrestling community with heavy involvement and leadership within the Kansas Wrestling Coaches Association among instruction and organization of youth wrestling.