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Previous Hidden Gems Spotlights:

Jason Mara, Meridian
Matthew Martino, Bishop Kelly
Kolter Burton, American Falls
Daniel and Gabriel Rosales, Mountain Home
Manuel and Carlos Valdez, Bishop Kelly
Shilo Jones, Mountain View
Clare Waite, Boise
Talen Eck, Thunder Ridge
Bowen and Riley Brunson, Buhl
Aiden McGinnis, Mountain View
Joely Slyter, Lewiston
Tyson Barnhart, Post Falls
Amie Hartman, Mountain Home
Elise Twait, Meridian
Jeremiah Gonzalez, Meridian
Wallace Durfee, Declo
Zoey Fries, Kuna
Saxton Scott, Idaho Falls
Caddy Tverdy, Garden Valley

For the 40th installment of my HIDDEN GEMS/TIER ONE series, I'm spotlighting Sean Hall, a senior wrestler from Canyon Ridge High School in Twin Falls. The Class of 2026 standout is recognized as one of Idaho's top wrestling talents. Sean's early years were characterized by significant involvement in both sports and extracurricular pursuits. At approximately age six, his father, having achieved some success as a prep wrestler, withdrew him from karate lessons and subsequently introduced him to wrestling. At this crossroads in his young life, the sport of wrestling ignited a powerful desire to excel, becoming a driving force.

Sean's early mat career was marked by both successes and setbacks. However, his steadfast dedication and hard work fueled his continuous ascent through age-group competitions, ultimately leading him to compete at the local, state, regional, and national levels. Sean built a strong reputation as a middle school wrestler before entering the prep ranks at Canyon Ridge High School. His achievements included winning the Idaho middle school state championships, capturing state titles in both Freestyle and Greco, and earning two All-American honors by reaching the medal stand at the 14U Freestyle/Greco and Folkstyle nationals.

Opened in 2009, Canyon Ridge High School quickly established a strong wrestling legacy in Idaho. The Riverhawks made an immediate impact, producing numerous state placers, multi-placers, and champions at both the district and state levels. When Sean joined the prep ranks in the fall of 2022, he was driven not only by high-level wrestling ambitions but also by a desire to achieve significant academic milestones.

From the start, Sean was a powerful force in his weight division. By the close of the season, he had claimed a title at the IHSAA District IV championships and secured a fourth-place finish at the state championships. Not content to rest, Sean devoted the summer to training in Freestyle and Greco-Roman, ultimately achieving his first high school All-American honor at the preseason nationals.

Though his prep career had a promising start, a state medal was not enough for Sean; he yearned for the top spot on the podium. Following a rigorous summer circuit, Sean's sophomore season was marked by impressive showings, including a major win at the Tiger-Grizz Invitational. Entering the postseason as a top-tier wrestler within the state, he successfully defended his IHSAA District IV title. However, his state performance yielded only a single-place improvement, resulting in a third-place finish.

Shortly after the state championships, Sean intensified his mat training. His efforts resulted in another series of titles at the Idaho Freestyle/Greco-Roman State Championships (16U), in addition to All-American honors at the Folkstyle Nationals and the prestigious U.S. Fargo Nationals in North Dakota.

His unwavering commitment and hard work within the sport have earned him due recognition. According to Chris Owens, the Director of Operations and Development Coach for Idaho USA Wrestling, “Sean Hall has been chasing down national level success very diligently the past 3-4 years. His work ethic and dedication is top notch…makes me think that he is just starting to scratch the surface of his true potential. Hopefully, we can help him gain some high level success this year to add to his already impressive resume. Above that and most importantly, Sean is as good of person as you will find anywhere and I’ve deeply enjoyed every opportunity I’ve had to help him in his wrestling journey. I’m confident he will use the skills he’s learned thru wrestling to have a very successful career in his chosen field.”

For Sean, the pursuit of goals has always been marked by a strong sense of self-discipline. This lifelong approach has been crucial to building his mental resilience and ensuring he follows through on his commitments. Sean’s diligent pursuit of continuous improvement yielded significant results in 2025. With a powerful combination of hard work and self-discipline, he asserted his dominance in his weight class by winning titles and being named "Outstanding Wrestler" at the Tiger-Grizz and Rollie Lane tournaments. In addition to his third IHSAA District IV title, he won his first prep-level state championship by overcoming three-time state champion and All-American Rider Seguine of Post Falls in a strong state tournament performance.

My college coach, Zack Papachristos, had a profound impact on me with his personal quote, "Strive for perfection, but settle for excellence." Sean's state victory was a powerful testament to that principle. What I find equally impressive about Sean’s journey on the mat is his parallel focus on academics and the pursuit to someday become a medical doctor like his father. Sean's accomplishments place him among an impressive cohort of 40 athletes interviewed since 2022, who collectively boast an average 3.6 GPA and strong representation in the National Honor Society. Within this high-achieving group, Sean has earned a 3.7 GPA in college prep classes and is pursuing an associate's degree alongside his high school studies. A member of the National Honor Society and the student council, he is also an esteemed young leader within the Twin Falls community.

Sean is currently committed to an impressive trifecta for his senior year: securing another Idaho state title, completing an undefeated season, and earning a 4.0 GPA. His head coach, Will Keeter, a decorated prep and collegiate wrestler and NCAA All-American, attests to Sean's dedication, “Sean is a coach’s dream student athlete. He comes in everyday to get better and doesn’t question the methods. I know he’s going to come into the ‘25-‘26 season with ambitious goals. He doesn’t want to win; he wants to dominate everyone. I look forward to coaching him another year and I’m envious of the coach that gets him in a college room.”

It was a privilege to document Sean's inspiring journey through an interview. His remarkable progress is a testament to the solid foundation his parents provided, built on principles of family, faith, and commitment to excellence. With impressive maturity and commitment, he is pursuing his goal of becoming a medical doctor to serve his community and much more. His consistent performance throughout his academic and athletic career indicates a promising trajectory for future success.

My best wishes are extended to Sean Hall for the remainder of this season and for his future. I hope he finds success in following his dreams. This exclusive Q&A interview with Sean Hall offers a look at his wrestling prowess, academic achievements, and Canyon Ridge's standout performance at the state championships.

Q&A INTERVIEW WITH SEAN HALL

HOW DID YOU FIRST GET INVOLVED IN THE SPORT OF WRESTLING?

SEAN – I was probably around 6 and had been entered into various sports including football, soccer and surprisingly karate... Up until this point I had never felt that there was one true sport which I wanted to peruse. On what felt like a random day, out of the blue, my dad pulled me out of my karate class and drove me to the high school where I went to my first wrestling practice. I had no Idea what wrestling even was and had little say in whether I wanted to go or not. My father wrestled in high school and wanted me to get a taste for the sport. From that point on he continued to drive me to wrestling practice where I never saw the karate gym again. For many years, he drove me to wrestling practice when I didn’t want to go, but he thankfully understood that the sport was good for me and eventually it would grow on me. Which in fact it did, and I have been hooked ever since. I been wrestling now for almost 11 years, I’ve had over 8 coaches and dedicated my life to this sport.

WHO HAS BEEN YOUR BIGGEST INFLUENCE IN WRESTLING?

SEAN – This is a very difficult question for me because I feel that so many people have been in my corner throughout my many years of wrestling and have influenced me in so many different ways that it makes it almost impossible to pick only one person to say has been my biggest influence. I never had older brothers, let alone ones who wrestled, and my extended family (uncles and older cousins) briefly wrestled their careers in high school. I never truly resonated with any wrestlers in college let alone was continually influenced by. That being said, I’ve grown up with many different coaches, and they all have had their influence on me. I was raised with coach Delchev who taught me my roots of technique and the war aspect of wrestling. I was with him for 3 years or so, where I then wrestler with coach Staker for almost the next 7 years. He had taught me all my technique and built my style from the ground up. There has never been a question that I’ve asked Staker that he hasn’t had an answer for. I’ve had two different high school coaches, coach Lineberry who taught me to slow down and enjoy the process of wrestling and Will Keeter who has taught me the key aspects of timing, refining technique. And the best warmup partner out there. I’ve also wrestled with Chris Owens for the past 4 years, who has taught me in every different aspect of wrestling under the sun. These are just a few of my many coaches, and they all have influenced my style and passion for wrestling. But when it’s all said and done, my father has to be my biggest influence. My father as mentioned above wrestled in high school and took second his senior year. He always joked that the only reason I was entered into wrestling was to redeem him of his state finals loss. While many people have been in my corner. No one has truly influenced me like he has. His inspiration is what’s gotten me to the place I am today. And I could not have done it without him.

NOW THAT YOU’RE ENTERING YOUR SENIOR SEASON AT CANYON RIDGE, WHAT ARE YOUR GOALS FOR THE UPCOMING SEASON?

SEAN – This senior year very well could be my last. As scary as that is to say, I want to go out of this sport knowing that I gave everything. That means all out just like I’ve done in previous years. My goal is to go undefeated, win another state title…Work hard and give so much to this sport that when it’s all over I can confidently say I left it all on the mat. Anything less than this would be disrespectful to the sport and what it’s done for me.

HAVING HAD SOME GREAT SUCCESS AT THIS POINT IN YOUR CAREER, DESCRIBE YOUR TRAINING ROUTINE AND YOUR OUTLOOK FOR THE UPCOMING SEASON.

SEAN – I must say I have to give credit to my highly motivated, very professional, personal trainer. My Dad. We always felt that I was losing ground to kids who just had better coaches, who were around better partners, and who were backed by better schools. This was simply true. It forced us to realize that to be dominant in this sport you have to think about what your opponent is doing and do more. If I couldn’t have the same environment as them, we would have to create it here and make it harder.

A normal week during the high school season I would waked up every day 5:30 to lift in my cousin’s garage. If I was wrestling the day of, I wouldn’t lift. Other than this I was always lifting, attempting to hit size and strength PR’s during the season while also training my mind against adversity in many of those dark winter mornings. A wrestlers dream.

After this I would complete my Rigorous course load from the mainly the college. After school, I would hit the wrestling room with the guys trying to be early to either jump rope or stretch before. The boys would get us bouncing through warmups doing footwork and skill drills based on our weaknesses from the year before. I wrestle with our head coach Will Keeter. During the season he blew his knee twice while we were going at it. We wrestle hard.

After our practices, I would often times either live wrestle with coach alone in the room, or head out to Wendell for my second practice of the day with Coach Staker to fine tune my technique. Many of the days during the high school season I was doubling up practices. This in my mind was normal. Something every other good wrestler was doing. I was merely average.

In light of this, my beloved trainer (my Dad) invented workouts in his spare time. Things that pushed the limits of what I truly thought was possible. Hitting my specific weaknesses and tailored toward pure conditioning. Our goal: Sean Hall never gets tired. Every time we did these workouts it would make me question the foundation of why I even was doing this sport. What the point was? The kind of workouts that challenge your foundation of why. Last year from the very first week of the season, we knew I would wrestle Ryder Seguine in the State Finals…he was my motivator. This match was always referenced in every workout. Visualized. Scouted. Thought out, move by move. In these workouts. We would do many different exercises, one of the main exercises was designed to see how far my lungs could go. We would get my heartrate up with a previous 40 minutes of working out pushups, pullups, power cleans footwork, explosive jumps etc… All no rest. And then we would go straight into the treadmill setting it to a max speed, incline, and distance. It was a pre-mapped half a mile sprint up a max incline. There was no slowing down, no stopping, no rest for this. Many of the times I would wear a thick hoodie overtop and carry weights in my hands to compliment my sprint. Against my will, we would week after week would do this. Continually thinking about my state finals match ahead and visualizing why I am truly doing this. Training which specific match. Every week increasing the speed and seeing where my true wall was at. Sometimes I would fall off the treadmill with my body reaching final failure.

Along with this, on Sundays I would drive out to Boise to meet up with a partner and Chris Owens to work on drills etc., get another practice in…I felt confident that I was putting it all out on the mat, and that the other wrestlers with their better environments and more prevalent opportunities, weren’t outworking me. Then again, most guys are doing this stuff. Training was everything.

DESCRIBE YOUR ACADEMIC AND WRESTLING EXPERIENCE AT CANYON RIDGE HIGH SCHOOL.

SEAN – It has been rigorous for sure. With things like the training schedule above and missing most Thursday Fridays for tournaments. It was very difficult. Especially taking the majority of my classes at the college level. It was no easy task to keep good grades, but not impossible. I will graduate high school with an Associate’s degree in two different majors. While keeping a GPA of 3.7 and being a member of student council as well as national honors society.

WHAT ARE YOUR ACADEMIC GOALS ENTERING YOUR SENIOR SEASON AND BEYOND?

SEAN – Entering senior year my goals are pretty straightforward. I will have 4.0 and will crush all of my pre-med classes. I intend to continue to pursue my pre medicine path with the highest of honors, as well as prepare for my Misson.

DO YOU HAVE AMBITIONS OF COMPETING IN COLLEGE OR INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION?

SEAN – In 8 weeks or so I will be traveling and competing with the team “The Best Wrestler” coached by Ivan Delchev and compete in various tournaments, duals and training camps in Bulgaria for international competition. As far as college, at this point in my life, I believe that wrestling is not my biggest priority. I hope one day when I’m old I don’t look back and regret this choice, but I feel that my mission, which I will be starting immediately after I graduate, and my pre-med schooling are my largest priorities. With already having already gained my associated degree while throughout high school. I’m not sure that wrestling in college would benefit my path as an aspiring premedical student for only my last 2 years of my Bachelors. That being said, I still have a deep love for this sport and am open to the direction that life my take me.

IS THERE AN OLYMPIAN, COLLEGIATE-LEVEL WRESTLER, COACH, OR SOMEONE OUTSIDE OF THE SPORT OF WRESTLING THAT YOU WANT TO ASPIRE TO BE SOMEDAY?

SEAN – From the first time I can remember stepping on the mat till present day, my life has been impacted by more coaches, teachers, mentors than I can count. That being said, I don’t think there is any person who I “want to be” in particular. I feel that there are many characteristics from the vast number of coaches I’ve had that I aspire to gain and want to be more like.

WHAT LIFE LESSONS HAVE YOU LEARNED IN WRESTLING THAT APPLIES IN YOUR DAY-TO-DAY LIFE?

SEAN – I believe that after you wrestle for long enough, the sport teaches you things that you would never be able to learn anywhere else. Hidden mannerisms and philosophies to life that all wrestlers are taught and live by. One of these for is that the hardest things to you are the best things for you. This can very easily be applied to just about anything, but I feel that I’ve learned it from wrestling and that I find myself continually applying this to my daily life.

WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE A YOUNG WRESTLER WANTING TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN THE SPORT OF WRESTLING OR IN LIFE?

SEAN – If you want to be the best, you need to surround yourself with coaches and partners who have the ability to get you there. So many times, people say they want to be great at wrestling, they have a lot of potential, they want to go places. But you can’t do it on your own. Understand your limiting factors and surrounding yourself with people who you know can get you to your goals. Makes life a whole lot easier.

DO YOU HAVE A SAYING, MOTTO OR PHILOSOPHY THAT YOU LIVE BY?

SEAN – I stole this from Chris Owens, or maybe rather he ingrained it in us, but I love it. it’s so simple yet so difficult to truly understand. It makes a person require faith and questions their ability to do hard things.

“If you do the right things, for long enough, your day will come.”  

Such a true statement, I’ve seen it in my own life, but has much interpretation to it which is what makes it hard. Formula for Success...

ONCE YOU ARE DONE COMPETING, DO YOU HAVE PLANS TO STAY INVOLVED WITH WRESTLING?

SEAN – The honest answer to this is I hope so. I have such a respect for this sport that I’m sure I’ll end up being involved anywhere I go.

OUTSIDE THE SPORT OF WRESTLING, WHAT OTHER HOBBIES, SPORTS, AND FAMILY FUNCTIONS DO YOU ENJOY THE MOST?

SEAN – Outside of wrestling I enjoy many things. I love to sail the most, recently bought a small sailboat, Hobie cat 14. There are very few people who get the opportunity to feel racing small sailboats, but it’s a different kind of fun for me. I enjoy going on trips with my family, places like Lake Powell, Mexico, Coronado are all super fun. I also love outdoor things like backpacking fishing, pickleball and mountain biking.

IF PROVIDED THE OPPORTUNITY, WHAT WOULD YOU DO TO GROW WRESTLING AT THE GRASSROOTS AND PREP LEVELS?

SEAN – I am so appreciative that I was thrown into wrestling, even against my will, but for long enough to be able to see the true reward that wrestling gives you. I Would love to help teach kids what wrestling is really all about and how it can change their life.

ACADEMIC AND ATHLETIC PROFILE

SCHOOL: Canyon Ridge H.S. (Twin Falls)

GRADE: 12^th (Class of 2026)

PROJECTED WEIGHT: 150

ACADEMIC ACCOLADES: 

• GPA: 3.7

• Member of National Society of High School Scholars
• Member of Student Council
• On course to graduate with an Associate’s Degree – College of Southern Idaho

EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES:

• Over 50 service hours with my church
• Part time job mowing lawns

WRESTLING ACCOLADES: 

• Junior Western Regional Runner-Up (Freestyle/Greco), 2025
• Idaho Freestyle State Junior Champion, 2025
• Idaho Greco-Roman Junior State Champion, 2025
• Idaho High School 6A State Champion, 2025
• 3x IHSAA District IV Champion, 2023 – ’25
• Rollie Lane Invitational Champion/OW (Middleweight), 2025
• 2x Tiger-Grizz Champion/OW (Middleweight), 2024, ‘25
• Idaho High School 4A State Championships – 3^rd Place, 2024
• Fargo Nationals – 16U Greco-Roman ALL-AMERICAN, 2024
• USA Folkstyle Nationals – ALL-AMERICAN, 2024
• Idaho Freestyle 16U State Champion, 2023, ‘24
• Idaho Greco-Roman 16U State Champion, 2023, ’24
• Idaho High School 4A State Championships – 4^th Place, 2023
• Preseason Nationals – ALL-AMERICAN, 2023

CANYON RIDGE HIGH SCHOOL WRESTLING HISTORY

Idaho State Placers (5A/6A)

2010 – 2025

2x STATE CHAMPION

285 – Michael Easterling, 2016, ’17

1x STATE CHAMPIONS

138 – Sean Hall ‘25

132 – Braeden Dickinson ‘18

220 – Jordan Crist ’14

4x STATE PLACER

106-132 – Braeden Dickinson (4,4,3,1), 2015-‘18

3x STATE PLACERS

120-138 – Sean Hall (4,3,1), 2023-‘25

160/170 – Caleb Somers (6,6,4), 2022-‘24

2x STATE PLACERS

170/182 – Connor Claborn (6,5), 2023-‘24

145/160 – Kyle McClure (6,5), 2016-‘17

285 – Michael Easterling (1,1), 2016-‘17

170 – Chase Mayo (5,3), 2015-’16 

145/152 – Kaleb Price (5,2), 2012-‘13

1x STATE PLACERS

285 – Layne Schultz, 5^th Place ‘24

98 – Juan Guevara, 6^th Place ‘23

152 – Tanner Eldredge, 4^th Place ‘23

182 – Do Sawn Lian, 6^th Place ‘23

160 – Baylon Shirley, 5^th Place ‘20

98 – Harrison Haller-Cruz, 6^th Place ’17

170 – Mehdin Siocic, 5^th Place ‘17

138 – Keenan Palmer, 6^th Place ‘16

220 – Skylar Baecht, 5^th Place ’16

285 – Chandler Collins, 6^th Place ’15

220 – Jordan Crist, STATE CHAMPION ’14

285 – Sean Hughes, 6^th Place ’12

130 – Johnny Perez, 6^th Place ‘11

152 – Brayden Metcalf, 5^th Place ‘11

160 – Chase Smith, 6^th Place ‘11

119 – Donovan Jones, 3^rd Place ‘10