CJ Walrath. Isaiah Fenton.

Wherever you found one during the boys’ high school wrestling season, chances are the other was within earshot.

Walrath and Fenton, seniors on the Notre Dame-West Burlington wrestling team, were training partners the last two years despite a 30-pound weight difference between them.

As the old saying goes, iron sharpens iron. That is exactly what happened for Fenton and Walrath.

Fenton and Walrath ascended to the top of the podium at the state tournament, winning state championships in their respective weight classes to help the Nikes finish second in the Class 2A team race.

Fenton and Walrath combined to go 95-0 for the Nikes, earning them co-Wrestler of the Year honors on the 2023 All-Hawk Eye wrestling team.

“It was a great season. I prepared for it. I knew what I wanted to do, and I went out and got it done,” said Fenton, who went 39-0 at 152 pounds. “I spent a lot of time this year working on my leg defense and my high crotch, being able to hit it from different angles and finishing. I was so confident that I knew if I got a takedown, I wasn’t going to lose the match.”

“It was a great season. It sucked because a lot of guys knew about me and didn’t want to wrestle me,” said Walrath, a University of Northern Iowa recruit who won his second straight state championship at 182. “I never felt any pressure. I don’t know why I didn’t, I just never did. I was more anxious than anything.”

Fenton started his high school career at Howell, New Jersey, where he was a state qualifier at 132 with a 17-12 record. He lost in the first round that season to the eventual fourth-place finisher.

Fenton moved back to West Burlington his sophomore season, going 37-5 at 138, but finishing third at a Class 3A district tournament at Bettendorf, just missing a spot at state.

Last season, Fenton cruised to a 49-8 record, but came up short in his bid to win a coveted state champion. Fenton placed seventh at 152.