Jed Wester has two passions in his life.

The St. Michael-Albertville senior is zealous in his devotion to Christianity and fervent in his dedication to wrestling.

It was a little less than a year ago that the latter resulted in his first individual state championship.

Wester, the No. 1-ranked 172-pounder in Class 3A, is certain it wouldn't have happened without the former.

Wester had been an individual state tournament entrant in each of his five high school seasons, beginning in seventh grade, taking another step toward a title each year.

He had finished second in back-to-back seasons in the Class 3A brackets at 145 pounds as a freshman, 160 as sophomore. Then, two summers ago, Wester was baptized. Even with his strong Christian beliefs, he'd waited until he was 16.

"Faith was always an important part of my life, but my parents thought it was best to wait until I got older," Wester said. "That way, it was more my choice."

Having also grown in his commitment to wrestling — St. Michael-Albertville coach Josh Joriman calls him "a true student of the sport, known for getting 2-3 workouts a day in" — Wester believes his step in faith made the difference in winning the 170-pound title last year.

"It just took a lot of pressure off my shoulders," he said. "I had so much less worry, so much less stress."

It also helped him deal with St. Michael-Albertville's stunning loss in the Class 3A team finals to Hastings after building a big lead with five matches left. "It was disappointing, but after we talked it over, we were ready to put it behind us," he said.

Wester's aggressive, attacking style impressed Gophers coach Brandon Eggum, who offered him a spot on the roster while Wester was at a national tournament in Indianapolis in June. His success also earned Wester a captain's role on the Knights, ranked fourth in Class 3A.

"Our team has some of the best talent in the state," Wester said. "If we go in with the mindset of everybody wrestling for each other, we can win state."