The 2017-2018 season produced at least one state entrant for each of the county’s wrestling programs. Three of the four guys to make St. Paul made the podium. There was a very good program (Chatfield), a solid middle-of-the-road group (LARP), and team short on numbers (FCLMC). Chatfield and LARP didn’t lose too much. They’ll look to improve on their individual team seasons and their state entrant numbers. FCLMC is still in the rebuilding phase. Each squad returns a state entrant and there are five total state ranked wrestlers.
Chatfield headlined the county’s wrestling programs. Travis Bartels’ Gophers went 8-1 versus TRC foes last year, only losing to PEM 32-31. Chatfield bowed to Goodhue in the Section semis, finishing 12-3. Gone are a trio of every-match seniors including one of the program’s best ever, Jake Mandt, the 2018 State Runner-Up at 145. Chatfield returns eight guys who competed at the 2018 1A individual meet including a trio of All-TRC picks. Seth Goetzinger (106) heads the group. The sophomore was Section Champ and tussled out a number of decision wins over ranked foes to take third at state. Going 34-8, he was All-TRC. A pair of guys who wrestled to go to state return in Davontae Goldsmith (Sr. 170) and Cael Bartels (Jr. 113). Each lost very tight true seconds at sections and made All-TRC. Each finished with 25 wins (Goldsmith 25-9, Bartels 25-13). Goetzinger (#4 at 126) and Goldsmith (#9 at 182) start the year ranked. Three other Gopher returnees were section top five last year; Nathan Goldsmith (Sr. 4th at 138, 23-15), Tate Karver (So. 4th at 120, 16-19), and Grady Schott (Fr. 5th at 126, 9-12). Returnees who placed outside the top five are Luke Ihrke (Jr. 152) and A.J. Karver (So. 195, 17-18). Chase Ketterhagen (Sr. 138), Jacob Stephas (Jr. 152), Campbell Berge (Fr. 152), Sulley Ferguson (8th 106), and Cody Guenther (So. 126) also got varsity matches. Chatfield has three seniors (Goldsmiths, Ketterhagen) and three juniors (Bartels, Ihrke, Stephas). The Gophers have only a couple guys to cover the upper weights. Chatfield has individual tournaments at FCLMC, La Crosse (Bi-State), Lake City, and JWP/WEM. They have weekend duals in Farmington and Stillwater. Notable triangulars are Caledonia/LARP (Jan 10) and PEM/D-E (Jan 24).
LARP wrestling had its 2017-2018 season end in Chatfield. The Screamin’ Eagles fell to the Gophers in a 1A quarter. Tim Tekautz and Darrin Hegland’s squad finished 10-11. LARP lost a trio of seniors who wrestled at sections. They return ten sections wrestlers. Including is their sole state entrant, and a trio each of All-TRC guys, 30-win guys, and section third place finishers. Carter Jonsgaard (So. 113, 34-13) was the state entrant. The Section Champ progressed to the podium at state, finishing fourth on the big stage. The returning All-TRC guys are Gable Speltz, Dominic Jenkins, and Ross Herber. Speltz (So. 120, 24-10) took third at sections, Jenkins (Sr. 145, 26-12) and Herber (Jr. 106, 32-9) fourth. Jonsgaard (#4 at 120) and R-Herber (#7 at 113) are ranked. Noah Herber (Sr. 195, 32-12) is the third 30-win section third place finisher. Ethan Sense (Sr. 170, 14-12), Kolton Riser (Jr. 138), Jacob Meyer (Fr. 160), Corbin Flynn (Jr. 182), and Alex Perez (Fr. 220) competed at last year’s section tourney. Tristyn Hegland (So. 132), Tyler Kryzer (Fr. 132), and Caleb Mueller (Fr. 120) add more varsity experience. Carter Weidemann (Sr. 182) returns after a hiatus. LARP is short in the upper weights. They have five seniors (Jenkins, Sense, N-Herber, Weidemann, Brendan Honken) and four juniors (R-Herber, Riser, Flynn, Clayton Ellinghuysen). The S-Eagles have their normal weekend duals, Byron, Z-M, and K-M. FCLMC and at Bi-State (La Crosse) are the individual tourneys. Everything in on the road save for a triangular with W-K/SC and a dual with D-E.
In Harmony, the FCLMC Wolves enter the year coming off a 2017-2018 season where they finished 2-16. Joe Cullen’s group lost to D-E in a Section 1A wrestle-in match. FCLMC ended a very long (low numbers inspired) dual meet losing streak. The Wolves still aren’t full, but they return a state entrant in Caden Anderson (120). The sophomore was a Section Runner-Up (23-9) and made All-TRC. He starts the year ranked (#10 at 138). The Wolves have just four other guys back who wrestled at sections. Stefan Nikoloski (Jr. 220, 10-18) took fifth. Cale Anderson (So. 113, 25-18), twin brother to Caden, took sixth. Caleb Kunz (So. 145, 10-20) and Michael Barrett (Jr. 195, 12-24) round out the group. Bradon Knutson (Jr. 106), Orion Sass (8th 126), Carter Hovland (8th 132), Taylor Kunz (Jr. 120), and Devin Troendle (So. 152) are five other varsity-experienced returnees. The Wolves don’t have a senior. With 33 guys out, Coach Cullen will have two years of roughly the same roster. The Wolves have already competed in two tourney’s (Ellsworth, La Crosse). Other tourneys are their own Holiday gathering, Crestwood, PEM, and Century. They have home duals with GMLOS/LARP (in Lanesboro) and Chatfield (in Harmony).
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