The wrestling season starts with all five Journal-covered programs returning state entrants. Girls wrestling continues to grow, as the post-season individual tournament will now be eight section tournaments versus combining two sections for a super-section. Section One’s finals will be in Rochester. The state wrestling meet thus expands to a four-day affair. Team action starts on Wednesday. Individual action starts on Thursday morning (boys and girls) followed by team consolation, third place, and championship duals in the night session. Individual action continues Friday (boys and girls) and it concludes on Saturday.
Highly familiar with the old format are Matt Mauseth’s Chatfield Gophers. After winning the Class A title in 2024, Chatfield’s mat rats won the TRC title (9-0), topped Goodhue for the Section 1A title, and at 2025 state, advanced to a second straight state title match. There, they fell to Staples-Motley 33-16. Chatfield’s season ended at 20-3 at Class A runner-up. The Gophers had seven seniors including five state qualifiers. Heading said cast was two-time state champion Carson Rowland (152-pounds, 40-2). Ayden Miner (160 > 43-5) was state runner-up. Javier Berg (121 > 37-3), a four-time state entrant, and Ben Carrier (172 > 36-5) each took third. Alden Pearson (145 > 37-14) took fourth. Rowland (189 wins, 100 pins), Berg (154), Carrier (125), and Miner (110) all finished with over 100 career wins. Despite graduating six All-TRC guys total, the Gophers will look to reload. They return four state qualifiers and start the season with six kids ranked in state. Now sophomores, Logan Pearson (114 > 36-7) and Jameson Priebe (107 > 41-4) each took fifth at state last year. Each won section titles. Seniors Kaisen Johnson (127 > 33-9) and Will Boelter (215 > 40-10) each were state qualifiers. Johnson has done so three times. From there, Hunter Polikowsky (So. 139 > 37-12) and Layne Root (Jr. 133 > 24-17) were part of the Gophers state team line-up, taking third and fifth at sections. All six were All-TRC. Former LARP guy Nolan Happel (Fr. 160 > 22-17) is an addition to the team. Joey Cady (Fr. 107) also is big enough to wrestle varsity. Brother Carter qualified for state for LARP last year. Cady (#1/107), Priebe (#3/121), Pearson (#3/127), Johnson (#8 /139), Polikowsky (#9/145), and Boelter (#5/215) begin the year ranked. The Gopher team is #2 behind defending state champion Staples-Motley (which boasts eight ranked guys, five #1s). On the girls side, Chatfield had enough to wrestle a handful of team duals, including girls team state. Elle Eickhoff (Sr. 142 > 30-9) was the lone Gopher girl to make state individually, as she took fifth place. The All-TRC pick returns to head a Gopher group that also includes All-TRC picks, section fifth place finishers Emily Bova (Sr. 100 > 29-5), Brynn Horsman (Sr. 118 > 28-9), Bryn Goetzinger (8th 106 > 27-9), and Kendyl Nolte (Fr. 148 > 21-10), sixth place Maizee Priebe (Jr. 112 > 24-11). Amelia Sladek (136) is also back. Eickhoff (#3 at 142) begins the year ranked. The Chatfield crew will by busy with a home boys and girls dual (Kasson-Mantorville) and quadrangular (Albert Lea, Farmington, Holmen), two home boys triangulars (LARP & La Crescent/Hokah, Caledonia/Houston & PEM). The boys have a tourney at Lakeville-North. The girls have tourneys at Eden Prairie and Pine Island plus a quadrangular at Pine Island (PI, Mayo, St. Charles) and girls team state in St. Michael-Albertville. Both teams take on FCLMC’s tourney and the Bi-State tourney.
Having a good team last season were the Lewiston-Altura/Rushford-Peterson Screamin’ Eagles. Darrin Hegland’s group went 6-3 in the TRC. They made the 1A semis in Rochester for first time in over a decade, falling to state runner-up Chatfield 68-3. They finished 17-9. LARP had four guys qualify for state as 1A runner-up; Quintin Betthauser (145 > 35-11), Carter Cady (152 > 32-12), Zach Plank (189), and Chace Drazkowski (285). All-TRC picks Betthauser, a 100-win guy, and Cady graduated. Seniors Plank (44-10), also a 100-win guy, and Drazkowski (26-14), are the top returnees. State entrant in 2024 Christian Zibrowski (121 > 31-5) and Owen Lange (127 > 31-7), both juniors, are two other key assets. They took third and fourth at sections last year. All-TRC returnees Plank (#6/189), Drazkowski (#3/285), Zibrowski (#10/127), and Lange (#7/139) begin the year ranked. Other returnees from sections are fourth place finisher Evan Rislov (Jr. 127 > 12-10), sixth place finishers Carter LaFee (Fr. 107 > 19-21) and Jaxon Johnson (So. 139 > 18-19), plus Levi Kammerer (So. 172/189) and Trygg Hegland (Jr. 215). Trevin Sublet (Jr. 114), Michael Alexander (8th > 133), Carter Bronk (Jr. 139), Colten Jenkins (Sr. 172), and Jaden Perez (Sr. 285) are other notables. On the girls side, Bobbie Wnuk (Jr. 170 > 25-9) took third at the Section 1/2 meet last year and made All-TRC. Ellie Bryars (Sr. 118 > 14-9) also wrestled at said event. LARP has just two home meets this year, a triangular in Lewiston on January 13 (K-W & Winona), a quadrangular in Rushford on January 16 (GMLOS, D-E, Century). The boys have the Austin Duals plus tourneys at Northfield, PEM, Westfield, and Lake City. The girls have tourneys at Owatonna, LC/H, St. Charles, and Eau Claire North. Each team is at FCLMC and Bi-State tourneys.
Caledonia/Houston was not at full strength early last year but rallied to a solid TRC season. The Warriors went 7-2 in league action. They fell to Pine Island 33-27 in a 1AA quarterfinal and finished 13-13 against a difficult schedule and despite an 0-7 start. In Class AA for a second straight season, coaches Justin Conway and Shay Mahoney got a pair of state qualifiers in section runners-up Braxton Lange (133 > 20-4), a three-time state qualifier, and Aiden Burns (114), who took fifth on the big stage. Lange graduated with fellow All-TRC picks Tanner Ginther (152) and Aden Kulas (215). Burns (Sr. 114 > 31-11) returns to head the Warrior cast. Also back is section third place finisher Will Allen (Sr. 152 > 23-12), fourth place finishers Walker Kohlmeyer (Fr. 107 > 21-11), Aaren Kulas (Fr. 121 > 11-21), and Cooper Allen (So. 189 > 28-8), and sixth place finishers Hunter Frank (Sr. 127 > 14-22) and Dawson Geiwitz (Fr. 145). Anthony Von Arx (Sr. 215) is another returnee from the section meet while Kiptyn Meiners (8th 107) and Nolan Conway (8th 107) are two more notables. Burns, Allen and Allen are returning All-TRC picks. The Warriors open the season with the St. Charles duals and go to Western Dubuque a week later while also taking on The Clash and K-M duals. Tournament-wise, they take on Bi-State. They host G-E-T, Waukon, Z-M, Decorah and St. Charles for head-to-head duals, FCLMC and D-E for a triangular. They rematch their two TRC losses at a triangular in Chatfield (with PEM) on January 16. The Warriors do not have any girls competitors.
The Grand Meadow/LeRoy-Ostrander/Southland Bulldogs finished even-steven overall a year ago. Randy Smith’s group went 3-6 in the TRC. They fell to Triton 46-30 in the 1A quarters and finished 15-15. Individually, a couple freshman made state. On the guys side, now sophomore Cael Smith (139 > 37-10) went as section runner-up. He is one of eight returnees from last year’s section meet. Seniors Ayden Stier (172 > 27-21) and Wyatt Krull (215 > 22-23) each took fourth while classmate Drake Payne (189 > 31-16) took fifth. From there, Parker Armagost (Jr. 121 > 31-11), Derek Steinkamp (8th > 107), Lincoln Lunning (So. 114) and Lincoln Soltau (Fr. 127) each return from said event. Kalvin Prieve (Fr. 121) and Logan Gregerson (8th > 107) are two more notables. Smith and Armagost are returning All-TRC. On the girls side, sophomore Zoe Steinkamp (124 > 31-14) is a returning state qualifier. Eight of nine girls who competed at the Section 1/2 Meet return, including third place finisher Kloe Meyer (Jr. 235 > 18-12), fourth place finisher and 2024 state qualifier Brandy Christenson (Jr. 112 > 26-8), sixth place finishers Paisley Schlee (So. 106 > 26-14) and Megan Owens (Jr. 155 > 20-17) plus Chloe Hubbard (Fr. 100 > 24-11), Keyawin Steier (Sr. 130 > 15-16), and Willow Dewey (8th 148 > 11-15). Steinkamp, Meyer, Owens, Christenson and Schlee were All-TRC. Meyer (#5/235), Steinkamp (#7/124) and Christenson (#8/112) start the year ranked. GMLOS hosts three events this year, a triangular in GM on January 8 (Chatfield, St. Charles) and one in Adams on January 29 (Cal/Hou, La Crescent/Hokah). They have weekend team duals in Austin. Both teams have tourneys at FCLMC, Bi-State, and Stewartville. The boys go to Lake Mills and Wisconsin Dells while the girls have the Pine Island Tourney.
In Harmony, Fillmore Central/Lanesboro/Mabel-Canton went 3-6 in the TRC last year. The Wolves won a wrestle-in playoff dual, but fell to K-W 60-17 in the quarters. Blaise Sass’ group finished at 9-16. FCLMC had a trio of state qualifiers. The headline was 172-pound state champion Kane Larson. Cole Sass (189 > 38-10) also competed on the guys side. Charlotte Ferrie (130) took sixth for the girls. For the guys, Larson (Sr. 172 > 46-4), the program’s all-time win leader, returns to head the cast. Gunning for 200 wins this year, he begins the year ranked #1 at 189. He is FCLMC’s only returning All-TRC guy, as the other (Sass) graduated. Other guys to return from sections are fifth placers Ben Norby (Fr. 107 > 17-17), Grant Daniels (Fr. 139 > 14-21), and Quinci Kaase (Jr. 160 > 25-19), sixth place finishers James Cullen (Jr. 215 > 17-23) and Ashton Newman (So. 145 > 15-27) plus August Pfeffer (Fr. 114 > 26-19), William Boettcher (Jr. 152), and Beau Lacey (Jr. 285). Beckett Hovland (8th > 107), Brady Arnold (So. 127), and Charles Gumz (Fr. 127) are other notables. Ferrie (Fr. 130 > 31-8), the lone gal All-TRC pick, heads a growing girls cast. She begins the year ranked #5 at 130. Kylie Knutson (Fr. 106 > 17-18) and Gwen Lieb (So. 118 > 10-11) are two other girls returnees from sections. The Wolves have a season-opening home quad (GMLOS, K-W, W-K) on December 4, a season-ending home triangular on February 3 (Chatfield, Crestwood), plus a home a triangular January 13 (La Crescent/Hokah, Lake City). They host their annual holiday tourney, which is both boys and girls. The guys have the Austin team duals and other tourneys at La Crosse Logan, PEM, Rochester-Century and Pine Island. The girls have tourneys at St. James, St. Charles, Pine Island, Rochester-Century and Eau Claire North.
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