Chatfield and Staples-Motley were destined for each other all year. Dating back to “The Clash” in early January, when the Cardinals took fourth, the Gophers sixth, it was evident the two powerhouse programs were the crème of the Class A crop. Even before wrestling season, they did battle. S-M topped Chatfield 36-24 in the Class AA football semis. Top-ranked Chatfield (1-seed, 18-2) dropped just five matches in its first two state duals, the #2 Cardinals dropped just two (swept #4 Jackson County Central 64-0 in the semis), leading to a state title rematch.
In the quarterfinals versus West Central Area-Ashby/Brandon-Evansville (Section 6A Champ, 16-5), Chatfield (1-seed, Section 1A champ, 18-2) won the first ten matches, five by fall, to jump out 50-0. The nicest win was probably Hunter Polikowsky at 139. The freshman (32-10) was one Gopher to surely walk out of the 1A individual tourney bummed. He got some redemption by topping sixth-ranked Knight Owen Gruchow (34-9) by 7-1 decision at 139. Top-ranked Carson Rowland (33-2) also notably topped #6 Hunter Gruchow (29-5) by 7-5 decision at 152. Gruchow led 3-1 after two periods before Rowland notched a pair of third period take-downs. Eighth-ranked Logan Pearson (30-5) topping Nathan Brethorst (35-9) by 13-4 major decision at 114 was also solid. The Gophers got pin-fall wins in their big start from #1 Jameson Priebe (35-2) at 107, #3 Javier Berg (30-2) at 121, #5 Kaisen Johnson (31-7) at 127, #7 Alden Pearson (31-12) at 145, and #3 Ben Carrier (28-4) at 172. Layne Root (21-13) and #1 Ayden Miner (37-4) added 20-5 and 18-1 tech fall wins at 133 and 160. Ninth-ranked (at 215) Will Boelter (35-7) ended the dual with a pin. The final was 56-10. Fifth-ranked Ezekiel Sieckert (39-6) pinned D’Andre Williams at 189 and #8 Jeremy Blascyk (37-6) topped Cole Ramaker by 10-2 major decision at 215 for WCA’s wins.
Chatfield (1-seed, 19-2) then took on #5 Lake Crystal-Wellcome-Memorial (2A Champ, 4-seed, 19-11) in the semis. The Gophers beat the Knights 44-16 in December. The end score was similar, but five of Chatfield’s first seven wins were by tough decision. At 107, #1 Priebe (36-2) used a two take-down second period to annul a 3-1 deficit. He topped #5 Brody Herbst (32-14) 9-4. At 114, #8 L-Pearson (31-5) trailed Ryder Antony (31-14) 8-5 in the third before getting a reversal, allowing an escape, then getting a takedown in the final 0:10 for the dramatic 10-9 win. At 127, #5 Johnson (32-7) posted an 11-5 decision. At 139, Polikowsky (33-10) topped Logan Quade (28-18) by 8-4 decision. Against his second ranked foe of the day, #1 Rowland (34-2) used a third period takedown to beat #4 Ryan Palmer (38-5) by 4-1 tally. Third-ranked Berg (31-2) also got a pin at 121 and #7 A-Pearson (32-12) racked up a 17-0 tech fall at 145. With #1 Miner (38-4) notching a 17-2 tech fall at 160 and #3 Carrier (29-4) notching a pin at 172, Chatfield led 37-3. At 220, #9 Boelter (36-7) had the Gophers last win. LCWM’s wins were #10 Carson Othoudt (35-10) over Root by 7-1 decision at 133, #1 Nick Slater (39-4) pinned Sean Kirchner at 189, and #10 Mason Adams (33-12) pinned Cole Ramaker at 285. The final was 43-15 Chatfield.
And thus the #1 Gophers (1-seed, 20-2) faced off with #2 Staples-Motley (2-seed, 7A Champ, 23-3) for the state title. A year ago, five decision wins fell the Gophers way up through 152 as they romped to a 47-7 win. In the rematch, it took until the third period at 145 for the Gophers to get a takedown. They also never got a takedown in a ranked-ranked match, losing all five. Decision after decision went S-M’s way early in a script flip from last year. At 107, #3 Garrett Bjerga (40-3) topped #1 Priebe (37-2) by 4-3 decision. At 114, #1 Caden Kramer (43-1) topped #8 L-Pearson (32-5) by 4-2 decision. At 121, #2 Gage Bjerga (41-3) topped #3 Berg (32-2) by 7-1 decision. At 127, #2 Cayden Neisen (38-6) won 8-2 over Root. S-M built momentum they never relinquished. Chatfield tried bumping guys up, but at 133, #5 Eli Greenwaldt (34-6) topped #5 at 127 Kaisen Johnson (33-7) by 16-1 tech fall. At 139, #6 Turner Beachy (34-11) won a 9-0 major decision, leaving it 21-0 Cards. A year ago, Chatfield led 12-7. A-Pearson’s (33-12) takedown, and 10-5 decision win at 145, were each Chatfield’s firsts of the dual. Rowland (35-2) followed with a 10-2 major victory. At 160, #1 Ayden Miner (39-4) fell to #2 at 152 Colbe Tappe (38-3) by 7-2 decision in a match Chatfield kind of needed. It left the Gophers trailing 24-7 with four to go. Dustin Converse topping Sean Kirchner by 5-2 decision at 172 clinched S-M the match, the state title. Gophers #3 Ben Carrier (30-4) and #8 Will Boelter (37-7) added a couple wins (11-4 decision, pin) leaving the final score 33-16. S-M took nine matches, six by decision. They had 17 takedowns, Chatfield nine (Rowland and Carrier had three each). The Gophers excellent season ends at 20-3 as state runner-up. The squad has seven seniors including six line-up regulars, Berg, A-Pearson, Rowland, Miner, Carrier, and Ramaker plus Wyatt Jacobson. Matt Mauseth was honored as Section 1A and State Class A Coach of the Year. He is now 95-11 in his career.
Wrestling: Larson and Rowland Bring Home State Individual Titles
The 2025 state boys and girls individual wrestling tourneys saw 21 kids from Chatfield, LARP, FCLMC, Caledonia/Houston and GMLOS compete. Two young men came home heads held super high, as state champions. Three others finished top three. One area program notably had eight kids place including five seniors.
Chatfield sent nine guys and a gal to state. Six made the semis and eight placed. Chatfield’s male senior class had a fantastic showing. Leading the way was Carson Rowland. Ranked #1 at 152-pounds and the defending state champ, the senior repeated as Mr. Numero-Uno. He won all four of his matches by decision. After opening with 8-1 and 10-3 wins over unranked foes, Rowland (40-2) topped Holdingford’s #9 William Pilarski (37-10) via 4-2 tally in the semis and Canby’s #3 Sam Drietz (44-4) by 7-3 score in the finals. Rowland’s state experience, including team state, saw him beat four of the other nine ranked guys at his weight. He was taken down once in seven matches. He is Chatfield’s first two-time champ since Hank Friederichs (2014, 2015). Senior Ayden Miner’s state title hopes might have been inadvertently hindered due to Rowland. After starting with a 13-4 major decision win, #1 Miner topped the next highest ranked guys at 160, Holdingford’s #3 Simon Boeckman (45-8) and Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa’s #2 Brett DeRoo (41-4) by 4-3 and 7-1 decision to make the finals. There, he fell to Staples-Motley’s Colbe Tappe (43-4) by 20-4 tech fall. Tappe came in ranked #2 at 152 (Rowland’s weight). Tappe beat Miner 7-2 in the state team finals also. Miner (43-5) finished as state runner-up. Fellow senior #3 Javier Berg capped a four-time state entrant career by placing again. Berg posted 12-1 and 10-1 major decisions to make the semis before falling to S-M’s #2 Gage Bjerga (45-4) by 5-2 decision. Bjerga beat Berg at team state 7-1. Berg rallied with 18-0 and 16-1 tech falls, the later over Canby’s #7 Eli Greenman (44-11). Adding to a state resume that includes a title and a runner-up, Berg (37-3) took third. Ben Carrier (#3 at 172) also took third place. His lone loss was to rival (eventual state champ) #3 Kane Larson (46-4) from FCLMC by 7-1 decision in the quarters. Carrier (36-5) posted five total wins, three by fall. The senior’s last three matches were wins over Redwood Valley’s #7 Lucas Fuhr (40-11) by fall, Long Prairie-Grey Eagle/Browerville’s #6 Mason Bruder (36-6) by 5-3 decision, and Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunberg’s #4 Jett Olson (45-6) by 15-5 major decision. Chatfield’s fifth senior qualifier, Alden Pearson (#7 at 145, 37-14), took fourth. He won tight 2-1 (by tiebreaker-1), 4-1, and 5-3 decisions. The later was over Minneapolis-North’s #7 at 152 Johan Alcantara-Lund (45-7). Pearson’s losses came to Holdingford’s #1 Masyn Patrick (46-0) by 15-0 tech fall and to Ogilvie’s #4 Deegan Birkaker (46-4) by 7-2 tally. Freshmen Jameson Priebe and Logan Pearson each took fifth. Priebe (41-4), ranked #1 at 107, probably wanted better. He made the semis via an 18-0 tech fall and a 5-3 decision, but fell to 1A foe #2 Liam Sommer (44-5) of K-W by 4-0 decision, then to BBE’s #6 Noah Jenson (39-8) by 14-7 tally. Priebe (41-4) ended with a 5-2 win over Paynesville’s #7 Tyson Meagher (35-7). L-Pearson, ranked #8 at 114, made the semis via an 11-6 decision and a fall, then fell 6-5 in sudden victory to S-M’s #1 Caden Kramer (48-1). Kramer beat Pearson 4-2 at team state. Pearson (36-7) then fell by fall to Jackson County Central’s #2 Kayden Eller (40-7) before winning his fifth-place match by 8-6 decision. He started and ended with wins over Pipestone’s Mason Fruechte (34-13). Chatfield’s lone girls’ representative, #7 at 142 Elle Eickhoff (30-9), also took fifth. She lost her first match by fall to Osseo’s #5 Vivian Schroeder (20-2), then pinned Champlin Park’s #8 Bri Voight (37-13) and Badger-Greenbush-Middle River’s #2 Madilyn Polk (41-10). Not placing for Chatfield’s guys were Will Boelter (#9 at 215) and Kaisen Johnson (#5 at 127). Boelter (40-10) went 2-2 with both losses coming to ranked foes, one by fall, another by 18-11 decision. He won both of his matches by fall. Johnson (33-9) got the one-and-done treatment, falling 7-4 by ultimate tiebreaker to Sibley East’s #7 Julio Alejandro (38-11).
For FCLMC, Kane Larson put on an impressive, historic even, performance. He pulled the rare feat of entering the tourney as Section runner-up, but leaving as state champ. The junior started with a 23-6 tech fall in first round before avenging his 1A finals loss to Chatfield’s #3 Ben Carrier (36-5) via a 7-1 decision. Larson (46-4), ranked #2, then whipped Holdingford’s Luke Bieniek (43-9) by 24-9 tech fall in the semis, notching seven total takedowns of the #1 guy in state. Larson led 11-6 heading to the third, then got four more takedowns. In the 172-pound finals, last year’s fifth place finisher at 160 topped Barnesville’s #5 Camerson Halverson (35-4) by 7-2 tally. Not getting taken down once in three matches versus top five guys, Larson grabbed FCLMC’s first state title since Niko Anderson (182) in 2014. Wolves gal representative Charlotte Ferrie also placed. Ferrie (#6 at 130) went 1-2, losing to Sartell-St. Stephen’s #2 Chloe Wehry (30-3) by wild 16-14 decision, beating Robbinsdale-Cooper’s #8 Anna Delaney (24-7) by fall, and then losing to Milaca-Faith Christian’s #5 Payton Helmin (33-7) by fall. The freshman (31-8) took sixth. Second male qualifier Cole Sass (189) got the one-and-done treatment. The senior (38-11) fell by fall in the first round and that was that. Older brother Orion Sass had the same fate in 2023.
For Caledonia/Houston, junior Aiden Burns best carried the flag. The 114-pounder wrestled six matches and ended with a win. His two losses were by a combined 9-6 score. Burns (ranked #10) won his opening round match by 9-0 major. He then fell to Simley’s #3 Jake Kranz (44-12) by 5-3 decision. In the consolation bracket, Burns won by fall, beat Mound-Westonka’s #7 Deacon Ramthun (42-13) by 6-3 decision, only to lose a 4-3 decision to Orono’s #4 Brett Kiecker (39-6). Burns (31-11) then topped Detroit Lakes’ Gage Weber 7-2 to take fifth place. Teammate Braxton Lange (20-4), in his third individual state tourney, got the one-and-done treatment. The senior 133-pounder fell by 11-5 decision to Pierz’s #9 Carter Young (44-4) in the opening round and that was that.
LARP wrestling sent its biggest contingent in over a decade. But they found the state sledding tough. Junior Zach Plank (189) was the only Screamin’ Eagle to notch a win. He went 2-2 without placing. Ranked-eighth, Plank opened by pinning Mahnomen-Waubon’s #7 Blake McMullen (39-4) in the third period. He then lost, won, and lost. The losses were to Kimball Area’s Hank Meyer (14-3) and Minneota’s #4 Eli Grueness (44-4) by 5-3 and 9-5 decisions. The win was a 7-1 decision. Teammates Quintin Betthauser (145), Carter Cady (152), and Chace Drazkowski (285) each were one-and-done. Betthauser (#5 at 145, 35-11) lost to Minneapolis-North’s #7 at 152 Johan Alcantara-Lund (45-7) by 11-7 decision. Cady (32-12) lost to BOLD’s #5 Brady Kiecker (24-6) by 8-1 decision. Drazkowski (26-14) fell to Medford’s #3 Mason Degrood (29-12) by fall.
Like LARP, GMLOS’ two state entrants did not place. Gal Zoe Steinkamp (#8 at 124, 31-14) lost her first match to Eagan’s #3 Ellie Westerman (28-8) by fall in 21-seconds. She then fell to Shakopee’s #6 Jasmine Tukhlynovych (25-11) by 8-7 decision due a reversal with 0:15 left in the third period. Cael Smith (139-pounds, 37-10) got the one-and-done treatment. He fell by fall to Benson’s #4 Max Nygaard (49-5) and that was that.
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