Wrestling: Gophers Dominate Wolves’ Holiday Tourney

Entering the tourney #1 in Class A and with seven ranked wrestlers, it was no surprise Chatfield dominated FCLMC’s annual holiday wrestling tourney. The Gophers (248) topped LARP (149), GMLOS (143), and Ellsworth, Wis., (116) for the team title. Chatfield’s second “Maroon” team (114.5) took fifth of ten total squads. The host Wolves (79.5) took seventh. Triton, W-K, Winona-Winona Cotter, and La Crescent/Hokah also competed. Matt Mauseth’s main team had seven first places; Javier Berg (121 > won two falls, won 8-2 major), Kaisen Johnson (127 > won fall, won 11-4 and 3-2 decisions), Gage Bartels (133 > won three falls), Alden Pearson (139 > won 9-0 major, won fall), Carson Rowland (152 > won 9-3 decision, won 9-0 major), Kail Schott (189 > won two falls), and Miles Mulhern (285 > won two falls). It had four second places; Jameson Priebe (107 > won fall, lost 4-3 decision), Jack Dornack (145 > won two falls, lost 16-2 major), Ben Carrier (160 > won fall, won 5-4 decision, lost 5-0 decision), and Will Boelter (215 > won two falls, lost 11-3 major). Dornack lost to the event’s Most Outstanding Wrestler, Ellsworth’s William Penn. Chatfield’s Maroon squad added a first place, Logan Pearson (107 > won fall, won 5-2 and 4-3 decisions) plus two second places, Hunter Polikowsky (127 > won 17-0 tech fall, won fall, lost 3-2 decision), and Wyatt Jacobson (133 > won 13-7 decision, lost fall, won fall). L-Pearson beat teammate and ninth-ranked Priebe while Polikowsky fell to teammate Johnson, each in the finals. Jacobson’s only loss was to teammate Bartels. Additionally, Layne Root (114 > won fall, lost 6-3 decision, won 11-3 major, won 5-0 decision) went 3-1 to take third for the main team. Bralyn Burnett (215 > lost fall, won three falls) went 3-1 to take third for the Maroon team. Berg (#1 at 114, 9-0), L-Pearson (3-0), and Schott (#1 at 189, 4-0) are undefeated.

Berg and Schott won their third FCLMC tourney titles. Johnson (#7 at 121, 4-1), Bartels (#5 at 127, 6-1), A-Pearson (7-1), Rowland (#6 at 152, 7-1), and Mulhern (5-1) have just one loss. LARP had two champions in Christian Zibrowski (114 > won two falls) and Camdyn Anderson-Ingram (172 > won two falls, won 3-1 decision in SV-1). The latter got back control in the last seconds of overtime for his win. C-Zibrowski is 9-0. Anderson-Ingram is 9-1. Four Screamin’ Eagles took second; Owen Lange (won two falls, lost 8-2 major), Jordan Zibrowski (139 > won fall, lost fall), Titan Tekautz (152 > won two falls, lost 9-0 major), and Zach Plank (189 > won two falls, lost fall). All four finals’ losses were to Gophers, Lange to Berg, J-Zibrowski to A-Pearson, Tekautz to Rowland, and Plank to Schott. Plank is 9-1. Lange and Tekautz each are 8-2. FCLMC’s sole champion was Kane Larson (160 > won two falls, won 5-2 decision). He won his second tourney (La Crosse-Logan) and is now 14-0. Connor Wingert went 3-1 (won fall, lost 9-0 major, won two falls) to take third.

GMLOS’ best was six third place finishers. Cael Smith (127 > won fall, lost fall, won 6-4 decision, won fall), Braxten Wiste (160 > won fall, lost 5-4 decision, won two falls), Ayden Stier (172 > lost 11-1 major, won fall, won 6-3 decision, won fall), Drake Payne (189 > won fall, lost fall, won two falls), and Colten Gardner (285 > won fall, lost fall, won two falls) each went 3-1 to do so. Gardner’s loss was to champion Mulhern of Chatfield. Parker Armagost (121 > lost two falls, won fall) went 1-2 to take third. Smith (10-3), Wiste (11-4), and Payne (11-5) departed with GMLOS’ top records. Wiste notably won his 100th career match.