Wednesday, May 21, 2014
MN USA State Freestyle and Greco
It was another good weekend on the mat for our wrestlers who went on to wrestle in the MN USA Greco/Freestyle State Tournament! Our WCAABE wrestlers who competed included Owen Gruchow, Hunter Gruchow, and Colbe Tappe. Owen Gruchow took 2nd in Greco and 3rd in Freestyle. Hunter Gruchow took 2nd in Greco and 1st in Freestyle. Colbe Tappe had a tough draw in Greco, and he did not place. He did win his side of the pool before loosing in his championship match. It was a fun weekend and it was great to see our wrestlers have some great success at a high level of wrestling.
Fick Claims USAPL American Record
By: Kevin Fick
Duluth, MN
Saturday, May 17th
found Ashby High School’s master of the iron games Hunter Fick busy at work in
a powerlifting tournament. The 2014 Twin
Ports RAW Open is held annually in the Burns Wellness Center at the College of
St. Scholastica in Duluth. The meet was sanctioned by the USA Powerlifting
Association and directed by Joe Warpeha.
This was a chemical/substance tested event. The contest was a RAW event meaning no
supportive gear other than wrist wraps or belts were allowed on the
platform. Athletes had a choice of the
squat, deadlift, and bench press or bench only which is where Fick competed. There were a total of 71 lifters.
Fick lifted in a bracket
called the Junior/Teen lll group which consists of 18-19 year olds. His weight class is the 182-198 lbs. In a lift such as this the athletes are
provided three chances to push their desired weights. Three commands are used by the head official…start,
press and rack. Upon lift off the head
official will watch for the athlete and bar to remain motionless for one full
second before a command is given and progress can be attempted. Three officials judge each attempt. Hunter’s first attempt was 162.5 kilos/358
lbs. A successful attempt was enough to
pass the current American record of 160 kilos/352 lbs. set by Jason Kusyk on
August ’09 in Charlotte, NC. Fick
extended the record on his second attempt by completing a 172.5 kilo/380
lbs. Hunter’s third attempt at 183.5
kilos/402 lbs. was unsuccessful. Hunter
placed 1st for all teens lifting in the bench only. This was the strongman’s 5th
American/National record, 2nd in the USAPL.
Fick will compete
next on May 31st in Minneapolis for the USPA sanction. Congratulations Hunter!
Monday, April 28, 2014
WCAAE Wrestling Awards
By: Kevin Fick
To all the coaches, statisticians,
managers and most importantly the wrestlers themselves…thank you from your
families and communities. The season
provided plenty of reason to be proud of hard work, effort and sacrifice. The hours put into the program do not go
unrecognized and no matter the outcome of an individual’s season hold your head
up with pride. You were part of
something much larger than yourself…that was both a team and the brotherhood of
wrestlers. If a current grappler were to
talk to an alumni of the sport about ‘was it worth it’, I have my doubts that a
no it wasn’t would ever be given. This
is a group of people that prides itself on virtues such as character, courage
and honor. When each of you report for
practice, to train, or for a match remember…you wrestle for those before you,
those after you and for those that never will or had the chance. Some of you wrestle for a family legacy, some
of you are building your own. Some
wrestle for the extreme competition of one on one while others wrestle for
gold. Whatever your reason for being on
the mat we as your families wish you to remember the most important reason of
all…you wrestle for you. Enjoy your time
as it is short, the lessons you learn will serve you well.
Monday, April 21st found
the WCAAE wrestling program in its final official night of business for the
2013-14 season. The athletes and
families shared a meal and met in the Barrett auditorium to listen to KKOK
radio personality Ron Erickson share some thoughts about the sport and how it
has impacted his life.
Coaches Brandon Gruchow and Troy Lohse led the
elementary program which consisted of 70+ wrestlers. Little Knight awards were as follows…’Most
Wins’-Colbe Tappe,’ Most Pins’-Colbe Tappe, ‘Dominant Wrestler’-Jon Dingwall.
Coach Chad Lorenson
discussed the junior varsity season and handed out the JV awards which were as
follows…’Most Improved’-Alex Butcher, ‘Hardest Worker’-Hunter Mickelsen, ‘Most
Valuable Wrestler’-Chris Onstad.
At the beginning of the season the
team decided to take part in a service project called ‘Takedown Cancer’. The team sought pledges for each takedown in
a match throughout the year. Coach
Gruchow and the team presented Evansville’s Jordan Nohre, sister to wrestler
Jake Nohre, a check for $3,388. Well
done wrestlers and sponsers!
The team had 24 members receive the
‘Spotlight on Scholarship’ award for gpas at or above a 3.0, this set up the
team receiving the Minnesota Coaches Association Gold Academic Award with the
wrestlers averaging a 3.49 in the classroom.
Perfect attendance throughout the
year was given to Jake Larkin, Royal Crow, Kyle Mickelsen, Levi Larkin and
Chris Onstad.
The team wrestled 518 matches winning
306 of them which gave them a record of 17-5.
They were Park Region Conference runner-ups and went to the semi-finals
for section 6A as a team. Coach Gruchow
received conference and section ‘Coach of the Year’ honors.
Varsity wrestling awards went as
follows….’Statistician Award’-Taylor Weiss, ’Rookie Wrestler of the Year’-Drake
Swanson, ‘Team Spirit Award’-Buzz Miller,’ Hardest Worker’-Hunter Fick, ‘Most
Improved’-Sid Kamrath, ‘Most Valuable Wrestler’-Royal Crow.
The following is a list of all varsity wrestlers including grade and win loss record. Jake Nohre (9) 36-8 state participant, Hunter Fick (11) 36-9 state participant 5th place, Royal Crow (11) 35-7 state participant, Levi Larkin (8) 29-15 state participant, Anthony “Buzz” Miller (10) 28-12, Keaton Long (9) 24-16, Jake Larkin (10) 22-11 state participant, Kyle Mickelsen (11) 19-17, Braedon Long (12) 16-10, Tyler Onstad (10) 15-18, T.J. Waskosky (10) 12-16, Sid Kamrath (10) 12-16, Koel Seifort (11) 6-17, Drake Swanson (9) 6-4, Blake Amundson (10) 3-11, Aiden Winter (8) 2-3, Zack Salo (10) 1-2, Kode Seifort (9) 1-0, Alex Butcher (7) 0-2, Wyatt Olson (7) 0-4.
Top five statistical finishers…
Wins-Hunter Fick (36), Jake Nohre (36),
Royal Crow (35), Levi Larkin (29), Buzz Miller (28)
Team Points-Hunter Fick (178), Royal
Crow (173), Jake Nohre (172), Buzz Miller( 142), Keaton Long (135)
Pins-Hunter Fick (17), Buzz Miller
(16), Royal Crow (12), Jake Nohre (12), Keaton Long (12), Jake Larkin (12)
Takedowns-Jake Nohre (96), Royal Crow
(77), Hunter Fick (51), Keaton Long (46), Braedon Long (43)
Escapes-Royal Crow (35), Keaton Long
(25), Kyle Mickelsen (22), Hunter Fick (20), Jake Nohre (20)
Reversals-Jake Nohre (17), Levi
Larkin (15), Keaton Long (11), Kyle Mickelsen (11)Koel Seifort (8)
Near Fall Points-Jake Nohre (76),
Kyle Mickelsen (52), Levi Larkin (46), Buzz Miller (44), Tyler Onstad (42)
Sunday, April 6, 2014
NYWA State Tournament
Amazing,
what a great way to end a season!!! The past four days have been
nothing but exciting for the WCAAE wrestling program! Eight of our area
youth competed in one of the largest tournaments held in the
state!!!!!! . Over 4,000 Wrestlers from preschool through eighth grade
from all over the state wrestled in the 25 individual tournaments to
advance their way to regions. Approximately 2,500 wrestlers qualified
to the regions and just short of 1,000 wrestlers earned a chance in
vying for their own state title in Rochester Minnesota at the Mayo Civic
Center April 3th-6th.
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| Left to Right Jon Dingwall 2nd place, Jake Norby 2nd Place, Colton Lindquist 6th place, Brady Lindquist 6th place, and Colbe Tappe 1st place |
WCAAE also had great representation in the Invite tournament which is in its 4th year in existence and provides wrestlers who may want to extend their season and wrestle with other wrestlers from all around the state. Three of our area youth competed in this portion of the tournament. Hunter Norby went 2-2, Hunter Gruchow went 1-2, and Owen Gruchow went 2-1.
In the NYWA State Tournament not only did eight wrestlers compete, five of the wrestlers place in the top 6 in their brackets. In fact, three of them were in the finals and one took home the State Title. Levi Larkin in his last year eligible for the NYWA state tournament competed at 120 lbs in the 7th and 8th grade division. Levi went 2-2 just falling one round short of the medal round. Anthony Sykora wrestled very well and went 2-2 in his 72 lb. 3rd-4th grade bracket. Will Rustan got his feet wet with some State Tournament action. In his first ever NYWA State appearance Will went 1-2 in the 130 lb. 1st-2nd grade division. In their first shot at NYWA State brothers Colton and Brady Lindquist both brought home 6th place medals. Brady was 1-2 in the 90 lb. 1st-2nd grade division, while his older brother Colton was 3-3 in the 100 lb. 3rd-4th grade division. Jake Norby won his first three matches which landed him in the finals of the 80 lbs 1st-2nd grade division. He lost in his finals match but sure had a great two days on the mat! Kindergartner Jon Dingwall also showed up ready to wrestle. Jon who competed at the 60 pound weight class won his first three matches before losing in the finals. Kindergartner Colbe Tappe wrestled confident and smart which in-return earned him the 1st place honors at the 50 pound weight class.
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| Colbe Tappe with a 7-4 victory in his Finals Match vs Cavin Carlson of Willmar |
I am proud of all these guys for all their hard work they have put in. All of their hard work, sweat, blood and tears have finally paid off. Their parents dedication to the sport has also been a huge aid in their success. Each of these wrestlers have wrestled forty, fifty, sixty, even seventy plus matches this year and their parents drove them all around the state to get those matches! We have
a lot great talent in the youth program. I have to say this is largely
due to the commitment that our families continue to give to the
program and our youth. 2014 will go down in the books as another successful season for the Knights Wrestling Program.
West Central Wrestling Club
Long Is on Track in his Pursuit of a National Title!
While the Five Knight wrestlers were competing at the Excel
Energy Center this past weekend there was a graduated Knight Wrestler competing
at the Augsburg College Field House for a Division III West Region Title at 149
pounds. Jake Long was no stranger to the
Excel himself. It was only 4 years ago
when Jake was competing at the state tournament. He had made the finals and was looking for
his second State Title. Jake who had won
his weight class at the state tournament his junior year, didn’t finish in
first place his senior year. Falling
just a little short on his goal of being a 2x State Champion has given him
extra drive and desire for his ultimate goal in wrestling…..to be a National
Champion.
In order for a wrestler to qualify for the NCAA National
Meet they must finish in first, second or third place in their weight
class. Jake Long kept his standards high
pushing through the tournament and took home the 149 lb NCAA Division III West
Region Title. Jake was seeded second in
the region tournament. Jake was not
going to let anyone get in his way; he didn’t care where he was seeded. By the time the tournament ended Saturday
evening, Jake was on top of the podium.
Once again….that’s just Jake not being satisfied.
Jake’s mind is way beyond a regional title. Since he started at Concordia four years ago
he has wanted a National Title. He
finished in fifth place last season at the National Tournament. That finish helped him become more aware of
how close he was to a National Title. He
decided to stay in Moorhead over the summer so he could train and pushed
himself to the max in preparation for the upcoming season. Jake has had a great season and now has the
team best with 27 wins on the season.
His hard work and efforts throughout the years, the past summer, and
this season has led him to the top of his team and weight class.
According to the College News an article posted by the
Concordia College, “Jake Long methodically made his way through the 149-lb
bracket. He posted bonus-point wins in his first two bouts and then earned an
8-3 decision in the semifinals and a 5-3 victory in the championship match.”
Jake and six of his other Cobber Teammates qualified for the
national tournament. This is a new
school record for Concordia. Jake Long
is a Captain on the Team and plans on leading his team in an excellent National
Tournament. Good luck Jake!
Results
149 – Jacob Long (27-8)
placed 1st and scored 18.00 team points.
Champ. Round 1 – Jacob Long (CC) 27-8 won by fall over James Warren (MBU) 1-9 (Fall 1:09)
Quarterfinal – Jacob Long (CC) 27-8 won by maj. dec. Adam Woitalla (STO) 13-17 (MD 11-1)
Semifinal – Jacob Long (CC) 27-8 dec. Jacob Maechtle (LC) 9-9 (Dec 8-3)
1st Place Match – Jacob Long (CC) 27-8 dec. Will Keeter (AC) 27-15 (Dec 5-3)
Champ. Round 1 – Jacob Long (CC) 27-8 won by fall over James Warren (MBU) 1-9 (Fall 1:09)
Quarterfinal – Jacob Long (CC) 27-8 won by maj. dec. Adam Woitalla (STO) 13-17 (MD 11-1)
Semifinal – Jacob Long (CC) 27-8 dec. Jacob Maechtle (LC) 9-9 (Dec 8-3)
1st Place Match – Jacob Long (CC) 27-8 dec. Will Keeter (AC) 27-15 (Dec 5-3)
Monday, March 17, 2014
6 Knights Place at MN USA Folkstyle Tournament
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| Ashlyn Lohse wins state title! |
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| Levi Larkin Makes it to the Finals! |
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| Drake Swanson with 6th place! |
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| Colbe Tappe taked 4th place! |
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| Anthony Sykora taked 5th place! |
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| Owen Gruchow takes 5th place. |
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