INDIVIDUALS WRESTLE FOR STATE TITLES THIS WEEKEND AT THE KOHL CENTER THE CHAMPIONSHIPS: The 67th Annual Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association Individual Wrestling Championship Tournament will be held Thursday-Saturday, Feb. 25-27, at the Kohl Center on the campus of the University of Wisconsin in Madison, Wis. Ticket prices per tournament session are $8. Tickets are available on-line on the WIAA Web site through Feb. 24. Beginning Feb. 25, tickets are only available at the Kohl Center.
THE SCHEDULE: Below is the schedule of competition for the individual tournament. All weight classes will be wrestled in consecutive order through the classes on a “next available mat” basis within the mat assignments.
Thursday, Feb. 25 Session 1: Division 1 Preliminaries - 3 p.m.
Division 1 Quarterfinals - approximately 5:15 p.m.
Divisions 2 & 3 Preliminaries - approximately 7:15 p.m.
Friday, Feb. 26
Session 2: Division 1 Consolations - 10 a.m.
Divisions 2 & 3 Quarterfinals - approximately 11:15 a.m.
Division 1 Consolation Semifinals - approximately 1:45 p.m.
Divisions 2 & 3 Consolation Semifinals - approx. 2:45 p.m.
Session 3:
Division 1 Semifinals at 7 p.m. on mats 1 & 2
Division 2 Semifinals at 7 p.m. on mats 3 & 4
Division 3 Semifinals at 7 p.m. on mats 5 & 6
Saturday, Feb. 27
Session 4: Division 1 Consolation Wrestlebacks at 11 a.m. on mats 1 & 2
Division 2 Consolation Wrestlebacks at 11 a.m. on mats 3 & 4
Division 3 Consolation Wrestlebacks at 11 a.m. on mats 5 & 6
Session 5: Division 1 Championships at 6 p.m. on mat 1
Division 2 Championships at 6 p.m. on mat 2
Division 3 Championships at 6 p.m. on mat 3
ON WIAA.TV & FS WISCONSIN: All six mats of the pre-finals matches will be streamed live on WIAA.tv. The championship finals for all divisions will be aired tape-delayed on FS Wisconsin. The Division 1 title bouts are scheduled to air Thursday, April 8 at 9 p.m. The Division 2 championship match is scheduled to air Saturday, April 10 at 2:30 p.m., and the Division 3 championship match will air Saturday, April 3 at 2 p.m. Please check local cable listings for the FS Wisconsin channel in your area.
2010 TOURNAMENT BY THE NUMBERS: There will be champions crowned in 14 weight classes in three divisions. Wrestlers who finished first or second in each weight class at last weekend’s eight Division 1 sectionals qualified for the State Tournament. The top three finishers in each weight class at the four Divisions 2 and 3 sectionals qualify for the tourney. There are 224 qualifiers for the championships in Division 1 and 168 in both Divisions 2 and 3. There are 220 schools represented at this year’s individual championships, including 86 from Division 1, 71 from Division 2 and 63 from Division 3.
MORE NUMBERS: Wisconsin Rapids Lincoln has qualified the most wrestlers to the field in Division 1 with 10, and Hartford Union, Kaukauna and Muskego are next in line with seven. Ellsworth has qualified the most wrestlers in Division 2 with 10. Pewaukee is next with eight, and Oconto Falls has seven qualifiers. In Division 3, Coleman has the distinction of having the most qualifiers for the second straight year with nine. There are eight programs next in line with six qualifiers apiece.
TOTAL TITLES BY SCHOOLS: Mineral Point has produced the most individual championships with 45. Stoughton has claimed 41 individual titles, and Milwaukee South is next with 39. Others with significant totals are Wisconsin Rapids Lincoln with 38, Athens with 32, Luxemburg-Casco with 30 and Coleman with 26.
TRACKING THE CHAMPIONS: There are 15 former champions in the tournament field this year, and 13 seeking to defend the title they won last year. In Division 1, five former champions, including three of last year’s champions, return to the tournament in hopes of adding another crown. Junior Jesse Thielke of Germantown attempts to win his third straight title. He qualifies at the 125-pound weight class with a 43-0 record after winning the class last year and the 112 crown in 2008. He has compiled a stellar 132-1 mark over the last three years. Junior Torin Boernke of Marshfield moves up three classes to 130 after winning the 112 title last year. He enters the tournament with a 31-2 record this season. Junior Alex Dieringer of Port Washington moves up to 140 this year after finishing runner-up at 125 in Division 2 last year, a year after winning the 103 crown in Division 1. Junior Brad Dolezal of Marshfield finished runner-up at 140 last year after winning the championship at that same weight in 2008. He qualifies this season at 145 and enters the tournament with a 44-0 record. Senior Noah Budi of Kaukauna moves up two weight classes to 189 after winning the 160 title last year. He has compiled a 44-0 tally heading into the tournament. The Division 2 field includes four returning champions. Sophomore Jarod Donar of Cuba City/Southwestern moves up to 125 after capturing the 119-pound title a year ago. He has yet to lose a match in his prep career. He enters action with a 45-0 record, giving him 91-0 mark in his first two prep seasons. Senior Zach Zehner of Tomahawk moves up a weight class to 130 after claiming the title at 125 last season. He has compiled a 43-0 this season, which gives him a 92-1 mark over the past two seasons. Zehner’s teammate, senior Rudy Chagoya, also moves up a weight to contend for back-to-back titles. He qualifies at 135 with a 48-1 record after winning the 130 championship last year. Senior Joe Raygor of St. Croix Falls looks to defend his title at 171. He has not lost a match in two seasons, posting an 82-0 mark during that span, including a 39-0 tally this season. There are six returning champions in Division 3. Junior Justin Mudlaff of Random Lake has his sights on a third straight championship. He qualifies at 119 after winning the 112 last year. Mudlaff won the Division 2 title at 103 while attending Luxemburg-Casco in 2008. He enters the meet with a 43-0 record, which gives him a 134-9 mark during his three-year prep career. Senior Bubba Gudis of Bruce won the 119 weight class last season. He moves up three weight classes to contend for the 130 championship this year. He enters the tournament with a 43-0 record, giving him an 88-1 mark over the last two years. Senior Brayden Wienke of Clear Lake moves up to 152 following his gold medal performance at 145 a year ago. He hasn’t lost a match in two years, posting a 90-0 record during that span and a 46-0 mark this season. Senior Buddy Lincks of Waterloo attempts to defend his crown at 160. He has wrestled to a 38-3 record this season. Senior Patrick Kissel of Oostburg seeks to defend the title he won at 171 last season. He has compiled a 38-0 record this season and an 81-1 tally over the last two seasons. Senior Chad Johnson of De Soto is out to defend the title he won at 215 a year ago. He has amassed a 41-1 record so far this season after going undefeated at 43-0 in 2009.
UNBLEMISHED MARKS: There are 26 wrestlers who enter the State Tournament this weekend undefeated, including 10 in Division 1, seven in Division 2 and nine in Division 3. The 10 Division 1 wrestlers entering the State Tournament with perfect records are senior Justin Enderby of Pulaski (45-0) at 119, junior Jesse Thielke of Germantown (43-0) at 125, junior Siven Furseth of Janesville Craig (36-0) at 130, junior Brad Dolezal of Marshfield (44-0) at 145, senior Joe Immekus of West Allis Central (44-0), senior Matthew Pennings of Green Bay Preble/East (45-0) at 160, senior Noah Budi of Kaukauna (44-0) at 189, senior Alex Polizzi of Beloit Memorial (41-0) at 215, and seniors Nikola Bogojevic of Superior (44-0) and Bill Mitchell of South Milwaukee (15-0) at 285. In Division 2, those still undefeated heading into the State Tournament are sophomore Jarod Donar of Cuba City/Southwestern (45-0) at 125, senior Zach Zehner of Tomahawk (43-0) at 130, senior Ben Schmitt of Belleville/Monticello/New Glarus (35-0) at 160, senior Joe Raygor of St. Croix Falls (39-0) at 171, seniors Cody Wedde of Clintonville (43-0) and Matt Tourdot of Sparta (47-0) at 215, and senior Logan Figueroa of Valders (42-0) at 285. The nine undefeated wrestlers in the Division 3 field are junior Justin Mudlaff of Random Lake (43-0) at 119, senior Bubba Gudis of Bruce (43-0) at 130, junior Charlie Van Straten of Shiocton (44-0) also at 130, junior Tucker Pittz of Mineral Point (43-0) at 140, senior Brayden Wienke of Clear Lake (46-0) at 152, senior Patrick Kissel of Oostburg (38-0) at 171, junior Keith Rudesill of Ladysmith (34-0) at 189, junior Cole Myren of Whitehall (37-0) at 215 and senior Matt Wyss of Boyceville (20-0) at 285. There are 30 wrestlers in the meet that have suffered defeat only once this season.
HISTORY OF CHAMPIONS: For a complete list of all-time individual wrestling champions, access the WIAA Web site:
http://www.wiaawi.org/wrestling/individualchamps.pdf NEED THE QUALIFIERS?: State Tournament brackets and tournament schedule are available on the WIAA Web site at:
http://www.wiaawi.org/index.php?id=214 or by accessing the TrackWrestling site at:
http://www.trackwrestling.com. NEED RESULTS?: Access results through the WIAA Web site at:
http://www.wiaawi.org/index.php?id=391 or by accessing the TrackWrestling.com Web site at
http://www.trackwrestling.com.
With the WIAA Wrestling Tournament series in full swing right now and with state taking place next weekend, it would be a good time to do a brief recap and roundup of the last few weekends of action from around the state.
Two weekends ago most conferences around the state held their conference tournaments and for most teams, it was their last tune ups before heading into regionals and the start of a 3 week journey towards the medal stand at the Kohl Center in Madison. Some conference tournaments of note include
the SWAL-SWC Clash that was held in Richland Center this year won by Mineral Point and the
Badger Conference tournament held at Oregon High School which was won by Stoughton.
The
Wisconsin Valley Conference tournament held in Marshfield saw Wausau West edge Wisconsin Rapids Lincoln to share the conference title thanks to Wisconsin Rapids Lincoln winning the dual meet schedule.
With regionals happening last weekend and sectionals this weekend, you check out all results
here.
The end of the wrestling season usually brings word of stories of wrestlers working hard to overcome any adversities they may have faced in their lives so far. Such stories as
this one about the inspirational story of a wrestler from Wrighstown High School and this one involving a
Mt. Horeb/Barneveld wrestler, showcase how wrestling builds character and how that it gives students from all different backgrounds goals and ambitions to work hard to try and acheive them.