WHS Wrestling: Adrian escapes WHS 34-31

WORTHINGTON — On paper, the dual between Worthington and Adrian Thursday night didn’t go as planned.

The Trojans battled the No. 6-ranked (Class AA) Dragons to a 34-31 loss that wasn’t decided until the heavyweight match.

After tying the dual at 22 in the 170-pound weight class, WHS won two of the next three matches — including a pin by Brandon Riemersma — to go into the final match with a slight three-point advantage (31-28).

However, Adrian’s heavyweight Jake Diekmann pinned Peter Abraham at the 59 second mark to give the Dragons their sixth-straight win on the season.

“I knew when I stepped onto the mat that it was close,” Diekmann said. “The team was down and I wanted to go out there and try not to lose, especially for the team. I just hoped for the best outcome.

“I was on top just trying to keep [Abraham] flat. He tried to roll me over and I did my best just to try to stop him and he fell right into the move. Worthington wrestled great, no doubt about it. They definitely gave us a run for our money.”

Adrian had a nine point lead (22-13) at the halfway point of the dual. But the Trojans compiled three-straight wins in the 160-, 170- and 182-pound weight classes to take a 25-22 advantage with three matches remaining.

Zach Kempema (160 pounds) battled Dragon senior Zach Albertson to a 5-2 decision to allow WHS to come within six points of Adrian.

But Blake Schroeder’s pin at the 3 minute, 50 second mark of the 170 pound match quickly tied the dual. Schroeder’s upset over a talented upperclassman in Jesse Slater put the momentum in the Trojans’ favor.

“You have to give credit to Worthington, they wrestled very well,” Adrian head coach Gregg Nelson said. “I just don’t think we wrestled that inspired. We’re happy with the win, but for us it was pretty ugly. I wasn’t real pleased with that performance overall. I don’t know what else to say besides that we were lucky to escape with our lives.”

The battle at 182 pounds was a close one. The match went into 2 minutes, 30 seconds of extended time before Trojan Carson Hagen was awarded the win on riding time as the buzzer sounded. The decision gave WHS its first lead since the 113 pound match with only three more matches to go.

Adrian’s Adam Garms quickly got the score back in the Dragons’ favor when he pinned Emmanuel Martinez 1:51 into the match. With two matches to go, Adrian led 28-25.

But the Trojans quickly came back in the 220-pound matchup between Riemersma and Alex Vasquez. After two close periods, Riemersma managed to get the pin at 4:42 to give Worthington a 31-28 advantage heading into the final match.

“My strategy was I was just trying to go in there and pin him in the first period,” Riemersma said. “But he’s pretty good at stalling, so I had to slow down my pace and let it go out longer. He probably got a lot more tired than I was, so I just rolled him over and threw a half in there. I knew he was tired so he wouldn’t be able to fight it off.

“My team really needed that six. We were trying to go in there and finish up strong before our inexperienced heavyweight got in there. Overall, I thought we did pretty great going up against the 6th-ranked team in the state and only losing by three. We’re showing people what we’re made of.”

Each of the individually ranked wrestlers showcased in Thursday’s duals got wins.

Worthington’s Anthony Luft — ranked third at 106 pounds — picked up the pin (3:30) in the 106-pound weight class over Greg Kern. WHS’ Jared Kinley — ranked seventh at 126 pounds — recorded a 2-1 decision over Ben Mulder in the 145-pound weight class.

And Adrian’s Nate Lynn — ranked second in the 138-pound weight class — got a 14-5 major decision over Matt Poppema. Adrian’s other ranked wrestler, Mitchell Sieve — ranked seventh at 160 pounds — didn’t compete as he recovers from an ankle injury.

Adrian grapples again Tuesday at Windom/Mountain Lake/Butterfield-Odin, while Worthington competes in a tournament in Luverne on Saturday.

“It’s hard to come that close and have your chances and not pull out the win,” WHS head coach Mark Prunty said. “Our kids went out and wrestled hard, they really did. We feel we’re wrestling really well as a team, and that’s a good time to start doing that is right now at the end of the season.

“The loss hurts. We had our opportunities and our chances. And over the years, let’s just face it, there haven’t been too many opportunities where we step in the gym and have an opportunity to beat Adrian. They’re a good, quality program. We’re very proud of our kids tonight.”

106 Luft (W) fall 3:30 Kern, 6-0

113 Hieronimus (A) dec. 17-12 Michelson, 6-3

120 Artiga (W) maj. dec. 8-0 Preuss, 10-3

126 Bullerman (A) forfeit, 10-9

132 Heitkamp (A) fall 0:44 Gustaf, 10-15

138 Loosbrock (A) dec. 6-1 Clarke, 10-18

145 Kinley (W) dec. 2-1 Mulder, 13-18

152 Lynn (A) maj. dec. 14-5 Poppema, 13-22

160 Kempema (W) dec. 5-2 Albertson, 16-22

170 Schroeder (W) fall 3:50 J. Slater, 22-22

182 Hagen (W) dec. 2-2 Taracena, 25-22

195 Garms (A) fall 1:51 Martinez, 25-28

220 Riemersma (W) fall 4:42 Vasquez, 31-28

Hwt. Diekmann (A) fall 0:59 Abraham, 31-34

Readers may reach Daily Globe sports reporter Jocelyn Syrstad at 376-7335.

Tags: sports, prep, wrestling, trojans, adrian