As the Adrain Dragons begin their quest for a the Class AA team wrestling title Thursday morning at the Xcel Center in St. Paul, several area wrestlers will begin their pursuit of individual titles in the afternoon.
The 103-pound division is wide open this year, with no previous qualifiers returning and no unbeaten wrestlers. Josh Falk (30-10) of Windom/Mountain Lake-Butterfield-Odin and Brock Bullerman (22-18) will represent Section 3, while Cole Von Ohlen of Jackson County Central will wrestle from Section 2.
Cody Adams of Mankato East, the state champion at 103-lbs. last season, is again on top of his game, entering the 112-pound competition with a perfect 39-0 record. Four other medalists from the 103-pound division join Adams. Justin Reinsema (32-7) of Fulda/Murray County Central will have his hands full as the only area wrestler at this weight.
Two medalists from the last year's 112-pound group join Aaron Stolp of Big Lake to vie for the title at 119. Stolp placed fifth in this class last season. Taylor Aaland (23-20) of Pipestone Area and Luke Prairie (20-11) of Tracy-Milroy-Balaton will represent Section 3 against these heavy hitters.
The Panthers will also send Cole Cooreman (37-4) to contend for the 125-pound championship. A.J. Stevens (27-12) of W/ML-B-O will be the other Section 3 wrestler. St. Michael-Albertville's Mike Thorn (42-0) will be the cream of the crop in this weight class. Thorn was the champion at 119 last year.
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Sophomore Tory Stewart (38-4) of JCC, returning from a fifth place finish at 125 pounds, will be joined by W/ML-B-O's Colt Bergendahl (29-12) in the 130-pound division. With three other returning medalists, this class should provide some intense matches.
Adrian's Brandon Bullerman (41-2), the only returning place winner (sixth) in last year's 135-pound division, will face the top three finishers from last year's 130-pound tilt. Pipestone Area junior Taylor Evans (27-7) will also throw his hat into the ring in this class.
Third at 135 last season, W/ML-B-O's Travis Elg enters the 140 lb. competition with the only perfect record (39-0). He is also the only returning medalist in this weight class.
Elg's Cobra teammate Chris Fast (33-5) will represent Section 3 at 145 lbs. Fast will have his work cut out for him, as three returning medalist are in the field, including, unbeaten Trevor Larson of Perham (36-0).
Pipestone Area senior Jesse Evans (35-5) faces an experienced group in the 152-pound division. Dustin Horner (31-2) of Deer River, last year's runner-up, and fourth place winner Dan LeDuc (30-3) of Thief River Falls/ Goodridge return in this class. Mike Wubbena of Fairmont, who owns the only perfect record (37-0), joins this division after finishing second at 145 last year.
Derek Radtke (28-11) of W/ML-B-O will have to contend with runner-up of a year ago Mike Schmitz (37-1) of Stewartville. Also positioning himself for a top finish is Watertown-Mayer's Eric Reinert, who has the only flawless record at 36-0.
At 171 pounds, Mark Przekwas (25-2) of Roseau is the only returning medalist. Kenny Moenkedick (39-0) of Perham owns the only perfect mark in the division. Paul Carlson (38-3) from T-M-B and Adrian's Tyler Wagner (29-10) will represent Section 3 in this weight class.
Fulda/MCC's Nick Henning (38-0) is one of three 189-pounders who boast a perfect record in this class. Brent Eidenschink (33-0) of Detroit Lakes and Lance Peters (42-0) of Grand Meadow/Leroy are the others. Worthington's Matt Cowdin is no slouch, entering with a solid 22-2 mark.
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Defending champion Joe Nord (40-0) is the only returning and undefeated wrestler in the 215-pound class. Looking to interupt Nord's chance for a repeat are Worthington's Bryant Schroeder (27-6) and Adrian's Cody Reverts (35-3).
The area will send three wrestlers to compete for the heavyweight title. JCC's Jared Knips (37-4), Adrian's Will Lutmer (31-5) and F/MCC's Andy Witzel (31-3) will face three returning medalists in this class.
