Area wrestlers get ready for tourney time
This is the final week of the prep wrestling regular season for Tri-County Area teams Mondovi/Eleva-Strum and the Tri-County co-op team of Osseo-Fairchild/Augusta/Fall Creek.
OFAFC hosts the final Dairyland Conference Duals series of the '25-26 season this evening, Thursday, Feb. 5 beginning at 7 p.m. at Osseo-Fairchild Middle/High School with boys, and girls wrestling. MES hosts the full Dunn-St. Croix Conference Meets today, Thursday, Feb. 5 beginning at 3 p.m.`
Next week is the post-season with WIAA Tournament meets and the Tri-County Area will be in the thick of the action. The girls regional is at Mondovi starting at 4 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 13. The next day Saturday, Feb,. 14 is the boys' individual sectional (no regionals anymore) in Division 2 hosted by Osseo-Fairchild/Augusta/Fall Creek at OFHS beginning at 10 a.m. Top two in each weight class head to the state meet. The top six teams in each individual sectional meet qualify for team sectionals to be wrestled the following weekend in Black River Falls. There will still be a girls individual sectional meet the following weekend to determine state qualifiers and that will be in Stevens Point.
MES's boys wrestled two dual meets this week Tuesday, Feb. 3 at Boyceville, a rescheduled event due to bad weather. They lost both 58-11 to Boyceville and 58-24 to Glenwood City. Last week MES boys wrestled in six dual meets, two in conference action and four in the Whitetail Shootout in Menomonie on Friday, Jan. 30.
On Thursday, Jan. 29, the MES grapplers took a ride to Chetek for the second Dunn-St. Croix dual night of the season. In the first dual, MES took on a talented Chetek-Weyerhauser/Prairie Farm team. Picking up pins for MES were Ian Berger and Aiden Isaacson. Earning major decisions were Tyson Greiner and Bill Jardine. Carter Zahara picked up a forfeit but MES would loose the dual by a score of 41-26. In the second dual of the night, MES would battle with Clear Lake and win the meet by a score of 45-21. Greiner would pick up the lone pin while Zahara earned a hard fought decision. Jonathan Klingel, Berger, Jardine, AJ Loscheider, David Nyre, and Isaacson each drew a forfeit.
Twenty-four hours later the team headed to Menomonie for the Whitetail Shootout dual tournament. In the first round, MES would draw St. Michael-Albertville, one of the top wrestling programs in Minnesota. Isaacson picked up another pin and scored the only points for MES in the dual as STMA would win by a score of 72-6. The second dual of the night pitted MES against Cumberland. This was a close dual meet with Cumberland taking the victory 45-36. Berger, Loscheider, Nyre, and Isaacson would each earn a pin. Brysen Nogle and Zahara would each receive a forfeit. MES would next tangle with Tomah and be victorious by a score of 48-20. Picking up forfeits were Greiner, Brody Brantner, Nicholas Wright, Nogle, Jardine, Loescheider, Nyre, and Isaacson. The final dual of the evening was an exciting bout with Eau Claire Regis/Altoona. MES was able to pick up pins by Brantner, Nogle, Jardine, Nyre, and Isaacson. Greiner would add a major decision and Berger picked up a decision as MES came up just short at the end of the match as RAW would win by a score of 42-37.
MES's girls were also busy last week. They too, headed to Chetek on Thursday night, Jan. 29 for a Dunn-St Croix Conference dual. Mareesa Rehberg, Kyli Zahara, Emma Pearl, and Sophia Peterson alll ended the night with pins against Clear Lake. Layla Risler and Kayce Poeschel received forfeits for the evening. Mareesa was able to get another match and earned a second pin against Chetek-Weyerhaeuser. On Saturday, Jan. 31 the team headed to Eau Claire North for the Husky Girls Challenge. Layla went 5-0 with three pins, a medical forfeit, and a bye for 1st place at 145 pounds, winning the title match with a :57 second pinfall over Forest Lake, Minn.,'s Jamie Peterson. Sophia went 3-1 at 132 with three pins for 3rd, Kayce went 1-4 with her first ever pin at 152, Mareesa went 2-2 with two pins at 107, and Kyli went 1-4 with a pin at 120. This week brings our home conference tournament on Thursday night at Mondovi and girls meet at St. Croix Central on Friday night, Feb. 6.
OFAFC girls wrestlers were also at the Husky Girls Challenge last weekend. The Dragons were led by Macey Pierre going 3-2 with 3 pins and placing 7th at 138. Layne Armstrong-Baglien went 2-2 with two pins and placing 9th at 145. Viola MacDonald went 2-3 with two pins and placing 10th at 120. Kinley Nelson went 1-1 with a pin at 126 while medically forfeiting the rest of the day.
Last week Nelson notched 28th pin of the season, surpassing Aaliyah Zamora's single-season pin record in program history.
At the same time the Dragon girls were wrestling in Eau Claire, the boys were in Independence for the annual Indee Invite hosted by Independence/Gilmanton. OFAFC had two place-winners: Henry Cash with 3rd at 150 and Kouper Salter with 4th at 126. The same Chetek-Weyerhaeuser/Prairie Farm team which beat MES in a dual meet also won the team title at the Indee Invite.
OFAFC also wrestled a dual meet last week Thursday, Jan. 30 against Independence/Gilmanton at Cochrane-Fountain City in a Dairyland Duals event. The Dragons lost the dual but Salter, Sam Coach and Cash all won their respective matches.
