Indians fifth, Comets eighth - Waupaca County Post

Weyauwega-Fremont 220-pounder Dylen Kicherer (right) goes up against Southern Door’s Mason Davis in the second round of the Cutler Classic in New London. Kicherer pinned Davis to advance to the semifinal round and eventually placed sixth. Greg Seubert Photo

Weyauwega-Fremont’s Tyler Wetzel tries to break the hold of Little Chute’s Bryce Schumacher in a 160-pound match. Wetzel eventually placed fourth. Greg Seubert Photo

Waupaca wrestler Colby Bernhardt takes on Little Chute’s Adam Kilgas in a 126-pound match. Bernhardt won the match and went on to place third with a 3-1 record at the Cutler Classic in New London. Greg Seubert Photo

Waupaca’s Tanner Johnson controls his 120-pound match with Weyauwega-Fremont’s Easton Groskreutz. Johnson advanced to the semifinals with a pin and eventually placed fifth, while Groskreutz went on to finish seventh. Greg Seubert Photo

Waupaca’s Mitchell Pecher faces Sturgeon Bay’s Nathan Hendrickson in a 160-pound match during the first round of the Cutler Classic in New London. Hendrickson pinned Pecher and Pecher went on to post a 1-2 record at the 15-team tournament. Greg Seubert Photo

Waupaca’s Jimmy Intribus works on Little Chute’s Ronald Butler during a 138-pound match. Intribus won the match and eventually placed seventh for the Comets. Greg Seubert Photo

Bernhardt, Kempf win at Cutler Classic

By Greg Seubert

Waupaca’s Derrick Rotta gets ready to pin Weyauwega-Fremont’s Patrick Kepler in a 182-pound match Jan. 14 at the 50th annual Cutler Classic at New London High School. Rotta went on to place second, while Kepler finished sixth. Greg Seubert Photo

Two area wrestlers won individual championships Jan. 14 at the 50th annual Cutler Classic in New London.

Weyauwega-Fremont’s Justin Kempf and Waupaca’s Logan Bernhardt posted 3-0 records to place first at 126 and 145 pounds, respectively, at the 15-team tournament.

Team scores were Coleman (282.5), Pulaski (219.5), Ripon (157), Oshkosh North (140.5), Weyauwega-Fremont (139), New London (117.5), Southern Door (114.5), Waupaca (98), Dodgeland (96), Princeton (83), Menasha (77), Little Chute (73), Oostburg and Sturgeon Bay (66), Appleton East (33).

Four other wrestlers ended up placing for Waupaca: Derrick Rotta, second at 182, Colby Bernhardt, third at 138, Tanner Johnson, fifth at 120; and Jimmy Intribus, seventh at 138.

Besides Kempf, Weyauwega-Fremont’s placers included Cian Fischer, second at 113; Tyler Wetzel, fourth at 160; Carter Greening and Kyle Loehrke, fifth at 106 and 170, respectively; Patrick Kepler and Dylen Kicherer, sixth at 182 and 220, respectively; and Easton Groskreutz and Austin Bartel, seventh at 126 and 195, respectively.

“This is a real tough tournament that we have attended for almost 50 years,” W-F coach Tim Potratz said. “It is also an opportunity for us to challenge New London and Waupaca for bragging rights in our area. Our kids really had to battle our way through the day, as we did not wrestle as sharp as we wanted to. The boys kept working and in the end came away with a solid fifth-place finish.”

After getting a bye in the first round, Kempf opened his day with a pin, a win by technical fall and a pin of Coleman’s Billy Gantner in the championship match to raise his season record to 21-4.

Fischer also had a first-round bye and advanced to his title match with a pair of pins before dropping a close match to Coleman’s Caleb Gross and now has a 26-2 record.

“He pinned the No. 5-ranked wrestler in the state from Ripon in the semifinals (Zachary Beck) before losing to the No. 2-ranked wrestler in the state in the finals,” Potratz said. “What a weight class.”

Meanwhile, Logan Kicherer (132), Brayden Marker (145) and Dylen Kicherer also picked up wins for the Indians. Dylen Kicherer won his first match of the tournament, but then had to drop out due to an injury.

“This was a real test for our boys,” Potratz said. “We never got on a roll today because of the talent in the tournament. Our kids kept plugging away and in the end came away with good results as a team and as individuals.”