Area wrestlers heading to Madison
By Greg Seubert
The season will continue for nine area wrestlers that qualified for the WIAA State Individual Wrestling Championships.
The tournament, for boys and girls in three divisions, kicks off Thursday, Feb. 23, and continues through Saturday, Feb. 25, at the Kohl Center in Madison.
Area qualifiers on the boys’ side are Weyauwega-Fremont’s Vanden Hoffman and Manawa’s Cash Botting (Division 3); New London’s Wyatt Magolski (Division 2); and Hortonville’s Wyatt Skebba, Nolan Skebba and Henry Niebauer (Division 1).
Qualifying girls include New London’s Hailie Krueger, Clintonville’s Keela Deering and Hortonville’s Mackinzie Schiedermayer.
Division 3
Bonduel Sectional
Botting and Hoffman pinned all three of their opponents to win the 120- and 220-pound championships at Seymour High School.
Botting, a freshman, pinned Oconto’s Tyler Beekman in 1:53, Lena’s Dylan Comins in 3:02 and Crandon’s Brayden Madl in 4:54 in the final to earn his first trip to state.
Hoffman, a junior, is returning to state for a second time after pinning Lena’s Dylan Urbanek in 29 seconds, Kewaunee’s Ezra Ducat in 1:23 and Coleman’s Devin Otto in 51 seconds in the final.
Weyauwega-Fremont’s Riley Scherg and Aiden Marquette missed out on a trip to state by falling in their third-place match at 106 and 152, respectively.
Coleman won the sectional championship with 148.5 points, followed by Shiocton (145), Wittenberg-Birnamwood (94.5), Crandon (64.5), Kewaunee (64), Bonduel (54), Reedsville (47), Wabeno/Laona/Three Lakes (44.5), Lena (43.5), Weyauwega-Fremont (41), Valders (28), Crivitz (24.5), Manawa (24), Lourdes Academy/Valley Christian (22), Mishicot (17), New Holstein (9) and Rosholt (4).
Hoffman now has 35 pins on the season and will take a 45-2 record to state.
Coach Tim Potratz likes his wrestler’s chances.
“Vanden has been a dominant force at 220 all season,” he said. “His two losses this season are both when he wrestled against heavyweights.”
Hoffman has a bye in the first round at state and will wrestle Cedar Grove/Belgium’s Deven Soerens (23-7) or Boyceville’s Zach Hellendrung (41-8) in the quarterfinal round Feb. 24.
Botting (44-4) will wrestle Poynette’s Isaiah Gauer (31-12) in the preliminary round Feb. 23.
Division 2
Wrightstown Sectional
Magolski won the 113-pound championship with a 12-0 win over Luxemburg-Casco’s Michael Bostwick.
The junior will take a 43-4 record to state, has a bye in the first round and will face Monroe’s Garrett Minder (33-15) or Kewaskum’s James Racer (45-7) in the quarterfinal round Feb. 24.
Waupaca’s J.J. Azuara competed with Magolski at 113 and placed fourth.
Luxemburg-Casco won the sectional with 150.5 points, followed by Freedom (127), Brillion (85), Two Rivers (75), Denmark (49), Kiel (47.5), Seymour (42), Oconto and Wrightstown (31.5), Oostburg (31), Plymouth 30, Sturgeon Bay/Sevastopol (28), New London (26), Peshtigo (22), Chilton/Hilbert (18), Sheboygan Falls (16), Elkhart Lake-Glenbeulah/Howards Grove (12), Marinette (11), Waupaca and Xavier (9) and Southern Door (3).
Krueger will defend the girls’ 145-pound state championship that she won last year as a freshman.
She was the only wrestler at 145 at the sectional and qualified for state for a second time. The WIAA held the first girls’ state meet last year in La Crosse and this is the first year the girls will join the boys at the Kohl Center.
Deering is also heading to state after handing Chilton/Hilbert’s Gwen Breckheimer a 19-3 technical fall defeat in the 185-pound final, while Waupaca’s Savana Hansen placed second at 120 after dropping a 7-5 decision to Peshtigo’s Addisen Olson in the final.
Krueger and Deering will wrestle at state Feb. 23. Krueger (25-1) will face Janesville Parker’s Victoria-Anne Kampman (6-2) and Deering (10-5) is matched up against Sparta’s Kylie Hanson (11-2).
Division 1
Oshkosh North Sectional
Wyatt Skebba won the Polar Bears’ only sectional championship with a 1-0 win over Neenah’s Declan Koch in the 106-pound final.
His brother, Nolan, is also heading to state after placing second at 120. He fell to West Bend West’s Ben Bast 5-0 in the final, but came back in the wrestleback round with a 5-2 win over Kimberly’s Aiden Fonder.
Niebauer also qualified for state after placing second at 138. He fell to Kaukauna’s Greyson Clark 19-3 in the 138-pound final.
Ayden Needham (160) placed third for Hortonville, while Griffin Jens (132), Tage Wasmund (152) and Ben Smith (220) placed fourth.
Kaukauna won the sectional with 199.5 points, followed by West Bend West (92), Hortonville (91), Kimberly (85.5), Neenah (85), West Bend East (76.5), Oshkosh West (59.5), Appleton North (53), Hartford (33.5), Menasha 28, Beaver Dam/Wayland Academy (20) and Appleton East (6).
Schiedermayer (3-4) will join Krueger in the girls’ 145-pound bracket at state. She was the only 145-pound wrestler in Oshkosh and will face Watertown’s Alison Busler (20-12) in the opening round Feb. 23.
One other Hortonville wrestler also made it to her sectional final match, as Neenah’s Kylee Kurszewski pinned Hannah Huza in 3:33 at 114.
Mya Ulman also wrestled for the Polar Bears at 120.