WRESTLING POSTSEASON STARTS THIS WEEK
This week, Mark Bradley will do something he’s never done before: Lead the Marion/Freeman Rebels into the region tournament. And if everything goes well, the first-year head coach will find himself — and his wrestlers — in an even bigger spot later next week: The state tournament out west.
All of it starts this Thursday, Feb. 20 when Freeman Public eighth grader Maddie Lachman takes the mat at 107 lbs. in the Region 2 girls’ tournament in Salem; action begins at 4 p.m. Then on Saturday, Feb. 22 the Rebels will return to Salem for the Region 2B boys’ tournament that begins at 9:30 a.m. Nine Rebels wrestlers, ranging in weight class from 106 lbs. to heavyweight, are expected to take the mat, with a handful in position to advance to state.
That all-class event — both boys and girls — will unfold at the Summit Arena at The Monument in Rapid City Thursday, Friday and Saturday, Feb. 27, 28 and March 1. The top four region finishers in each weight class earn a berth.
“We should be able to get some through if we wrestle like we can,” says Bradley, who notes the Rebels have been dealing with a combination of injuries and illness that has slowed progress. “We just seem to have a merry-go-round of kids who are sick, but I think we’re slowly getting over it.”
The coach says those who have the best chance of advancing to state are the three who qualified last year: Logun Pankratz, Keaton Preheim and Easton Tschetter.
Tschetter, a freshman, finished eighth in a deep 120 lb. weight class at last year’s state competition, and this year is a favorite to win the region tournament at 144 lbs.
“I’m not going to hold him to that,” says Bradley, “but if he wrestles well, that’s what should happen.”
Wrestling at 132 lbs., Preheim is in a position for a strong finish, as well, and Bradley said he would not be surprised if the senior comes away with either a championship or runner-up finish.
“He should be able to get out of there if he wrestles like he can,” says the coach.
Of the Rebels’ top three wrestlers, Pankratz has the toughest draw at 126 lbs. Three others in that weight division will likely be top four or five finishers at state, but Pankratz is strong enough to be right there come Saturday.
“As long as everybody gets seeded appropriately, and he wrestles to his potential, he should get out,” says Bradley.
The coach says to keep an eye on Lachman on Thursday, too, as she’s been wrestling well enough to give herself a shot at state.
“She could make some noise,” he says. “She’s been getting better and better, but we haven’t had a whole lot of competition for her to measure up against. We’re hoping she can win a couple and sneak in.”
And Josh Oleson at 106 lbs. and Michael Blau at 120 lbs. — both eighth graders — could “sneak in” if things go their way on Saturday.
Others scheduled to wrestle on Saturday are seventh grader David Wollmann at 113 lbs., junior Thomas Ding at 150 lbs., eighth grader Hunter Spangler at 157 lbs. and sophomore Raymond Arnold at 285 lbs.
All the Rebels competing this week are from Freeman Public except Ding, who attends Freeman Academy; and Blau and Preheim, who go to school in Marion.
