Wolfpack gains momentum as tough stretch is looming

By Ginna Young

Back to full strength, with the return of a varsity veteran, the Cornell-Gilman Wolfpack Wrestlers got a boost in two competitions over the week.

Jan. 10 Turtle Lake Triangular

Facing off with their hosts, the Wolfpack went up against Turtle Lake, dropping the bout by 54-18, by sheer larger numbers.

Picking up a win for the Wolfpack, was sophomore Preston Fredrickson (132 pounds), who pinned Marus Zacharias with 1:23 left in the match. Also winning, was senior Braeden Person (152), with a pin in the last 50 seconds over Matthew Muench.

Junior Troy Duellman (160) saw a return victory, over Brandon Wright, pinning him with just a second left, while freshman Anthony Schofield (220) faced off with Parker Lytle, dropping the match.

“It was great to get all the boys a match,” said coach Greg Sonnentag. “We were glad to have Troy back in the line-up.”

Jan. 10 Turtle Lake Triangular Bruce was also in the sights of the Wolfpack, where Cornell-Gilman brought home a 19-18 win.

“We won in the ninth criteria, to break the tie against Bruce,” said Sonnentag. “We had the same number of pins, forfeits, wins, etc. It came down to the most near fall points.”

In that match-up, Fredrickson dropped his match against Harold Garica, but Person came up with a win over Andrew Frederick, with a pin.

“In hindsight, we were originally hoping Braeden Person pinned his opponent sooner, but it turned out to work in our favor,” said Sonnentag.

Jan. 14 Ladysmith Invitational

To finish out the week, the Wolfpack headed to Ladysmith, where 21 other teams vied for the top spots. Two of the athletes made it to the finals, each competing against the top-ranked wrestler in Division 3.

In the championship round, Duellman faced Mineral Point’s Tarrin Riley, dropping the match in a 4-0 decision.

“Troy, after being out for the last three weeks, competed well,” said Sonnentag.

Meanwhile, Person faced Tristan Drier, of Cadott, dropping the match to take second place, by fall, in 4:39.

“Braeden went into the third period, only down 2-0, before being turned and pinned,” said Sonnentag. “In both cases, we were in the match.”

Fredrickson placed fifth on the day, coming off with three pins and wrestling well against Reedsville’s Ethyn Sebo, by fall, in 2:31. Schofield ended the day in 11th, after taking the win over Marathon’s Christian Pintor, by fall, in 3:10.

“We are hitting the home stretch now,” said Sonnentag. “Hopefully, we can keep that momentum going forward.”