MEDFORD WRESTLING PREVIEW - ONE STEP AT A TIME
MEDFORD WRESTLING PREVIEW
One doesn’t have to look hard at the Medford Raiders’ wrestling roster to see there is enough experience, talent and depth to make a lot of good things happen in February and possibly even into March.
But in late November, Medford’s eighth-year head coach Brandon Marcis said it’s just about winning today for his Raiders.
“We definitely have great potential on the team and we have a lot of talent from top to bottom,” Marcis said Monday. “But we don’t really want the focus to be too much on outcomes of tournaments and what we’re going to accomplish. We just want to win each day and get better each day in the room and let that kind of happen for us. If we start focusing too much about being on top of the podium then that becomes our focus rather than getting better every day.”
Getting better means challenging yourself against good competition and Medford will start its 2023-24 season by doing just that this weekend when the team competes in the prestigious two-day Dan Gable Donnybrook in Coralville, Iowa. The tournament features more than 40 boys and girls teams from seven Midwestern states with most, of course, coming from the wrestling- crazed state of Iowa. “Obviously we want to win everything we can,” Marcis said. “We’ve never won a state title in Medford so we’re trying to do things that we’ve never done this season. Going to Iowa for the Dan Gable Donnybrook is definitely exposing us to some of the greatest competition we possibly can. We’ve had a tough schedule historically and we still do have a tough schedule but we wanted to step it up a notch. It’s a nationallyrecognized tournament. We just want to see that level of wrestling and then, at the same time, we want to go there and compete and believe that we belong in that conversation.”
Medford’s belief starts with the fact that it opens the season with 13 letter winners from last season returning to the mat, many of whom experienced Great Northern Conference and/or WIAA tournament success. The team is deep in senior and junior leadership and has the bodies to ably fill all 14 weight classes, something not too many programs can say anymore.
While there are individuals who certainly have high goals, Marcis said the vision at the beginning of the season is always to think team first.
“It’s been a great first couple of weeks,” Marcis said. “The kids have worked hard. Our wrestle-offs were very competitive. Kids are showing that they want to get better and that they believe in what we’re doing and they believe in the team. That’s huge. Obviously we want to do big things as a team. Having guys on the team that will make sacrifices for each other is very important to us. It’s been really good.”
More than 20 wrestlers are on the opening-week roster. Headlining the list of veterans are two-time state qualifier Gage Losiewicz, state medalist from a year ago Logan Kawa, state qualifier Braxton Weissmiller, GNC champions Jude Stark, Owen Higgins, Parker Lissner and Cory Lindahl and GNC runnersup Paxton Rothmeier and Max Dietzman. Stark, Higgins, Lissner, Lindahl, Evan Wilkins and Dietzman all were sectional qualifiers as well.
Kawa, a senior, starts the year in the new 175-pound weight class while Losiewicz, a junior, starts in the new 157-pound weight class. Kawa went 49-13 last year and placed sixth at the WIAA Division 2 state tournament at 160 pounds. Losiewicz was 42-12 and went 1-2 in Madison at 145 pounds. Both got some competitive wrestling in this summer. Losiewicz was a key member of Team Wisconsin’s 16U freestyle and Greco Roman teams that competed in the National Duals.
“Gage is starting to look like a veteran when he’s out there on the mat,” Marcis said. “His technique has always been pretty good but how he’s wrestling the pace that’s dictating I think that’s coming around and getting to a point where what you’re doing hasn’t necessarily changed but how you’re doing it is making the difference.
“Seeing those two guys is going to be fun,” Marcis added. “They’re super fun guys to coach just because they’re talented wrestlers but they’re still coachable and they’re just great overall guys. They have great character and that matters.”
Medford’s experience from 132 pounds on up is impressive.
Stark, a senior, fills the 132-pound spot to start the year. He’s coming off a 37-11 year where he fell one place short of qualifying for state at 126 pounds. Junior Parker Lissner is at 138 pounds. He turned a strong second half to last year into a sectional appearance and a 35-17 overall record. Junior Owen Higgins also turned things up a notch after the holidays and went 21-15 at 132 pounds while earning his second straight GNC title.
Lindahl continues to get stronger and lands at the new 150-pound weight class after going 26-15 at 152 last year. He was third at last year’s super regional. Junior Paxton Rothmeier made a big jump up to 170 pounds and handled it well, going 2411. He looks to fill the new 165-pound spot in this year’s lineup. Wilkins, a junior who went 14-9 and placed third at both the super regional and fourth at the GNC tournament at 182 pounds, is looking to fill the 190-pound spot this year along with sophomore Jonathan Bartnik who got a lot of varsity matches last year.
The Raiders also have a lot of strength in upper classes with Weissmiller filling the 215-pound spot after a 34-20 junior season at 220 and Dietzman is back after a 32-16 season at 285 pounds. Dietzman was a first-year wrestler last winter as a junior and picked things up quickly, giving Medford some key points and key wins at that position. The upper weights gain some depth this year with the addition of freshman Forest Hartl.
“Braxton and Max have a little experience on Forest, but he’ll definitely learn from wrestling with them all year,” Marcis said. “He’s going to be so much farther ahead because of that. Braxton and Max have always been quick, strong guys but now that they have more experience, they’re more technical and their positioning is better. Grinding with those guys is going to benefit Forest so much and likewise it’s good for Braxton and Max to have a different look and Forest gives them a good look.”
There is good competition in the wrestling room for varsity spots in the lighter weights.
Marcis said junior Nick Malchow and freshmen Caden Olson, Austin Czarnezki, Ayden Tyznik and Ron Hoernke are in the mix for 106- and 113-pound matches. Freshman Jordan Lavin and sophomore Broden Schilling, who got honorable mention in the GNC last year, are looking to get time in the 120- and 126-pound classes.
“We definitely have options for 126 down when it comes to dual meets and having that full lineup,” Marcis said.
The Raiders will break into the world of WIAA girls wrestling with the additions of freshmen Avery Losiewicz and Bridget Wesle.
While Wesle is new to the sport, Losiewicz enters Medford’s program having earned some impressive accolades in Wisconsin youth wrestling and in the national ranks. It will be interesting to see how she matches up with some of the state’s best in the girls post-season tournament.
“Avery did a lot of wrestling this summer,” Marcis said. “She got some freestyle experience and she pushes the pace in the room. All of the boys that are her size, she goes with them and pushes them and shows great technique. She tries hard in conditioning.
She definitely brings some experience to the room.
She’s a great asset and Bridget is learning quickly too. She’s wrestling with Avery and everyone else her size. That’s where the team concept comes in.
You have a new wrestler coming in trying the sport and everyone is helping out, mentoring.”
Medford has won or shared five straight GNC championships and, when the time comes, the Raiders will certainly be gunning for more than that in February, coming off their appearance in last year’s WIAA Division 2 team sectional.
Medford is set to host the WIAA Division 2 super regional on Feb. 10. The Raiders also have their annual trips to the Bi-State Classic in La Crosse in late December as well as competitive invites at places like Freedom, Arcadia and Eau Claire North. Medford is going back to Shawano Dec. 16 and is also going back to the Shiocton Duals on Jan. 5, a tournament the Raiders felt was beneficial last year.
The Raiders will start the dual-meet season Dec. 7 at the Neillsville Co-op. GNC dual meets will again be held in quads with Medford hosting one of those on Dec. 14.
“Our attitude, that’s the thing we have to be constantly molding,” Marcis said. “We have to be ready for battle and we have to believe that all of our guys can go with anybody at any time. When we’re in a team dual situation we want to be able to rely on everyone. Sometimes maybe that’s not winning. Sometimes maybe it’s just going a full six minutes with a state champ, then believing that we belong there and just staying aggressive. We don’t like hanging out and coasting and a stall type of defensive wrestling. That’s not at all the type of wrestling that I’ve promoted since I’ve been here. We want to stay aggressive. We want to focus on scoring points. We don’t want to be afraid of making mistakes because mistakes will happen.
“Yes, there’s high expectations but at the same time, it’s the same song and dance. It’s about getting the work done in the room and letting it all fly when we go out there.”
