MUSCODA - On Saturday the Riverdale wrestling team hosted a Division three regional and had three wrestlers punch tickets to Saturday’s sectional in Mineral Point. Trevor Troxel and Bradon Roen won regional championships while Caleb Johnson placed second. All three wrestlers move one step closer to qualifying for the state tournament February 25-27 in Madison.
Bradon Roen (165) returned from injury and looked impressive in winning his third regional championship. Bradon received a bye, scored a first period pin and then won 6-2 in the finals. Trevor Troxel claimed the 195-pound regional championship with a third period pin over the sixth ranked wrestler from Mineral Point. Trevor had a bye and a first period pin to reach the championship match.
“Both Trevor and Bradon wrestled extremely well,” said Coach Jeff Campbell. “It was nice to see Bradon get back from his injury and put in a solid day of wrestling. He will get stronger each week. Trevor is wrestling at a high level and was in a tight match in his finals and found a way to get the pin. Trevor is a smart wrestler and does a good job setting up his attacks.”
Caleb Johnson (175) was in one of the toughest regional brackets and came away with a second place finish. Caleb received a bye and won a tight 5-3 decision in the semifinals before losing in the championship match. In his wrestle-back, Caleb would break open a tied match with less than a minute left, scoring a takedown and three-point nearfall to win 9-4 and secure a sectional birth.
“Caleb is really peaking at the right time of the season,” said Campbell. “He is starting to be more aggressive, which has translated into some quality wins the last two weeks.”
Two wrestlers would finish just outside a trip to sectionals with third place finishes. Brian Mathews would lose in the semifinals before coming back to score a second period pin and secure third place at 126 pounds. Kenny Elliott (182) scored a pin, lost by fall to the top ranked wrestler in the state from Mineral Point and then won an exciting double overtime victory to secure a third place finish. Kenny was pinned in his wrestleback for second place.
“Brian ran into some tough luck with possibly the top two kids in his sectional at the regional,” the coach said. “He still had a tremendous season winning 25 matches. Kenny was able to pick up two victories and pulled off a big win in his third place match. Kenny had a strong second half of the season and will use this as momentum going into next year.”
Shale Meyer and Isaiah Snyder both went 1-2 scoring pins before finishing fourth. Garret Wilmot was in a very competitive heavyweight bracket and fell short in his attempt to reach the sectional finishing fourth. Garret finished a solid sophomore season with 25 wins. Colt Pechan lost his first match and settled for fifth. Terry Hrubes finished his Freshman season with a sixth place finish at 182 pounds.
“This regional was a tremendous wrestling event,” Campbell said. “The gym was full and the excitement level was at an all time high. There was great wrestling all day and I believe this regional will be very well represented in Madison. I was proud of the way the Riverdale wrestlers competed. Unfortunately, some of them saw their season come to an end. These wrestlers will still play a part in preparing Caleb, Bradon and Trevor for the sectional tournament.”
“A big thank you to the school administration, custodial crew, Riverdale Wrestling Club and tournament workers for putting on a first class event,” said Campbell. “Things ran very smoothly all day and it would not have been possible without their tremendous planning.”
Sectionals Saturday
Riverdale will travel to Mineral Point Saturday to compete in a WIAA Division 3 sectional. Wrestling is scheduled to begin at 10:00. Riverdale’s first round pairings are listed.
Caleb Johnson 28-11, sophomore vs Stephan Burbach New Lisbon 38-7, senior
Bradon Roen 24-2, junior vs Lance Ubersox Darlington/Black Hawk 25-11, sophomore
Trevor Troxel 25-6, senior vs Devon Hall Cashton 6-5, senior
