EVANSVILLE — For the second straight year, the Darlington-Black Hawk wrestling co-op sends five wrestlers to state following the Division 2 Sectionals in Evansville on Saturday, Feb. 18.
Owen Seffrood (138), Ethan Aird (113) and Breylin Goebel (152) return after their state trips last season, while Maddox Goebel (160) and Ross Crist (195) qualified for the first time as sophomores.
As a runner-up last year, Seffrood has his sights set at the top spot on the podium. He took one step closer with his two pins and 18-5 major decision. Seffrood’s quickest match was against Mason Oellerich of Belmont-Platteville, where Seffrood pinned Oellerich in 30 seconds.
Aird, too, pinned his first two opponents before facing off against Blake Endres of Sugar River. The two met in regionals, with Aird defeating Endres 10-0. This time, Aird won with a 7-2 decision.
Breylin Goebel dominated in his first two matches, defeating Sam Schmidt of Lakeside Lutheran by an 18-3 technical fall and Monroe’s CJ Schuh with a 37-second pin. Breylin Goebel then fell to Eli Leonard from Sugar River by an 8-2 decision. The two met the weekend prior in the regional championship, where Leonard won 7-2.
Maddox Goebel finished third. After pinning Aaron Mueller of East Troy with four seconds left in the match, he fell to eventual champion L’Shawn Taylor of Martin Luther. Maddox Goebel then wrestled his way to a state trip with a 13-2 major decision and 5-3 decision. In the wrestle-back, he fell to Aaron Porras of Whitewater with one second remaining.
Crist was one of three section champions for the Warbirds. He pinned his first opponent then defeated Wyatt Egan of Parkview-Albany 8-3. In the championship, Crist pinned Chuy Medinia of Watertown Luther Prep with nine seconds left in the match.
Monroe, which had six qualify for sectionals, sends four to state, including a second trip for senior Isaac Bunker (285).
Bunker pinned his first two opponents in the first period, with his semifinal match lasting just 16 seconds. In the championship, Bunker had the upper hand on Belmont-Platteville’s Porter Mandurano but made one wrong move and fell just over a minute in.
Garrett Minder snagged the final state-qualifying spot at 113 pounds. After a first-round pin, he ran into eventual champion Aird. Minder then earned his spot in the wrestle-back match with a pin and 10-6 decision. He then took third to Endres with a 18-3 tech fall.
Jack Dubach (145), a 2021-22 conference champion, took second with no contest. He pinned his first two opponents to reach the championship match against Brodhead-Juda’s Marcus McIntyre. The two met in regionals, where Dubach prevailed 7-0. This time, McIntyre got revenge with a 10-8 sudden victory.
Schuh (152) squeaked out of the first round, pinning Jacob Waltersdorf with six seconds remaining in the match. He then ran into Breylin Goebel, falling in 37 seconds. To earn a trip to state, Schuh defeated Schmidt 5-3 and Cody Sullivan of Clinton by pin. Because Goebel defeated Schuh previously, there was no wrestle-back.
As a junior, Mason Mau (126) earned his third trip to state, finishing second at sectionals. He was one of three Raiders to advance.
Mau pinned his first opponent then dominated Conner Brimeyer of Cuba City with a 20-4 technical fall. In the championship, he fell 6-3 to Christopher Karbash of Delevan-Darien. The weekend previous in regionals, Mau had defeated Karbash in sudden victory.
Endres was a sectional runner-up with two, first-period pins. He then met familiar foe Aird in the championship, falling 7-2.
Freshman Eli Leonard was Sugar River’s lone sectional champion. His first match ended in 35 seconds with a pin, followed by another pin of Sullivan. In the championship, he bested Breylin Goebel 8-2.
After qualifying for sectionals last year and falling short, Sam Schwengels (182) and Wesley Egan (220) took one step further by qualifying for state.
Wesley Egan pinned his first two opponents — Tony Rodriguez of Catholic Memorial and Nathan Krause of Grafton — to advance to the championship. There, he bested Nate Grooms of Lake Country Lutheran by a 7-4 decision.
Schwengels saw familiar opponents in his sectional runner-up bid. After a 7-4 decision and second-period pin, Schwengels faced off against Owen Heiser of Evansville. In regionals, Heiser bested Schwengels, as he did again in sectionals. In the wrestle-back Schwengels pinned Kadyn Davis of Belmont-Platteville in 54 seconds — also a repeat of his regional performance.
Wyatt Egan (195) qualified for state with his third-place finish. After a first-round pin, he ran into eventual champion Crist, falling 8-3. In the consolation bracket, Wyatt Egan collected two more pins. He forfeited the wrestle-back against Medina.
Of its three sectional qualifiers, Brodhead-Juda sends two to state in Joe Lohmar (138) and McIntyre (145).
McIntyre was the lone champion for the Cardinals. He advanced to the quarterfinals with a 54-second pin. There he bested Adam Haas of Shoreland Lutheran 9-4. McIntyre then avenged his regional loss to Dubach, winning 10-8 in sudden victory.
Lohmar had a quick first round, too, pinning Aleksei Soloviyov of Watertown Luther Prep in just 35 seconds. He then blanked Evan Suer of Parkview-Albany 8-0. Although Lohmar fell to Seffrood in the championship, he improved from regionals, where Seffrood won by pin. This time, Lohmar went the full match, falling 18-5.
Aidan Gruenenfelder (113) will be the sole representative for Pecatonica-Argyle at state. He pinned his way to the championship match, where he defeated Jayden Geier of Westby by a 19-2 technical fall.
The WIAA State Wrestling Tournament will begin on Thursday, Feb 23 and conclude on Saturday, Feb. 25 at the Kohl Center.
