Scattered all over the state, Waunakee wrestlers traveled far and wide last week, beginning with a dual meet in Milton against the Red Hawks.
Madison Mercurio made a big splash at a girls tournament hosted by Wausau West on Saturday, while the Warrior boys faced some tough competition at an invite in Whitnall that same day.
Here’s a review of all the highlights:
Milton 47, Waunakee 28Three pins weren’t enough for the Warriors to defeat the Red Hawks on their home mat, even though Waunakee got off to a hot start.
“We started the dual at 160,” said Mark Natzke, head coach for the Warriors. “We started out on the right track picking up wins in four of the first six matches.”
Burns pinned Kaleb Wendt in 3:12 to open the meet, with McCoy Smith (182) and Jack Schweitzer (220) doing their part for the Waunakee cause, as both outlasted their opponents.
“Aiden Burns has started to make an impact for us in the lineup and started us out with a huge pin to get us started in the dual,” said Natzke. “McCoy Smith and Jack Schweitzer both picked up close 3-1 wins for us. They both grinded out hard-fought matches and picked up huge takedowns to pick up the victories. McCoy picked up his takedown in the last few seconds of the second period and Jack picked his up in overtime.”
At 285, Jackson Lenzendorf pinned Liam Droessler in 1:42, while Gabe Guralski scored a 12-1 major decision at 138 over Tyler Rateike and Gabe Metzler made a great first impression, pinning Kaiden Fitterer in 2:54.
“Gabe Guralski was able to pick up a win for us later in the dual, dominating from start to finish,” said Natzke. “Gabe Metzler wrestling his first match back from an injury started out his high school career on the right track, dominating his match from the start before picking up the second period win. In the dual we grinded out some hard-fought victories but came up short in picking up bonus points in the dual to come out on top as a team.”
Zelinsky DualsThe Warriors went 2-3 as a team in duals at Whitnall, but two of those losses were tight throughout and decided by only a few matches, according to Natzke.
“We started out on the right track versus Whitnall/Greendale winning 49-30 and picked up seven pins in the dual,” said Natzke. “Then we wrestled Mukwonago, one of the best teams in the state, and came up short. It allowed us to see how we stack up against some of the best teams. While we came up short in some matches, it allowed us to wrestle some good individual matches in the dual.”
Moving to pool play, Waunakee lost 45-34 to Stoughton and Mukwonago 48-36 but did manage to defeat Merrill 39-33.
“Against Stoughton we were able to win six matches, but came up short in a few others and were unable to score extra bonus points to get the victory,” said Natzke. “Versus Merrill we were able to win seven matches picking up six wins by pin or forfeit to get the win. Walker Banning filling in on varsity was able to get a pin for us and McCoy Smith sealed the victory with a pin late in the dual. Versus Muskego we won six matches all by pin or forfeit but came up short. We had some matches that could have gone either way where we had the lead or our opponent on the back but couldn’t seal the deal and ended up losing those matches, where a victory in one of those matches could of helped us pull out the victory.”
Guralski had a big day for Waunakee, going 5-0, while Mason Spear, Dane Spencer and Schweitzer all finished with records of 4-1. Smith finished 3-2, as Connor Cutsinger, Coltan Nechvatal, Banning and Lenzendorf all had two wins.
JV Challenge Series FinalsAiden Burns finished in third place, while Quinn Pfeiffer was the consolation champ, losing early to the eventual runner up and wrestling back in the consolation bracket, according to Natzke.
“Both wrestlers had the opportunity to wrestle against some of the toughest JV wrestlers in the state and both put together a good quality tournament,” said Natzke.
Challenge Series Girls TournamentMercurio had a solid showing, taking third after losing in the semifinals to the eventual champion by decision.
“Madison wrestled a great tournament and showed that she is one of the best girls in the state at 132 competing against some of the best girls in the state in a preview of what the state tournament could look like for the girls,” said Natzke.