The Becker community packed the Bulldog fan section last Thursday at Xcel Energy Center for a wild day of wrestling that ended with the Class AA third place trophy being hoisted by the team.
In just the program’s second ever state tournament berth, the Bulldogs used some impressive individual wrestling performances to put together a great run that ended with the team finishing right where the state rankings had predicted. It was a total team effort, as 12 different Bulldogs picked up at least one individual victory for the team during its three matches.
TRF
Becker started the day with a 42-24 win over Thief River Falls that was highlighted by three straight pins in the lower weights to provide a cushion that held up and sent the team to the semifinals. If the Bulldogs were fighting any nerves, it didn’t show as they picked up 6 wins by fall to dominate the match.
After the Bulldogs briefly trailed 6-0, Kaden Nicolas stepped to the mat and provided the spark by sticking his opponent just 21 seconds into his match at 113 pounds. From there, Teammates Landen Kujawa (120) and Drew May (126) each followed with a pin of their own and Becker was off to the races.
Next, Ethan Anderson (138) and Owen Angell (145) picked up another pair of 6 point victories for the Bulldogs, who would lose the next three matches to make the score 30-18. Also picking up a pin for the Bulldogs was Bryce Kuschel, who maneuvered his combination just 29 seconds into the second period of his match.
Tyson Ricker (182) and Dylan Kolby (220) each also picked up decision wins for the Bulldogs in the match.
K-M
In the semifinals, Becker found itself battling Kasson-Mantorville, the second ranked team in Class AA. Becker gave it a valiant effort, but came up just short and fell 31-24.
The KoMets managed to pick up 8 wins in the 14 individual matches to edge the Bulldogs and advance to the finals, where they lost to a top ranked Simley team.
The Bulldogs, however, were able to make it interesting and lost several close matches.
Nicolas and Kujawa were again brilliant in their weight classes, as each picked up major decisions to give Becker a brief lead, 8-3, after the 120 pound match.
Becker trailed 8-15 heading into the 145 pound match when Owen Angell pulled off a great move to stick his opponent at the 2:35 mark and just like that Becker trailed by just one point, 14-15.
The KoMets answered in the next match with a decision win, but Becker answered with consecutive decision victories by Adam Jurek (160) and Ryan Nelson (170) to reclaim the lead 20-18.
The KoMets would go on to win 3 of the final four matches to put away the victory, with Dylan Kolby’s major decision victory at 285 being the final Bulldog match win.
W-M 3rd place
The Bulldogs capped off the day with a third place matchup against Watertown-Mayer-Mayer Lutheran and despite some adversity, Becker captured the third place trophy with a 29-28 win over the Royals.
On the mat, both teams won 7 individual matches, but Becker faced a 3 point deduction for Flagrant Misconduct in one match and a 1 point penalty for Unsportsmanlike Conduct after another to make the final margin razor thin.
Nicolas (tech fall at 113) and Kujawa (major decision at 120) took early wins for the Bulldogs, who benefitted from 4 straight wins in the middle weights.
Drew May took a 4-3 decision win at 132 for what proved to be a very important 3 team points, while Ethan Duncombe followed with a second period fall at 138.
Ethan Anderson (145) and Mason Doucette (152) then pinned their opponent, also both second period wins and 6 points each for the Bulldogs.
From there, the Royals stormed back with 5 straight wins which set up a final showdown at the 285 pound weight class with the winner taking home the trophy.
Senior Bryce Kuschel was able to score a decisive 10-4 decision win over his opponent to secure the win for Becker.
It was the highest finish for the team in school history, as they failed to place in their only other appearance at state in 2003.
