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The Wildcat wrestlers (6-2) continued their winning ways early in the season, winning three of their four matches this past week. They defeated Faribault 43-30 and St. Paul Como Park 44-33 at the Chisago Lakes Triangular on Thursday, December 11. The next night, they headed to Fridley for two matches. They beat Minneapolis South 44-30 in the opener, and then dropped the nightcap 58-21 to conference foe Totino Grace.

The Wildcats followed a familiar pattern against their first three opponents, winning the majority of the non-forfeited matches and beating the other teams by nearly the exact same score. Against Faribault, sophomore Tyler Heckel (125) won by major decision in his first-ever varsity match. "Tyler did a really great job controlling the match and coming through with the win'" said Wildcat head coach Shawn Frederixon. "And Jake Nase wrapped it up for us at 215. Our guys wrestled well as a team and did the little things needed to get us a victory."

Against Como Park, Nase's win at 215 gave the Wildcats a 38-33 lead, setting up what Frederixon referred to as "the match of the night" - Dylan Hoyt's heavyweight match up against Como Park's J Frasl. Hoyt is an undersized heavyweight, tipping the scales at just 195 pounds, while Frasl weighed in at 260. The Wildcats had a five-point lead heading into the match, so the Wildcats would win as a team as long as Hoyt avoided getting pinned. The Wildcat win appeared to be in jeopardy early in Hoyt's match as Hoyt got put onto his back just 20 seconds into the first period. He managed to escape, but found himself on his back again just 20 seconds later. Hoyt escaped the attempted pin, as well. And with 17 seconds left in the second period, Hoyt flipped Frasl onto his back and pinned him. Said Frederixon, "Dylan did a good job of staying in good position and got the win. It was a lot of fun."

The next night, the highlight of the Wildcats' win over Minneapolis South was freshman Easton Gilman's pin at 135. "Easton is new to the varsity," said Frederixon. "We threw him out there at 135 to get rid of a forfeit and he came up with a big pin for us. I think he was pretty excited."

Next, the Wildcats went up against one of the top teams in the North Suburban Conference, Totino Grace. The Wildcats started out strong with pins by Quade Zupko at 103 and Pao Thao at 112. Travis Kammerer had a tough one at 145 and ended up winning 9-7. Clay Olson was tied 0-0 going into third period and got a pin. "We knew they were going to be tough," said Frederixon. "So this match wasn't too bad. And we've got to look long term, both for this season and for the future."

The Wildcats were scheduled to wrestle a dual against Hinckley-Finlayson at Hinckley this past Tuesday, December 16. The Wildcats will host a triangular tonight starting at 5 p.m., welcoming Robbinsdale Cooper and Minneapolis Washburn to town. Tomorrow night, they'll be at home for the Chisago Lakes Quadrangular, facing Rush City, St. Croix Falls and Goodhue before taking a well-deserved break for the upcoming holidays.

Chisago Lakes is hosting a seventh grade through ninth grade wrestling tournament at the Ward Gym at Chisago Lakes High School this Saturday, December 20 starting at 9 a.m. They expect 200-250 participants. "This tournament should be a lot of fun," said Frederixon. "For a lot of the kids, it will be their first tournament experience at this level."

Chisago Lakes 43, Faribault 30

103 - Quade Zupko lost by dec.

112 - Pao Thao won by fall

119 - Tyler McConville won by forfeit

125 - Tyler Heckel won by maj. dec.

130 - Forfeit

135 - Easton Gilman lost by fall

140 - Forfeit

145 - Travis Kammerer won by fall

152 - Riley Myers won by dec.

160 - Andrew Miron lost by fall

171 - Derek Silbernagel won by fall

189 - Clay Olson won by fall

215 - Jake Nase won by fall

285 - Dylan Hoyt lost by dec.

Chisago Lakes 44, St. Paul Como Park 33

103 - Quade Zupko won by forfeit

112 - Pao Thao won by forfeit

119 - Tyler McConville won by maj. dec.

125 - Tyler Heckel lost by fall

130 - Forfeit

135 - Forfeit

140 - Easton Gilman lost by fall

145 - Travis Kammerer won by fall

152 - Riley Myers lost by dec.

160 - Andrew Miron lost by fall

171 - Derek Silbernagel won by fall

189 - Clay Olson won by maj. dec.

215 - Jake Nase won by fall

285 - Dylan Hoyt won by fall

Chisago Lakes 44, Minneapolis South 30

103 - Quade Zupko won by fall

112 - Mark Sontag lost by fall

119 - Pao Thao won by fall

125 - Tyler McConville lost by dec.

130 - Tyler Heckel lost by fall

135 - Easton Gilman won by fall

140 - Forfeit

145 - Travis Kammerer won by fall

152 - Riley Myers won by fall

160 - Andrew Miron lost by fall

171 - Derek Silbernagel won by tech. fall

189 - Clay Olson won by dec.

215 - Jake Nase lost by dec.

285 - Dylan Hoyt won by fall

Totino Grace 58, Chisago Lakes 21

103 - Quade Zupko won by fall

112 - Pao Thao won by fall

119 - Tyler McConville lost by fall

125 - Tyler Heckel lost by fall

130 - Forfeit

135 - Forfeit

140 - Forfeit

145 - Travis Kammerer won by dec.

152 - Riley Myers lost by maj. dec.

160 - Forfeit

171 - Derek Silbernagel lost by fall

189 - Clay Olson won by fall

215 - Jake Nase lost by fall

285 - Dylan Hoyt lost by fall

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