By Keith Harner and Colin Staab
Before the Raiders could enjoy their winter break, they traveled to New Prague Thursday, Dec. 20 for a pair of matches.
The Raiders came into this meet short five varsity wrestlers. They took on Forest Lake in the first dual of the night. Drew Pribyl medical forfeited before the first period came to a close at 114 pounds. Ninth grader Zane Engels came out strong barely losing to the top ranked wrestler in class AAA Parker Lyden 6-4. Jamison Baker and Colin Staab lost by fall to Jackson Marr and Trent Fredricks at 152 and 172 pounds. Owen Murphy came out with the first win of the dual against Hunter Harms with a decision of 8-1. Noah Ackerman took on the top ranked wrestler at heavyweight in class AAA, Mark Rendl where he lost by fall in the first period. Northfield forfeited at 107, 121, 139, 160 and 215 pounds due to sickness and injuries. The Raiders won by forfeit at 127 and 133 pounds for a final score of 57-15 in favor of Forest Lake.
In the second and final dual of the evening, Northfield took on the home team: New Prague. Caden Staab lost the first match of the dual to returning class AA state champion Lawson Eller by a 5-2 decision. Keith Harner put the first points on the board with a fall over Isaac Pumper in 3:39 at 133 pounds. Zane Engels kept things going with a major decision to Kyle McCarthy 14-6 at 145 pounds. At 152 pounds, Jamison Baker fought hard but gave up a fall to the leg rider Brandon Michel in 3:09. Colin Staab took on the second ranked wrestler at 172 pounds in class AAA, Brady Westall. Westall pinned Staab in 2:56. Noah Ackerman wrestled the final match of the evening against Brady Gregory in a tightly contested 9-5 match with Gregory coming out on top. The Raiders were forced to forfeit at 107, 114, 121, 139, 160 and 215 pounds once again due to injuries and illness. Owen Murphy received a forfeit at 189 pounds leading to a final dual score of 54-16 for the Trojans.
The wrestling season continues for the Raiders with one of the largest high school wrestling tournaments in the country: The Rumble on the Red in Fargo, ND, December 28-29.
