Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

The Wrestlers

145 – Sam Aitchison (18-9) Jr., Regina vs. No. 3 Cael Rahnavardi (22-2) Sr., Don Bosco

170 – No. 6 Aidan Udell (21-4) Jr., Regina vs. No. 9 Bowen Munger (38-2) Jr., Starmont

195 – Ronan Poynton (18-3) Soph., Regina vs. No. 8 Currey Jacobs (36-3) Sr., New London

Returning State Champions

Current Weight/Wrestler/2020 Championship Weight

120 – Marcel Lopez (New London) Jr., 113

120 – Brandon Paez (Lisbon) Soph., 120

132 – Gable Porter (Underwood) Soph., 106

132 – Aidan Noonan (Cascade) Sr., 126

145 – Robert Avila Jr. (Lisbon) Jr., 132

285 – Chet Buss (North Butler-Clarksville) Jr., 285

Undefeated Wrestlers

106 – Eli Becerra (42-0) Fr., Missouri Valley

113 – Garret Rinken (43-0) Soph., Nashua-Plainfield

113 – Braden Graff (39-0) Jr., West Sioux

120 – Marcel Lopez (56-0) Jr., New London

126 – Beau Klingensmith (44-0) Sr., Woodbury Central

126 – Clayton McDonough (52-0) Jr., Central Springs

132 – Aidan Noonan (42-0) Sr., Cascade

132 – Hagen Heistand (39-0) Jr., Logan-Magnolia

132 – Gable Porter (10-0) Soph., Underwood

138 – Cullen Koedam (47-0) Jr., West Sioux

145 – Robert Avila Jr., (30-0) Jr., Lisbon

152 – Jace Mulder (38-0) Western Christian

152 – Jaydon Knight (40-0) Soph., Mount Ayr

152 – Max Magayna (38-0) Fr., Waterloo Columbus

170 – Cade Tenold (24-0) Jr., Don Bosco

182 – Jackson Dewald (41-0) Soph., Westwood

195 – Tristan Mulder (27-0) Sr., Western Christian

220 – Cole Clark (34-0) Sr., Lisbon

285 – Chet Buss (33-0) Jr., North Butler-Clarksville

285 – Brant Baltes (31-0) Sr., Lisbon

First-round Match to Watch

Aidan Udell dropped a 5-2 decision in his debut at the state wrestling meet last season on his way to a 1-2 finish.

Now Udell returns to Wells Fargo Arena a ranked wrestler with the experience of three state tournament matches under his belt and his sights set on a spot on the podium and some hardware.

Sixth-ranked Udell will try to get his return trip to the state tournament off to a strong start when he faces No. 9 Bowen Munger (38-2) of Starmont in the opening round at 170 pounds.

Udell (21-4) is coming off a 7-4 loss to eighth-ranked Max Kohl of Lisbon in the district title match and will look to get back on track quickly against Munger, a junior making his second trip to the state meet.

Munger is back at the state meet after qualifying as a freshman at 126 pounds and enters riding a 17-match winning streak.

Both losses for Munger have come to ranked wrestlers in CJ Walrath of Burlington Notre Dame and Lisbon’s Kohl, both via pin.

Half of the season loss total for Udell has come to those two same wrestlers, dropping a major decision to Walrath along with the district defeat to Kohl.

Look for Udell to be aggressive getting to his offense early in this one as he seeks his first trip to the quarterfinals.

Who to watch

Regina sophomore Ronana Poynton came on late in the season winning a sectional title and finishing runner-up at the district meet to secure his first ever trip to the state meet.

Poynton is no stranger to the state meet, at least as a spectator as his older brother Seamus placed seventh for Solon at 182 pounds last season.

Ronan Poynton will make his own state meet memories this week starting with an opening-round match with eighth-ranked New London senior Currey Jacobs (36-3).

Poynton (18-3) had won nine consecutive matches before a loss to sixth-ranked Truman Krob of Lisbon in the 195-pound title match at last week’s district meet.

The sophomore will look to get back on track quickly against Jacobs who went 1-2 at the state meet last season at 170 pounds.

Weight Class to Watch

There is no local flavor in the 132-pound state tournament bracket but there is some River Valley Conference flare and if you are a wrestling fan this one is simply too good to pass up.

Two-time defending state champion Aidan Noonan of Cascade headlines a group of three unbeaten wrestlers all ranked in the top three in what is a loaded 132-pound bracket.

Noonan (42-0) is seeking a third consecutive unbeaten state championship season after stopping West Sioux standout Adam Allard’s bid to be a four-time state champion with a 4-2 win in the 126-pound title match a year ago.

A Wyoming recruit, Noonan won the 113-pound title as a sophomore, has 177 career wins and is 129-0 over the past three seasons.

The expect state final opponent for Noonan is another defending state champion in unbeaten Underwood sophomore Gable Porter.

Porter went 35-0 on his way to the 106-pound title a year ago and at 10-0 this season has still yet to lose a high school match.

He could face third-ranked and unbeaten Hagen Heistand (39-0) of Logan-Magnolia in the semifinals.

The Teams

District Champions (State Qualifiers)

Logan-Magnolia (7); Don Bosco (12); Dyersville Beckman (5); Lake Mills (5); New London (5); West Hancock (6); Missouri Valley (5); Lisbon (11)

2020 Top 5 Team Finishers – 1. Don Bosco 170; 2. Lisbon 144.5; 3. Underwood 106; 4. West Sioux 87; 5. West Hancock 75

Last 5 Team Champs

2020 – Don Bosco

2019 – Don Bosco

2018 – Lisbon

2017 – Lisbon

2016 – Alburnett

What to Watch in the Team Race

It will once again be a two-team race in Class 1A with a couple of familiar foes battling it out for the state title.

Long-time small school powers Don Bosco and Lisbon are set to battle again for the top spot in Class 1A after combining to win each of the past four titles.

After Lisbon edged Don Bosco for the top spot in 2017 and 2018 the Dons have claimed the past two titles by a combined 72 points after pulling away to win last season by 25.5.

With a 1A-leading 12 qualifiers, including 11 ranked wrestlers Don Bosco enters as a slight favorite over the Lions.

Don Bosco has seven wrestlers ranked in the top five including a pair of top-ranked wrestlers.

Lisbon has five wrestlers ranked in the top five with two top-ranked wrestlers of its own and has a pair of returning state champions while Don Bosco doesn’t have a defending state champion from a year ago.

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