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Jan. 29—BEMIDJI — Bemidji's Sam Schoneck and Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton's Jacob Schmitz were in a struggle.
The 127-pound Bemidji High School boys wrestling sophomore was in search of his first varsity victory as he and Schmitz were battling for control.
That was until Schoneck saw an opportunity.
He was going to try to go for a headlock, a move he'd later describe as "very risky." If he failed, he'd run the risk of losing control and handing a pin to the Rebels. But if he succeeded, it'd give the Lumberjacks a crucial pin and his first varsity victory.
"I like to wrestle to what I'm comfortable with," Schoneck said. "It was there, so I just said, 'Screw it, might as well throw it. We need something big.'"
The crowd at the BHS gymnasium roared as Schoneck's move paid off, pinning Schmitz in 1:00. As the referee lifted his hand for the first time in his varsity career, he wore his emotions on his sleeve, pumping his chest as the crowd and his teammates cheered.
Schoneck, who had been bouncing around between varsity and JV all season, is relieved that he finally got his first varsity win. His pin proved to be crucial too, as the Jacks walked away with a close 35-30 win over the Rebels Thursday night.
"If he doesn't do that, we don't win the dual," head coach Greg Skerik said. "It's his first varsity win, (and) for it to happen to him, that's awesome. I mean, the kid works his butt off, and for that to happen is really cool."
Schoneck's pin was the shot in the arm that Bemidji needed. Before his match, the Rebels jumped out to a 10-3 lead early.
At 107 pounds, Bemidji's Easton Trepanier opened the dual with a 13-7 decision win before Oscar Hanks lost a 9-0 major decision to Kayleb Kosen. Kosen is Class 2A's No. 1 wrestler at 114 pounds, so not getting pinned was crucial for the Lumberjacks, Skerik said.
Owen Bieber (121) got pinned in 1:33, and after Schoneck's pin, Landon Peterson (133) lost by technical fall in 4:24.
The Jacks were only down 15-9 when they got into the "meat of their order," starting off with Gabe Morin at 139 pounds. Facing off against Jacob Luebke, the No. 4 139-pound wrestler in Class 2A, Morin avoided a pin, losing by an 8-1 decision.
"Gabe wrestled a kid up a weight," Skerik said. "Lost, but battled a really good match with him."
At 145 pounds, Isaac McMartin started a string of critical victories for Bemidji to pull out ahead. Late in the match, McMartin let DGF's Vernon Rude escape so he could get two more points and earn a technical fall. He got it just as the clock expired, as Nick Strand (152) and Jeremy Linn (160) both earned pins in less than 2:00 to put BHS in a good position, up 29-18.
Another match that could've gone either way was Tanner Littler's (172), who narrowly won a 4-3 decision over Caden Larson. Both were tied 0-0 until Littler scored four points in the final minute.
The Rebels took a slim 30-29 lead heading into the heavyweight class, but Nehemiah Schwinghammer scored a quick pin in 32 seconds to clinch the 35-30 win for the Jacks.
"We knew going into it, obviously, we had to be within range with Nemo coming, because we figured he'd come out and close it for us," Skerik said. "It's nice to have a heavyweight like that at the end."
It's promising for the Jacks to have young wrestlers like Schoneck step up when the team needs them the most, Skerik said. On Thursday, Bemidji was missing six wrestlers due to injury, some of which may be season-ending.
"It's been a tough year injury-wise for us," Skerik said, "but we're going to keep pushing. And when it comes time for sections, do everything we can and see where it shakes out."
Team sections for Section 8-3A are fast approaching, hosted by Sartell on Feb. 14. Individual sections will be hosted by the Jacks on Feb. 21 at the BHS gymnasium.
As the Lumberjacks close out the season, wins like Thursday's can really boost the team's confidence and morale.
"We have a lot of great wrestlers," Schoneck said. "It was a 13-man effort."
Bemidji 35, Dilworth-Glynson-Felton 30
107: Trepanier (BHS) over Ketterling, Dec 13-7
114: Kosen (DGF) over Hanks, MD 9-0
121: Schmitz (DGF) over Bieber, Fall 1:33
127: Schoneck (BHS) over Schmitz, Fall 1:00
133: Hoban (DGF) over Peterson, TF 15-0 4:24
139: Luebke (DGF) over Morin, Dec 8-1
145: McMartin (BHS) over Rude, TF 16-1 6:00
152: Strand (BHS) over Thureen, Fall 0:42
160: Linn (BHS) over Deutsch, Fall 1:55
172: Littler (BHS) over Larson, Dec 4-3
189: Julin (DGF) over Graff, Fall 2:58
215: Fuller (DGF) over Zwack, Fall 0:38
285: Schwinghammer (BHS) over Johnson, Fall 0:32
Continue reading...
The 127-pound Bemidji High School boys wrestling sophomore was in search of his first varsity victory as he and Schmitz were battling for control.
That was until Schoneck saw an opportunity.
He was going to try to go for a headlock, a move he'd later describe as "very risky." If he failed, he'd run the risk of losing control and handing a pin to the Rebels. But if he succeeded, it'd give the Lumberjacks a crucial pin and his first varsity victory.
"I like to wrestle to what I'm comfortable with," Schoneck said. "It was there, so I just said, 'Screw it, might as well throw it. We need something big.'"
The crowd at the BHS gymnasium roared as Schoneck's move paid off, pinning Schmitz in 1:00. As the referee lifted his hand for the first time in his varsity career, he wore his emotions on his sleeve, pumping his chest as the crowd and his teammates cheered.
Schoneck, who had been bouncing around between varsity and JV all season, is relieved that he finally got his first varsity win. His pin proved to be crucial too, as the Jacks walked away with a close 35-30 win over the Rebels Thursday night.
"If he doesn't do that, we don't win the dual," head coach Greg Skerik said. "It's his first varsity win, (and) for it to happen to him, that's awesome. I mean, the kid works his butt off, and for that to happen is really cool."
Schoneck's pin was the shot in the arm that Bemidji needed. Before his match, the Rebels jumped out to a 10-3 lead early.
At 107 pounds, Bemidji's Easton Trepanier opened the dual with a 13-7 decision win before Oscar Hanks lost a 9-0 major decision to Kayleb Kosen. Kosen is Class 2A's No. 1 wrestler at 114 pounds, so not getting pinned was crucial for the Lumberjacks, Skerik said.
Owen Bieber (121) got pinned in 1:33, and after Schoneck's pin, Landon Peterson (133) lost by technical fall in 4:24.
The Jacks were only down 15-9 when they got into the "meat of their order," starting off with Gabe Morin at 139 pounds. Facing off against Jacob Luebke, the No. 4 139-pound wrestler in Class 2A, Morin avoided a pin, losing by an 8-1 decision.
"Gabe wrestled a kid up a weight," Skerik said. "Lost, but battled a really good match with him."
At 145 pounds, Isaac McMartin started a string of critical victories for Bemidji to pull out ahead. Late in the match, McMartin let DGF's Vernon Rude escape so he could get two more points and earn a technical fall. He got it just as the clock expired, as Nick Strand (152) and Jeremy Linn (160) both earned pins in less than 2:00 to put BHS in a good position, up 29-18.
Another match that could've gone either way was Tanner Littler's (172), who narrowly won a 4-3 decision over Caden Larson. Both were tied 0-0 until Littler scored four points in the final minute.
The Rebels took a slim 30-29 lead heading into the heavyweight class, but Nehemiah Schwinghammer scored a quick pin in 32 seconds to clinch the 35-30 win for the Jacks.
"We knew going into it, obviously, we had to be within range with Nemo coming, because we figured he'd come out and close it for us," Skerik said. "It's nice to have a heavyweight like that at the end."
It's promising for the Jacks to have young wrestlers like Schoneck step up when the team needs them the most, Skerik said. On Thursday, Bemidji was missing six wrestlers due to injury, some of which may be season-ending.
"It's been a tough year injury-wise for us," Skerik said, "but we're going to keep pushing. And when it comes time for sections, do everything we can and see where it shakes out."
Team sections for Section 8-3A are fast approaching, hosted by Sartell on Feb. 14. Individual sections will be hosted by the Jacks on Feb. 21 at the BHS gymnasium.
As the Lumberjacks close out the season, wins like Thursday's can really boost the team's confidence and morale.
"We have a lot of great wrestlers," Schoneck said. "It was a 13-man effort."
Bemidji 35, Dilworth-Glynson-Felton 30
107: Trepanier (BHS) over Ketterling, Dec 13-7
114: Kosen (DGF) over Hanks, MD 9-0
121: Schmitz (DGF) over Bieber, Fall 1:33
127: Schoneck (BHS) over Schmitz, Fall 1:00
133: Hoban (DGF) over Peterson, TF 15-0 4:24
139: Luebke (DGF) over Morin, Dec 8-1
145: McMartin (BHS) over Rude, TF 16-1 6:00
152: Strand (BHS) over Thureen, Fall 0:42
160: Linn (BHS) over Deutsch, Fall 1:55
172: Littler (BHS) over Larson, Dec 4-3
189: Julin (DGF) over Graff, Fall 2:58
215: Fuller (DGF) over Zwack, Fall 0:38
285: Schwinghammer (BHS) over Johnson, Fall 0:32
Continue reading...
