Linn-Mar Wrestling

Linn-Mar wrestlers primed for successful year

The Linn-Mar High School wrestling team ended the 2010-11 season with controversy, setbacks and disappointment.

It began when Joel Northrup got caught in a national whirlwind when he declined to wrestle a girl in the state tournament and it ended with the Lions fading to 15th place in the team standings when a strong top-10 showing appeared likely.

The Lions were worn out and wounded when the season ended, but Coach Doug Streicher saw enough last year to think the 2011-12 campaign could be much better. The time is drawing near.

Linn-Mar returns six wrestlers who qualified for the 2011 state tournament, giving Streicher a strong nucleus to begin the new season. And that doesn't count Mark Atwater, who landed in a tough bracket at the district meet last year and failed to advance to Des Moines. He's back, too.

Linn-Mar also has some promising freshmen on the team, including Toby Northrup, Joel's younger brother.

Streicher is looking for a quiet, healthy and successful season this year. "I'd put this team up against any team in the state," he said. "I think we can challenge anybody."

High school wrestling has new weight classes this year, but Streicher does not think it will have a significant impact on his team. "We could have a strong team at any weight," he said.

Alijah Jeffery finished third at the 2011 state tournament and compiled a 37-4 record at 103 pounds last year. He's ticketed for the new 113-pound class this season.

Northrup went 35-4 at 112 pounds and is headed for 132 pounds, where presumably he won't have to face Cassy Herkelman of Cedar Falls in the first round of the state tournament. That's the girl he didn't want to wrestle in Des Moines last season.

Ross Lembeck placed seventh at the state tournament and finished 27-4 at 135 pounds. He's headed for the 145- or 152-pound bracket this season. Josh Pedersen, who finished 34-15 at 140 pounds last season, joins Lembeck in the 145 or 152 debate.

Mitch Wantock placed sixth and finished 13-2 at 171 pounds, and he'll wrestle at 170 pounds or 182 once he recovers from a broken ankle suffered during the football season.

Atwater is aiming for 195 or 182 pounds, looking to add wrestling laurels to his long list of accomplishments on the football field this past season.

A.J. Garcia, who went 43-4 at 215 pounds, apparently is headed for the 285-pound heavyweight bracket this season. Garcia lost his first two matches at the state tournaemnt last year and failed to place, something he hopes to rectify.

"We're pretty excited about the year," Streicher said. "We've got a pretty good team that could come together if things go right for us.

"Time will tell if we'll perform and get the job done and keep improving, or whether they plateau out and rest on what they've already done as wrestlers and athletes. They've got to put in the work and put in the time to get better, so we'll see if that happens."

The Lions open the season on Thursday, Dec. 1 by hosting Iowa City West and Xavier.

Toothless Lions whipped by Waverly-Shell Rock

The Linn-Mar Lions tried to wrestle Waverly-Shell Rock with a depleted lineup Saturday at the Dual Team Championships.

The result was predictable.

The toothless Lions got trounced by the Waverly wrestling machine, 58-10, in the Class 3A quarterfinals at the U.S. Cellular Center.

Waverly-Shell Rock finished third after losing to Bettendorf in the semifinals and beating Southeast Polk. Iowa City West beat Bettendorf, 33-19, for the championship.

Linn-Mar had only four wrestlers at their accustomed spots in the 14-man lineup due to injury, illness and an inability to make weight at the end of a grueling campaign.

It was a recipe for a wipeout against Waverly-Shell Rock, which won the traditional state wrestling tournament in Des Moines last week and has one of the top programs in the state.

"That was the best (lineup) we had," said Linn-Coach Doug Streicher.

Linn-Mar nudged North Scott, 30-29, in the regional tournament Tuesday to qualify for the state duals, but Streicher knew it would be tough to hold the lineup together.

"A couple of guys were really, really hurting on Tuesday," he said. "We knew they probably weren't getting down (to make weight) twice this week. Then we had some sickness going through the lineup with the other guys and a couple of injuries, I guess."

A.J. Garcia wrestled in his normal spot at 215 pounds and collected a major decision. Alijah Jeffery jumped from 103 pounds to 112 and won a 2-1 verdict, and Ross Lembeck climbed two weights from 135 to 145 and won 3-2 in overtime.

Waverly-Shell Rock won the 11 other matches and moved into the semifinals against Bettendorf. Iowa City West and Southeast Polk met in the other semifinal of the eight-team tournament.

Streicher thinks the Lions could have given Waverly-Shell Rock a good meet at full strength.

"But that's not the way it ended up for us, so we just went out there and did the best we could today with the kids we had in the lineup," he said. "But obviously, potential doesn't win matches."

Dan Radig, Josh Pederson, Dakota Digmann, Mitch Wantock and Mark Atwater did not wrestle for the Lions Saturday. Jeffery, Joel Northrup, Trevor Berry and Tanner Regenwether all wrestled at higher weights, giving Linn-Mar a makeshift lineup.

It was a tough finish to a bumpy year, filled with injuries, a district title and a disappointing end.

"We won a lot of dual meets, we won a lot of tournaments," said Streicher. "We didn't do as well at the state tournament (15th) as I would have liked. So obviously we have to do a little bit better job of preparing for that next year. We didn't seem to be ready like we typically are for state."

The Lions were at full-strength only once all season, when they won the Class 3A district title at Epworth. 

Streicher thinks the future could be bright. His top lineup included only three seniors, which means 11 of 14 starters are scheduled to return next season.

"We're young, and we know our best years are probably ahead of us as far as talent on the mat," he said. "This year has been an injury year like no other I've seen before in my 14 years.

"It was a pretty good year for us," he said. "My message to the guys as we leave here is, next year we have to be better. Whether it's the state tournament or state duals, getting here is not enough.

"Next year, if we lose in the first round of the state duals, something didn't go right."

WAVERLY-SHELL ROCK 58, LINN-MAR 10

103 -- Andrew Stiert (WSR) pinned Ted Petersen, 1:17; 112 -- Alijah Jeffery (LM) dec. Spencer Derifield, 2-1; 119 -- Eric De Vos (WSR) tech fall Joel Northrup, 16-0; 125 -- Tanner Werner (WSR) pinned Trevor Berry, 2:21; 130 -- Seth Ebling (WSR) tech fall Jeremy Severin, 17-1; 135 -- Kolton Rottink (WSR) pinned Luke Wempen, 5:32; 140 -- Jordan Rinken (WSR) pinned Spencer Clabough, 1:47; 145 -- Ross Lembeck (LM) dec. Blake Seehusen, 3-2 (OT); 152 -- Cody Caldwell (WSR) tech fall Tanner Regenwether, 17-1; 160 -- Shawn Miller (WSR) major dec. Andrew Holladay, 15-7; 171 -- Terry Stover (WSR) pinned Michael Gansen, 1:55; 189 -- Collin Heidemann (WSR) dec. Ryley Stancel, 6-2; 215 -- A.J. Garcia (LM) major dec. Kaleb Staack, 12-1; 285 -- Cody Krumwiede (WSR) pinned Dustin Smith, 1:55.

Northrup on national TV: Boys should not wrestle girls

Joel Northrup said on national television Wednesday (Feb. 23) morning that he decided in the fifth grade that he would never wrestle against a girl again.

Northrup is the Linn-Mar sophomore who forfeited his opening-round match in the Iowa state wrestling tournament last Thursday because he did not want to compete against Cassy Herkelman of Cedar Falls, one of two girls to make the tournament this year.

Northrup has declined interviews with local and state media, but he was scheduled to speak Wednesday morning with national correspondents from CBS, NBC, CNN and Fox from the KGAN studios in Cedar Rapids.

Northrup appeared on "The Early Show" on CBS. He was asked to explain his decision not to wrestle against Herkelman, which the family said last Thursday was based on religious principles.

"Wrestling is a combat sport," Northrup told CBS. "It gets violent at times. You get put in compromising holds and positions. I just don't think it's right that a boy should engage a girl in a manner like this."

Northrup finished third in the 2010 state tournament at 103 pounds and was ranked No.5 in the state at 112 pounds heading into the 2011 tournament. He won a consolation match after defaulting to Herkelman, then lost a match and was eliminated without placing.

The CBS correspondent reminded Northrup that Herkelman accepted the possible consequences of wrestling against a boy. Herkelman competed for the Cedar Falls varsity all season.

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Lions claim date with state champs (barely)

If you want to stumble across unusual stories, just spend a few days with the Linn-Mar wrestling team.

The Lions seem to attract them.

Just last week, a Linn-Mar wrestler forfeited his match at the state tournament to a girl, sparking a national debate about gender equity, religion and the American Way.

Just when that simmered down, the Lions competed in an important dual meet Tuesday night at Linn-Mar and when it ended, nobody knew who won. Really. Nobody knew.

As it turned out, Linn-Mar won the meet on an obscure tiebreaker and earned a date in the state dual meet tournament this Saturday against Waverly-Shell Rock, the powerful team that just won its fourth straight title at the traditional state wrestling tournament in Des Moines.

Strange, indeed.

Linn-Mar's meet against North Scott in the regional tournament Tuesday night finished in a 29-29 tie when the Lions rallied from a 29-9 deficit in the last four matches, snatching a dramatic deadlock from the jaws of defeat.

Somebody had to be declared the winner, because somebody had to advance to the state dual meet tournament this Saturday at the U.S. Cellular Center in downtown Cedar Rapids. But which team?

The coaches didn't know. The two mat officials didn't know. The wrestlers didn't know. The fans didn't know.

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