On Saturday, April 26th, the National Wrestling Hall of Fame, Minnesota Chapter, held its annual Honors Banquet at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel in Austin, Minn. The banquet room was packed, and many former Hall of Fame inductees attended.
Charles “Chip” Rankin was the 2025 Outstanding American Inductee. Jeff Becker, Brian Kelvington, Tom Gravalin, Chuck Marks, Heidi Schmitz, Jerry Schmitz, Harlan “Butch” Steen, Dan Stifter, and Mark Voyce were inducted for the Lifetime Service Award.
Tricia Saunders High School Excellence Award State Winner, Ella Pagel, and Dave Schultz High School Excellence State Award Winner, Landon Robideau, were also honored at the banquet.
State chapter inductees are permanently honored at the National Wrestling Hall of Fame Museum in Stillwater, Oklahoma. View all National Wrestling Hall of Fame – Minnesota Chapter inductees online at nwhof.org/state-chapters/minnesota.
Read the program biographies of the latest inductees below.
Photos by Jeff Beshey.
The Guillotine Photos on Flickr
Inductee biographies by Bill Schmidt
Charles “Chip” Rankin
Chip Rankin was born in Brainerd, Minnesota, and soon after his family moved to West Waterloo, Iowa, home of Bob Siddens and Dan Gable. His dad was in the Marines, so the family moved when and where he was assigned. They moved to Little Falls when Chip was in Junior High, and Chip went out for football, wrestling, and baseball, serving as a team captain in all three sports as a Senior. Coach Ben Bendson took his Little Falls wrestling team to state, placing fifth in Chip’s junior season. Chip wrestled anywhere from 171# to HWT – wherever the team needed him. He made it to State individually in both his junior and senior seasons at 189#.
After graduation, Rankin attended Itasca Junior College, where he played football and wrestled for Hall of Famer Mike Rybak. Rankin racked up a 60-23 win-loss record and was a Junior College State Champ as a sophomore, helping his Itasca Team win the Junior College National Wrestling Tournament.
From Itasca, Chip transferred to UMD and wrestled for Neal Ladsten for two years. Chip had one more year of eligibility due to an injury redshirt, but the program was suddenly and inexplicably dropped, and Chip lost his final year of wrestling – a huge disappointment for Chip and many of his teammates.
Rankin finished up his Biology Major and his Math Minor and got ready for graduation. Chip was hired to teach Science and Coach Football and Wrestling at Litchfield that following year. Halfway through the wrestling season, the Head Wrestling Coach went into business with Papa Murphy’s Pizza (over Christmas vacation) and retired from teaching and coaching. The Superintendent offered Chip the head wrestling position with the stipulation that he also serve as head softball coach. Chip was still young (and foolish), so he agreed. It was one busy year. Chip had eight great years coaching wrestling at Litchfield. The team qualified for the state tournament in 2002 and made it to the State Finals before losing to Blue Earth by three points. The following year, Litchfield came back to the State Tournament and completed the mission, defeating St.Michael-Albertville in the State Final Match. In 2004, Litchfield went back to State under the direction of Mike Fiedler and finished fifth. Chip had been deployed to Fallujah, Iraq, where he spent the next two years as a Company Commander for 200+ Soldiers, Marines, and Sailors. In March of 2006, Chip’s unit discovered a torture house and saved the lives of three injured Iraqi soldiers, capturing the torturers and sending them to prison. Chip’s unit was the longest-serving unit in Iraq, losing three young men with a total of 38 wounded in the two-year deployment.
After returning from Iraq, Chip was hired as assistant principal in Mora, then took over the head principal position. He then went to Bemidji as Assistant Principal position and finally to Pequot Lakes where he served as High School Principal and Middle School Wrestling Coach. After eight years at Pequot, Chip was deployed to Afghanistan where he led a team of SS-Specialists on a mission to train Afghan army and police to defeat terrorist networks.
Upon returning home, Rankin was hired as Superintendent of Schools in the Minnewaska district, where he also served as Head Wrestling Coach.
In 2020, Chip was deployed to East Africa where he served as a Security Missions Task Force Commander for a unit of 1000+ soldiers partnering with Navy Seals and Marine Raiders. Chip is most proud of the fact that his team executed 18 major missions without the loss of a single American serviceman.
Chip and his wife Rebecca, who is a pharmacist, have four children. Son Nathan is a Junior at South Dakota State. Daughters Rachel, Clara, and Kathryn, in grades 10, 8, and 6, respectively, attend Minnewaska Schools.
Jeff Becker
Jeff Becker, son of Clem and Mary Becker, was born and raised on a dairy farm near St. Michael, Minnesota along with six sisters and three brothers. Clem, a Korean War Veteran, worked at a warehouse distribution center at night and drove a bulk milk truck during the day – while helping his brother with the farmwork whenever he could. Mary had her hands full raising ten children, but is still going strong at 91, staying active and bowling twice a week. Jeff’s four older sisters were basketball cheerleaders, but when older brother Steve decided to go out for wrestling and brother Greg followed suit, the next two girls decided to switch over to wrestling cheerleaders. Jeff started wrestling in 7th grade and wrestled some varsity matches as an 8th grader for fledgling coach Gregg Greeno. Greeno was not only a great coach, but a great workout partner for Jeff as he came up through the ranks. Jeff placed 3rd at State in his Junior year, losing a 9-8 match to eventual champ, Les Engler, from Fulda. Becker went undefeated in his Senior year to become St. Michael-Albertville’s second-ever State Champion and Coach Greeno’s first State Champ, finishing his High School career with an overall record of 120-19-4. Jeff’s younger brother Brian followed in Jeff’s footsteps, placing third, second, and first at State for St.Michael-Albertville High School.
Becker had committed to Augustana, but was thinking that he might be better off staying home and farming. Then he got a phone call from Paul Kendall at breakfast one morning, and after a two-hour conversation with Coach Kendall, Jeff came back to the kitchen to let his family know that he had decided to give college a try. The kitchen was dark and everyone was gone, so Jeff wrote a note and stuck it on the cupboard, packed a bag, filled his car at the gas barrel, and headed out for Sioux Falls, South Dakota
Becker enrolled at Augustana and met lifelong friend Mark Krier, along with some other awesome wrestlers. Jeff was a two-time runner-up in an ultra-tough NCC Conference and a three-time NCAA Division II Qualifier, wrapping up his college career with a record of 102-59-4. Becker graduated from Augustana in 1990 with a Mathematics / Secondary Education degree.
While looking for a mathematics teaching position, Jeff crossed paths with Scot Davis and agreed to work as a substitute teacher in the Owatonna school system and serve as an assistant wrestling coach. Then Dale Benjamin helped get him a position at Slidell Packaging Company as a salesman. Jeff served as an assistant coach with Augustana teammate (and roommate) Mark Krier, and the strong Owatonna program rose to another level under Davis, Becker, and Krier, along with Bob Phillips and a number of qualified assistant coaches. In 2009, Jeff was honored as the Cliff Keen National Assistant Wrestling Coach of the Year.
Jeff took a position with Westrock, a packaging equipment company in the Metro and he and his wife Sylvia purchased a home in Apple Valley. The drive to Owatonna every day was becoming more difficult as Jeff and his wife, Sylvia, were starting their family. Jeff was not able to make it to practice every day,
but helped out when he could. Jeff assisted Scot for three more years at Eden Prairie, but when Scot took a coaching position in southern Iowa, Becker hung up his coaching shoes. Jeff was not sure he could commit to another coaching position, but was not done with wrestling. Rod Frost and nephew Nate Lefebvre, son of Dan Lefebvre, helped Jeff get started. Lefebvre was an STMA team-mate of Becker’s and married Jeff’s sister Karen. Becker started interning in 2019 and took on a full slate of dual meets and tournaments the following year. After a year of officiating on his own, Becker was hired to do some premier events, including the Christmas Tournament as well as The Clash. Becker has officiated the past three State Wrestling Tournaments, making him the quickest rising official in Minnesota history, as he was selected to referee the State Wrestling Tournament in his second full year of officiating. Jeff is indebted to a host of officials who have helped him along the way. It is just a blast working with and spending time after the match or tournament with the great people who make up the brotherhood of wrestling officials.
Just a few years back, Jeff was inducted into the Region One Wrestling Hall of Fame and said something that rings so true with many of us “old wrestlers”.
Jeff explained, “When I got done competing in wrestling, I really felt I needed to make a contribution to the next generation of wrestlers, so I went into coaching. When I was done coaching, I felt that I had gained more than I had contributed and wanted to do more to pay it back. I decided to become an official – what many would consider a thankless job. But it seems the more I try to pay it back, the deeper in debt I get.”
Jeff and Sylvia just celebrated their 30th wedding anniversary and have three children. Son Derek is a mechanical engineer and works as a project manager for major building construction company and lives in Austin, Texas with his wife, Rafia, and one year old son, Rumi. Daughter Cienna graduated from St.Thomas as a Computer Engineer and daughter Elle is working on a Mathematics Education degree at UW LaCrosse.
Brian Kelvington
Brian Kelvington, along with twin brother Brad, started his wrestling career at age six in the Olivia Elementary Program under the direction of his father, Rick. Both boys were 100 match winners and State tournament Qualifiers for Coach Kelvington at Olivia High School. Brian went to Mankato State and wrestled for a year under Rummy Macias and learned a lot, but spent considerable practice time fighting off some of Andre Harnitz’s patented arm bars. But as Honest Abe Lincoln once quoted, “Mat Burns Build Character”
At the end of Brian’s freshman wrestling season, Rummy asked him if he could golf as well as his dad. Brian wasn’t sure about that, but said he played golf in high school and placed high in the Region Golf Tournament a couple of times. Rummy, who also served as the Mankato State Golf Coach, invited Brian to try out for the MSU Golf team. It was a great fit for Brian.
Rummy retired from MSU that Spring and Brian transferred to St. Cloud, where he was able to complete his major in Journalism and was also able to play varsity golf for another two and a half more years. While at St.Cloud, Rick put Brian in touch with Ken Stockdale, and Brian’s officiating career was underway. Brian joined the St. Cloud Officials Association and Joel Toedter served as Brian’s mentor. Joel took him along to do some Junior High and J.V. matches and Brian would watch and learn from Joel as he did the varsity meet. One day in 1989, Roger Wilson called Brian and said, “We need another official for the Paul Bunyon Tournament. Can you do it?” Brian wasn’t sure how well he would do, but said, “Sure”. He was off and running – or more specifically – off and REFFING.
Brian has spent 35 years as a wrestling official, serving as a board member for Gold Country Officials Association and was a founding member of the Minnesota Wrestling Officials Association, serving Wisconsin, Iowa, North and South Dakota, as well as Minnesota.
Tom Gravalin
Tom Gravalin, son of Harold and Emma Gravalin, was born and raised in Moorhead along with two sisters and three brothers. Harold was an All-State football player for Moorhead back in the day and served as the Moorhead Park Superintendent. Brother Al was also an All-State Football player, and brother Bruce was a Section 8 Wrestling Champ. Sister Ann was a three-year cheerleader at Moorhead High School. Little brother Jim was an All-State football player as well as a Minnesota Track & Field State Champ in both the 100-yard dash and the 220-yard run – Tom thought he probably got his speed from running away from his older brothers. The Gravalin family lived right across the street from a hockey rink, and Tom grew up playing hockey. He wore thick glasses, and his dad finally told him to find another sport because he was tired of having to buy new glasses every time Tom broke them playing hockey. Tom went out for basketball for three weeks and then one day peeked into the wrestling room on his way to the locker room and thought, “This is my sport.” Tom went out for wrestling the next day. Moorhead had a strong wrestling program under the direction of Hall of Famer Ron Gadberry. Tom was wrestling in the district tournament in his senior season and was trying to pin his opponent in the guillotine. He leaned back a little too far and pinned himself (with a 15-3 lead) and that was the end of his High School career. He attended Moorhead State and gave wrestling a shot, but only got one varsity match as a Freshman when the varsity wrestler was injured and the backup couldn’t make weight. Tom answered the call with a hard-fought victory in his only varsity match of the season. The following year, Gravalin broke a couple of ribs on the first day of practice and was out for the season. Tom looks back on his undefeated college wrestling career (1-0) and tells people (with a chuckle) that he is one up on Dan Gable.
Moorhead Junior High wrestling coach Vern Nolting, an Industrial Arts teacher and a family friend and neighbor, asked Tom to help coach at Moorhead Central Junior High while his ribs healed up and Tom accepted the offer. It was a blast. He was hooked.
After graduating from Moorhead State with an Industrial Arts Degree, Gravalin was hired to teach and coach wrestling at Erskine, MN, where he spent two enjoyable years before taking an Industrial Arts and Assistant Wrestling Position at Fosston. After two years, Head Coach Rick Eng resigned and moved back to the cities and Tom took the reins. Gravalin had an “interesting” coaching staff, starting with Swede Olson, whom the team called “Popeye, among other things. Gravalin goes on to muse, “We tried to fire the Swede a number of times, but he kept coming back”. He said, “Don’t pay me, I don’t care” “He was built like an upright freezer, so nobody volunteered to block his path into the room.” Tom goes on to explain, “Swede was all about the program and the kids. He donated his salary back so we could hire another coach”. Roseau wrestling coach Bro Olsen observed, “A shop teacher and an electrician, Grav and Swede were a pair to draw to – seeding meetings were never dull with those guys in the room”.
Gravalin had a number of outstanding assistant coaches over the years, guys like Dave Suba, a Math teacher who came over from Mora and became another stalwart on the Fosston coaching staff.
Gravalin served as the Fosston Head Wrestling Coach from 1978 until 2005, accumulating an overall record of 128-107-4 with 35 Individual State Qualifiers and 7 Placewinners. His teams won 23 Tournaments with 174 Individual Champions over his 23 years at the helm.
Fosston’s wrestling team qualified for the State Team Tournament in 1990 and faced a savvy Foley team coached by former Moorhead State wrestling team-mate Lyle Freudenberg. The Fosston wrestlers gave it their all, coming up a couple of points short, and then lost in the next round to Stewartville by three points. Tom was named the 1990 Section 8A Wrestling Coach of the Year and received the Dean Fox Sportsmanship Award in 1995. Gravalin continued to give back to the sport of wrestling, serving as a Section Rep for the MWCA for five years and a Section 8A Rep for the State High School League for fourteen years. Tom retired from teaching and coaching in 2005 to take over as Fosston’s Athletic Director, but continued to stay involved in wrestling, serving on the Region Committee as well as the Section 8AA Section Tournament Director for 12 years. When Fosston eventually paired with Bagley, Gravalin worked hard to ensure a smooth transition.
Area coaches and administrators describe Tom Gravalin as a man of class and character, who always had an encouraging word for both his own athletes and their competitors. Assistant Wrestling Coach Al “Swede” Olson further explains, “Coach Gravalin challenged the young men on his team to conduct themselves with integrity on the mat, in the classroom, and at home – always striving to be the best competitor, team-mate, student, friend, and mentor that they could be.”
Tom and his wife, Linda, who taught Special Education Teacher at Fosston for 34 years, are both retired. They have two children and four grandchildren. Son Collin is a director at Blue Cross / Blue Shield and lives in St. Paul with his wife, Alison, and their two children, Jack and Clara. Daughter Ashley is a computer programmer and lives in Bend, Oregon, with her husband Chris (who builds wind / solar farms) and their two children, Theo and Zoe.
Chuck Marks
Chuck Marks, son of Tony and Frances Marks, was born and raised on a dairy farm near Herman, Minnesota, along with twin brother Jim and younger brother Mike. Chuck began his wrestling career at Herman-Norcross High School under coaches Ron Piefer and Jim Herzog. Chuck, Jim, and Mike were all Pheasant Conference Champions in 1968, and Chuck was a District 21 Champion that same year. Chuck went on to wrestle under Romey Gale at Fergus Falls Junior College, where he was a National Qualifier at 115#. Marks attended Moorhead State, earning a teaching degree in Social Studies, and continued to wrestle under Bill Garland, starting for the Dragons as a Junior. After spending a few years working out in Colorado, Chuck came back to Minnesota and earned a degree in Special Education at St. Cloud State.
Marks was hired by Belgrade to teach Special Education and serve as assistant wrestling coach in the Fall of 1977. After two years as an assistant, Chuck took over head wrestling duties at Belgrade which later became BBE (Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa). The first few years were lean as Chuck needed to rebuild the program. Chuck reminisces about the “good old days” when, as head wrestling coach, he had to develop every level. Shortly after Belgrade, Brooten, and Elrosa consolidated, Marks took a busload of Belgrade kids to Brooten to pick up their youth wrestlers and head for a tournament. When the bus arrived in Brooten, 25 kids loaded the bus along with his 30 from Belgrade. Chuck was looking for another youth coach, or at least a parent supervisor – but no such luck. He did his best to coach 55 wrestlers, with 25 whom he had just met, but it was one hectic day. When the tournament was over, he waited until every other team left and counted heads to make sure he still had all 55 wrestlers. The good Lord was with him and he got every wrestler back home safe and sound.
Chuck hung up his whistle in 2001, accumulating an overall win-loss record of 166-153-6 with 23 State Entrants and 11 State Place-winners. Chuck’s teams earned several Prairie Conference Championships and West Central Conference Team Titles, with a dozen or more of his wrestlers going on to compete at the college level. Chuck has also been proud to see a number of his assistant coaches go on to become head wrestling coaches.
Chuck stepped back into the head coaching position at BBE in 2012 after the tragic loss of Rich Vos, helping out wherever he was needed. Marks was Section Coach of the Year in 2001 and KMGS Radio Assistant Coach of the Year in 2013. Since then, He has been a fixture at varsity and youth tournaments at BBE and does the radio broadcasts for home meets. Chuck has worked floor security at the State Wrestling Tournament for the past 22 years.
Chuck was committed to producing not only good wrestling teams, but had the “whole child” at heart. During his teaching tenure at Belgrade and BBE, Marks taught Special Education for 19 years and finished out his teaching career in Social Studies. He was considered an outstanding Social Studies teacher as well as an exceptional Special Education teacher. Chuck was honored as Student Council Advisor of the Year in 2008.
Chuck and his wife, Janet, have three children – Adam, Katie, and Abby. Janet is retired after 36 years as a second grade teacher in New London. Son Adam works as a project estimator for a construction company in Duluth. He and his wife, Kim, have two children, Dani and Bridger. Daughter Katie is an office manager at a health insurance company and lives with her husband, Travis, in Denver, Colorado. Daughter Abby and her husband Jay live in New London along with daughters Nora and Emma.
Heidi Schmitz
Heidi (Hart) Schmitz, daughter of Duane and Sharon Hart, was born and raised on a farm just northeast of Stewartville along with her brother Doug. Heidi and her husband, Dale, live on her grandparents’ farm site, and her brother Doug farms the land with some help from Dale.
Heidi participated in softball and gymnastics at Stewartville and was a member of the band as well as a football cheerleader. She met her future husband, Dale, while both attended Rochester Community College. Heidi also played softball for Rochester CC and was a football and wrestling cheerleader. Dale and Heidi were married in 1985 and lived in Rochester for three years before moving to her grandparents’ farm site and building a house in 2000. Dale is originally from Red Wing and is currently the Facilities Manager for Tom Kadlec Honda / Kia Properties.
Dale and Heidi’s oldest son, Cory, graduated in 2004 and was a two-time State qualifier, placing 5th as a sophomore, and was on the Stewartville Team that qualified for State in 2001, 2002, and 2004, helping the Tigers to a 4th Place finish in 2004. He went on to wrestle for two years at Upper Iowa University and currently works as a paraprofessional in the Pine Island school system. Cory has also helped coach the girls Cadet and Juniors in the MN / USA program in Fargo at the Cadet and Junior Nationals.
Little brother Michael was a three-time state finalist, losing to four-time State Champion Nate Matousek from Glencoe-Silver Lake as a Sophomore, before winning State titles in both his Junior and Senior seasons. He originally was recruited to wrestle at Missouri, but came back to LaCrosse after one semester and wrestled for the Eagles, winning a National Championship along with a fourth and two third-place finishes in the Division III National Tournament. Michael is a Special Education teacher in the Rochester School District and is an assistant wrestling coach at Rochester Century.
Dale and Heidi began getting involved with the Stewartville Wrestling Program when son Cory started wrestling and became immersed when Michael started wrestling, following in his big brother’s footsteps. Both boys wrestled for multiple years on the Stewartville varsity squad.
In the past twenty years or so, Dale and Heidi have helped at the youth level from program organization, to helping with practices, planning, and helping put on fun activities, and end-of-year programs. As Cory and Michael moved through the Stewartville program, Heidi served as wrestling cheerleader advisor, made sure the concession stand was manned for home tournaments, helped organize spring wrestling events as well as summer camps and clinics, and helped put together a Stewartville Wrestling pre-season book, which provided wrestling history with statistics and records.
Heidi worked alongside Pat Short and Carrie Learn, MN / USA Head Pairing Officials, learning from two of the best, helping with pairings and filling out brackets at Local, Regional, and State Freestyle and Greco Tournaments as well as some National Wrestling Tournaments that were held in Rochester. If there was a Folkstyle, Freestyle or Greco Tournament in Southern Minnesota, there is a good chance that Heidi was there helping to get things done and done well.
When husband Dale took over for Bill Hinchley as the Chair of MN / USA Wrestling, Heidi was there to assist him in a multitude of duties. As Dale will attest, behind every successful man is an exhausted woman.
Jerome “Jerry” Schmitz
Jerry Schmitz began his wrestling career in Howard Lake, Minnesota, where he was a conference and district runner-up as a Senior. He went on to attend Willmar Junior College and wrestled under Roy Minter, where he was 3rd in the Junior College State Tournament as a Freshman and a Junior College State Champion as a Sophomore. Jerry transferred to St. Cloud State and wrestled under John Oxton, where he was a two-time NIC Conference Champion and voted the NIC Outstanding Wrestler as a Senior, as well as a two-time NCAA Division II All-American, finishing as a National Runner-up in his Senior Season.
Jerry stayed on as an assistant to Coach Oxton at St. Cloud and went on to coach in the Minnesota USA Juniors Program and later with the Minnesota Storm. Schmitz continued to wrestle Freestyle and Greco after college with much success, including a Silver Medal in the 1979 Pan-Am Games.
Schmitz was instrumental in producing the first-ever State Wrestling Tournament broadcast and served as a color commentator / producer for numerous high school matches in the Northwest Metro area. He was presented with the 1988 MN / USA Wrestling Media Award for televising the Minnesota State Freestyle and Greco Tournaments. Jerry also served as the Cultural Exchange Director for Minnesota/USA Wrestling and was on the board of directors for five years. He returned to St.Cloud State as Graduate Assistant Coach with Bob Boeck in 1990, getting a Master’s Degree in human resources development / training.
Boeck and Schmitz had the privilege of coaching SCSU’s first Division I All-American in Nate Toedter from Perham, MN. Jerry then took his coaching / training skills and transferred to Safety Training, eventually becoming a Certified Safety Professional. Working in heavy industry and construction, Jerry was the Safety representative for his company on numerous projects in the upper Midwest – Huntington Bank Stadium and Target Field to name a couple in the Twin Cities. Jerry stayed involved with wrestling, working as Co-Director for the entire run of the National Junior College Wrestling Tournament in Rochester, MN. Jerry was also on point for getting the SCSU wrestling golf tournament started. The first year, it was a fundraiser for former teammate / All-American Doug Gruber, who was battling pancreatic cancer. It was a huge success and then continued with Coach Steve Grimit and Coach Steve Costanzo. It has been one of the team’s largest fundraisers. Jerry is still a strong supporter of the St. Cloud Wrestling program and is one of several “Old Timers” who follow the SCSU Team. “If you are a wrestling fan, you have to like what is happening at St. Cloud State University with the wrestling program – five national titles and currently a number one ranking.”
Jerry and his wife Jane, a retired nurse, reside in Annandale and have two children. Son Peter works as a Youth Director at Lifetime Fitness in Miami, Florida and daughter Margaret is a Social Worker for Anoka County.
Harlan “Butch” Steen
Butch Steen was born and raised on a farm in South Dakota and attended Browns Valley High School in Minnesota. Butch went to a small country school through eighth grade and started wrestling under coach Ed Krystaczek in Browns Valley’s inaugural season as a 9th grader. He only weighed 88 pounds, so it was tough sledding against those full 95-pounders that first year. By his junior year Butch was starting to see some real success and as a senior made it to the semifinals of the Region Tournament losing a hard-fought match in overtime to a wrestler who went on to take third place at State. Butch served as a team captain along with state champ Irv Kalstrom and Ev Seykora. Butch, Irv, and Ev all went on to coach wrestling in the area and had a number of great matches among them throughout the years. Butch went on to wrestle at South Dakota State but could not get past Don Miller, who went on to take third place in the Division II National Tournament.
Steen joined the ROTC while at SDSU. He served as a 2nd Lieutenant in the US Army Medical Service Corps from 1967-1970 and volunteered for Vietnam in 1969, serving as commander in a M.A.S.H. unit attached to the 1st Infantry Division. Steen was promoted to Captain and awarded two Bronze Stars and two Army Accommodation Medals during active duty and promoted to Major during his eight-year stint in the Army Reserves.
Butch started his teaching and coaching career in 1971 in Raymond, Minnesota. In 1993, they joined forces with Clara City and became CCR, and in 1998, Maynard came in to form MCCRAY. Steen had the honor of coaching 14 Region Champions and 34 State qualifiers with 16 State place-winners. His teams have won 27 tournaments over the years, with 19 wrestlers who have won 100+ matches. In 1984, Steen’s CCR team would have placed fifth in the State Wrestling Tournament if the individual scoring system would have still been in place. His Raymond wrestling team and their families hosted the Finnish National Team in 1979. Butch has been a proud member of the MWCA for the past 50 years.
Butch has three daughters and two sons. Daughter Janice attended school in Sisseton, South Dakota, daughter Terry attended Raymond High School and went on to play softball at NDSU, while daughter Jennifer (MCCRAY) played basketball at Ridgewater Community College. Sons Trevor and Tyler, who both won over 100 wrestling matches for Butch at MACCRAY, are both 6’4” (Butch is 5’10” on his tip toes) and went on to participate in sports at the college level. Tyler was a high hurdler in Track & Field at Northern State, and Tyler played baseball at NDSU.
Butch and his wife Deena are both retired and reside in Raymond.
Dan Stifter
Dan Stifter attended Winsted Holy Trinity High School in Winsted, Minnesota, graduating in 1984. Dan was an all-conference football player, a two-time Circle 8 Conference Champion, and a two-time State Qualifier in wrestling. Dan accumulated 88 wins for two great wrestling coaches – Gary Nelson and Kevin Sterner.
After graduating from high school, Dan enrolled at the University of Minnesota, Morris, where he had the privilege of wrestling for three more outstanding coaches in Craig Olson, Steve Carr, and Spencer Yohe. Dan won 80 matches at UMM, along with an NSIC Conference Title, and was an NAIA All-American.
Dan began his coaching career as an assistant wrestling coach with the Hancock Owls while he did his student teaching in Social Studies at Hancock. The Owls won the Pheasant Conference Wrestling Title that season. In 1989, Dan accepted a Social Studies teaching job along with a junior high wrestling position at Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota. In 1992, Dan was hired to teach social studies and coach football and wrestling at Aitkin High School. Dan served as an assistant to the great Noel Bailey for a year before Dan and Noel joined forces and spent the next three seasons as Co-Head Wrestling Coaches. In 1996, Noel stepped down, and Dan took the reins as solo head coach of the Aitkin Gobblers.
Throughout Dan’s coaching career, he was fortunate to work with a great team of assistant coaches, including Kevin Lamke, Bob Lake, Larry Liljenquist, Keith Larson, Greg Hills, and Wayne Werner, among others.
Dan was recognized as Aitkin’s Teacher of the Year in 2002. During his tenure as co-head and head coach, the Aitkin Grappling Gobblers won 188 matches, earned 14 Conference Titles in 15 years, and qualified for the State Wrestling Tournament three times. Dan was honored as the Great River Conference Coach of the Year three times and the Section 7 Coach of the Year four times. Dan Stifter was inducted into the Dave Bartelma Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2013.
In 2009, Dan transitioned to the role of Athletic Director and Dean of Students in Aitkin. Two years later, Dan accepted the position of High School Principal in Menahga. Four years later, Stifter took an assistant principal position in Pierz, and four years after that (2019), Dan was hired as Superintendent of Schools in Aitkin, where he hopes to remain until retirement.
Dan and his wife, Karen, have been married for 37 years with three children and three grandchildren. Oldest son Levi and his wife Jessica have three sons – Finley, Nolan, and Silas. Levi runs his own lawn care and landscaping business while Jessica is a kindergarten teacher. Daughter Jennifer is married to Ryan Spadgenske. Jennifer is a pharmacist at Sanford Medical Center in Fargo, and Ryan works as a truck driver for Evco Petroleum out of Detroit Lakes. The youngest son, Nathan, currently works as a welder and is building his own mobile welding business.
Mark Voyce
Mark Voyce began his wrestling career in Knoxville, Iowa, where he was a four-sport athlete participating in football, wrestling, track & field, and baseball. In both his junior and senior wrestling seasons, he came within a match of qualifying for state, but was defeated in the district finals and then lost his true second match. It was devastating at the time, but it helped him gain perspective as a coach.
Voyce attended Cornell College, where he majored in Physical Education and Elementary Education. He wrestled for the first two years, but both seasons ended early due to injury.
Voyce took a teaching position in Texas, where he met his wife, Melissa, and found out she was also from Iowa. They married and moved to Minnesota, where Mark landed a third-grade teaching position in Hayfield, and a couple of years later, Melissa was hired to teach first grade in the Austin school system. Mark and Melissa bought a house in Brownsdale, which was about halfway between Hayfield and Austin.
Dave Erickson happened to be looking for an assistant wrestling coach, and Mark accepted the position. After four years, Dave and Mark decided to work as Co-Head Coaches, and when Coach Erickson retired three years later, Voyce took over as the solo head wrestling coach. Mark will forever be grateful to Coach Erickson for his mentorship, guidance, and friendship. The program continued to thrive under Voyce, and the transition was seamless. Mark feels blessed to have been able to be on the mat for 16 individual state wrestling championships as well as three state team appearances. Hayfield took runner-up honors in 1993 and 1996 and earned a state team title in 1997. It was truly an honor for Mark to coach wrestlers like Chris Steele, Corey Olson, and Brad Pike, along with so many other great wrestlers who came through the Hayfield program.
After ten years at the helm, Voyce switched gears and became a wrestling official – and a good one. Mark was selected to work the State Tournament Finals on three separate occasions.
Mark and Melissa have two children. Son MacEagon, who earned a Music Journalism degree at Carleton, and his wife Carol live in England where she works as an executive at Lego Toys and he owns a start-up music venture business. Daughter Metea graduated from Grinnell College in Iowa and lives in British Columbia working as an Instructional Graphic Designer.
Ella Pagel of Northfield – Tricia Saunders High School Excellence Award State Winner
Ella Pagel, daughter of Robert and Chasidy Pagel, was born and raised on a farm near Northfield, Minnesota along with older brother Mason and younger brother Wyatt. Her older brother, Mason, is studying diesel technology at North Dakota State College of Science, where he is also playing football. Younger brother Wyatt, an eighth grader, wrestles JV at Northfield with an occasional varsity start.
Along with Bob and Chaz, all three children have been heavily involved in farm operations. Ella shows Hereford calves that were born and raised on the farm at the County Fair, open shows and the State Fair. In addition to wrestling, Ella played football and participated in track and field at Northfield High School. She helps out with the youth wrestling program, is heavily involved in 4-H and serves as president of her FFA Chapter.
Ella started wrestling in the Northfield youth program as a kindergartner, but even as a three-year-old, she could be found on the corner of the mat scrapping with some of the younger kids during her brother Mason’s youth practices. When Ella started wrestling as a youngster, the girls did not have their own tournament and wrestled against boys most of the time. Ella wrestled on the Northfield James Gang youth team that won the “The Brawl” when she was a fifth grader and then the “Rumble on the Red” and the NYWA State Tournament when she was in 6th grade. Ella was thrilled when she got a pin at HWT that sealed the win for her team in the championship finals. Ella also won an individual title at the “Rumble on the Red” and also at the Midwest Tour Championships earning the championship belt to wrap up her youth career.
Ella continued her phenomenal success into her middle school and high school years. In addition to being a three-time Minnesota State Champion, Ella was a USA Folkstyle National Champion as well as a Super 32 Champion. In freestyle, Ella won a 15U Pan Am Gold Medal (at 12 years old) and was a four-time Fargo place-winner, finishing 3rd and 2nd along with two championships. This past year, Ella received the Northfield High School Athena Award and was named the Star-Tribune Female Athlete of the Year.
Northfield assistant wrestling coach Jules Doliscar describes Ella as a dedicated and hard-working athlete who listens to her coaches, pushes herself and others in practice, and approaches wrestling and life with a great attitude. Head wrestling coach Geoff Staab echoes those sentiments.
It has not been all smooth sailing for Ella. A couple of summers ago, she suffered a torn labrum while practicing at a Pinnacle for Fargo Nationals and was unable to compete as a junior while recovering from surgery. That shoulder was still bothering her through this past wrestling season, but she is hoping that she can rehab it with therapy during this off-season. Ella continues to explore her college options and opportunities to be involved with wrestling and hopes she can inspire other girls to wrestle down the road.
Landon Robideau of St. Michael-Albertville – Dave Schultz High School Excellence State Award Winner
Landon Robideau, son of Zachary and Jennifer Robideau, has been a six-year starter for St. Michael-Albertville, a wrestling powerhouse in Minnesota. He finished his career with 283 victories against six losses for a winning percentage of 97.2%. Robideau has not lost a wrestling match since the 6th match of his freshman season, accumulating 188 straight wins since that loss. After finishing as State Runner-up in both his 7th and 8th grade seasons, Landon has won four straight State Titles – at 126# his freshman year, 132# as a sophomore, 152# as a junior, and 160# this past season. Robideau has pinned 160 opponents and garnered 1525 takedowns in the past six years. Robideau owns every career record for STMA except near-fall points. Sidenote: You do not receive near-fall points when you get a pin. Landon was also a Fargo Junior Freestyle Champ, a Super 32 Champ, a Who’s #1 Champion, and ended his high school career as a Pittsburgh Classic Champion in 2025. Robideau’s wrestling career has been nothing short of amazing.
On a team that has been dominant at the state level for years with back-to-back State Titles, Landon has been voted the outstanding wrestler by his teammates four times and the hardest worker on the team three times. Landon has stayed after practice countless times to help younger wrestlers with their technique. Joriman describes Landon as the epitome of a service leader. He knows when the team needs his voice, but also knows when to step back and give others a chance to lead. When little brother Lincoln won the state tournament this past season with a hard-fought victory over an outstanding Hastings wrestler, Landon was overjoyed. That win was far more important to Landon than his own title a few matches later.
Head Coach Josh Joriman gives a lot of credit to his outstanding assistant coaches, as well as Landon, who is like another coach in the room, for the tremendous success STMA has enjoyed over the past few years. Landon competes with class and grace and leads this team, not only by example, but by serving others. Landon has a strong faith and leads an FCA group for wrestlers, other athletes, and students. Robideau is a volunteer coach at every level of the STMA Youth program for both boys and girls. Landon graduated with a 3.88 GPA while taking PSEO classes for the past two years. Robideau plans to attend Oklahoma State University next year and wrestle for the Cowboys.