2026 MWCA Award Recipients Honored
Benson, Minn. – Seventeen new members were inducted into the Minnesota Wrestling Coaches Association Dave Bartelma Hall of Fame on Saturday, April 11th, in Benson, Minn.
The new inductees honored were Joe Block, Dustin Darveaux, Luverne “Tuffy” Hoard, Kevin Jensen, Tom Lamphere, Josh McLay, Robb Moser, Rich Pohlmeier, Werner Family (Wayne, Dan, Jack, Steve, Albert, and Bruce), Tom Youngblom, Paul Conrad, and Alan Rasmussen.
MWCA Coach of the Year honorees for 2026 were Class A – Matt Myrvik and Matt Buysse of Minneota, Class AA – Kevin Briggs of New Ulm Area, and Class AAA – Geoff Staab of Northfield and Tim Haneberg of Hastings.
The MWCA selected Kevin Briggs of New Ulm Area as the State Head Coach of the Year. Chad Curry of Chatfield was selected as State Assistant Coach of the Year. Briggs and Curry, along with MWCA Mr. Minnesota Wrestler Titan Friederichs of Watertown-Mayer and Ms. Minnesota Wrestler Caley Graber of Northfield, represent Minnesota as the National Wrestling Coaches Association’s State (NWCA) award winners, which qualifies them for further NWCA Scholastic Awards at the Regional and National levels.
The MWCA presented State Champion and Runner-up team awards based on the unofficial individual state tournament scoring to Class A—1st Staples-Motley, 2nd Chatfield; Class AA—1st Simley, 2nd Totino-Grace and Watertown-Mayer; Class AAA—1st St. Michael-Albertville, 2nd Stillwater; Girls—1st Apple Valley, 2nd St. Michael-Albertville. View the 2026 individual-based top-ten State team scores.
Recognized with a Lifetime Achievement Award for their coaching longevity (30+ years) were Brian Clark of Norwood-Young America Central and Chris Donnay of Rogers.
Read the program biographies of the latest inductees and MWCA award recipients below.
Photos by Jeff Beshey
The Guillotine Photos on Flickr
2026 MWCA Dave Bartelma Hall of Fame inductees:
Inductee biographies by Steve Ricard
Dustin Darveaux (Athlete)
Dustin Darveaux graduated from Pipestone High School in 1998, where he participated in football and wrestling. In wrestling, he qualified for the state tournament three times, placing 2nd in 1996, 3rd in 1997, and 3rd in 1998. During these three years, his only losses came to Lee Hiltner of Paynesville and Justin Staebler of Perham.
Dustin also competed nationally in freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling. In 1997, he placed 2nd in Freestyle and 3rd in Greco-Roman to earn All-American honors. In 1998, he again earned All-American honors, placing 6th in Freestyle and 2nd in Greco-Roman. He continued his athletic career at St. Cloud State University, playing football for two years and wrestling for four. Dustin was a four-time NCAA Division II national qualifier and a three-time Division II All-American, placing 7th in 2001, 4th in 2002, and 2nd in 2003. He was also named an NWCA Academic All-American in 2000. Dustin graduated from St. Cloud State with a degree in Finance, Insurance, and Real Estate.
Dustin is currently a Senior Operations Leader at Lockton Re, a subsidiary of Lockton Companies. He lives in Maple Grove, Minnesota, with his wife, Lindsey, and their children, Paisley, James, Bennett, and Charlie.
Joe Block (Coach)
Joe Block attended Le Center High School. He participated in football, wrestling, and track. Joe was a four-time state entrant from grades 9-12. His high school record was 167-27-5. He was crowned a state champion as a sophomore at 126 lbs. in 1987, placed third at 132 lbs. in 1988, and won a second state title at 135 lbs. in 1989. Joe was selected to participate in the Minnesota-Wisconsin All-Star Classic. He won national titles in Freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling in 1987 as a Cadet. Joe won numerous Northern Plains Regional titles in both Freestyle and Greco-Roman.
Upon graduation Joe attended Drake University to pursue a degree in Elementary Education. In college Joe won over 100 wins. He was a NCAA National qualifier in 1993 and earned the Drake Wrestling MVP as well. Joe graduated from Drake in 1994. He later obtained his Masters in Education from St. Mary’s University.
Joe taught at Le Center from 1997-2000, and then took a job at Prior Lake, where he coached from 2001-2025. Joe’s high school coaching record stands at 394-309. He coached 106 state entrants, coached 60 state place winners, twelve of whom were state champions. Joe was named Section Coach of the Year 8 times, and named MN Coach of the Year 4 times. His teams achieved a silver/gold academic award all but three of his year at Prior Lake. One of the parents in the Prior Lake wrestling program wrote “Joe was able to connect with the community and draw external coaches to come in to the program. He had that special gift that made us all feel welcomed and special.” A wrestling official wrote “Many of Joe’s athletes have moved on to have successful lives and careers. Joe built a positive culture and athlete-centered approach among his teams. He had the ability to get the best out of the student-athletes and the people he worked with.” One of Joe’s assistant coaches commented “Joe stood by me in some hard times and gave me a second chance, and I never wanted him to regret that. I never wanted to let him down.”
Joe continues to teach in Prior Lake. Joe and his wife Donelle have two kids, Teagan and Terin. They reside in Prior Lake.
Luverne “Tuffy” Hoard (Coach/Contributor)
“Tuffy” Hoard attended Grand Rapids High School, graduating from there in 1966. He was a 4-time Region 7 champion under Head Coach Skip Nalan. As a wrestler Tuffy amassed a record of 68-12. He placed 3rd in 1965 at 95 lbs., and was a state runner-up in 1966 at 95 lbs. After high school Tuffy enlisted in the U.S. Army, serving his country fighting in Vietnam until 1969. Tuffy settled in Cohasset, MN working as a carpenter and raising his family with his wife Linda. Tuffy started coaching for Skip, going right to work developing an elementary wrestling program. Tuffy later started a local wrestling club that is still in existence today. Tuffy organized the first open tournament that Grand Rapids hosted. The Grand Rapids Open is now called The Tuffy Hoard Open. Tuffy served as the first assistant to the head coach for 20 years under 3 head coaches, Shane Holm, Dan Jinks, and Mike Schauer. Tuffy helped his teams recorded over 300 wins, 4 section titles, 5 conference titles, 33 state place winners, and 3 state champions. Tuffy helped hundreds of young athletes become young men. Tuffy retired from coaching in 2019. A colleague and head coach commented “Men of great integrity laid down a foundation of excellence: Jack Willhite, Glen Swenson, and Skip Nalan. With over 50 years of service as an athlete, contributor, and coach, Tuffy Hoard truly holds a place among those legends.”
Kevin Jensen (Contributor/Official)
Kevin Jensen attended De Lasalle High School where he participated in cross country, wrestling, and track He started wrestling as a freshman at De Lasalle and was a varsity wrestler for three years. After graduating from high school in 1968, Kevin enrolled at St. Cloud State University where he earned a degree in Physical Education and a few years later obtained a degree in Math Education. He wrestled for four years at 134 lbs. under Head Coach John Oxton. Kevin’s first teaching job was in Wynot, Nebraska. While there Kevin taught mat as well as serving as the assistant wrestling coach. After 2 years in Wynot, Kevin went to Manly, Iowa where he taught math as well as working as the assistant wrestling coach, as well as coaching football and track. Kevin started teaching and coaching in Le Center in 1979. His career spanned 19 years (1979-1998) He compiled a record of 215-111-2 record. He had 4 Section runner-up finishes and 4 Section titles. His 1990 team finished 3rd. Kevin had the privilege of coaching 6 state finalists, 3 of whom were state champions. He coached 55 state qualifiers and 18 place winners. Kevin’s team finished first or second in the conference from 1985-1998. Kevin was selected as Region Coach of the Year 3 times, and was MN State Coach of the Year in 1991.
In the fall of 1998 Kevin took a math position at Simley High School in Inver Grove Heights. Kevin retire from teaching in 2012 but continued to serve as the middle school wrestling coach thru the 2018 season for a total of 19 seasons with Simley.
Kevin started the Le Center Freestyle Club in 1986 and has been a referee for both Freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling since that time with the highest national ranking as an M-1 official and 7 years as an international FILA official (now called UWW). Jensen has officiated in the MSHSL State Tournament 3 times. He worked as a Folkstyle wrestling official for 50 years and a Freestyle/Greco-Roman wrestling official for 43 years. He served as the MN/USA Wrestling Cultural Exchange Director from 1990-1995 and served on the MN/USA Board of Directors for 8 years. Kevin served as Section coordinator for 4AA Section tournaments for 9 years.
Kevin has two adopted sons, Cola (Nicolai) and Dmitriy. Colas was a five-year started for Simley High School and had 143 wins in his career. Dmitriy participated in football and swimming. Kevin has a step-daughter Carly and stepson Jarred Oftedahl, who wrestled at Benilde-St. Margaret and placed 4th in the Division II National tournament for St. Cloud State.
Kevin and his wife Karen currently reside in Florida.
Tom Lamphere (Contributor)
Tom Lamphere attended Robbinsdale Cooper High School, and later attended Robbinsdale Armstrong, graduating from there in 1971. Tom was a member of the Cooper 1969 State Championship Team. He placed third in the state as a senior at 112 lbs. Tom continued his wrestling at the University of Minnesota and also at the University of Minnesota-Duluth in pursuit of a degree in History Education. Tom taught for a year in International Falls, but left teaching to join Athletes in Action, a branch of Campus Crusades for Christ. The AIA had some of the best wrestlers in the country on their teams, and they would compete against colleges in the U.S. Halfway through the meet they would take a short intermission and AIA wrestlers would share their testimony. Tom competed in the 1980 Greco Nationals and placed 5th. Tom’s last competition was the 1980 Olympic Trials. Tom has continued to stay involved with wrestling through Athletes in Action. He is working with USA wrestling, Tony Dungy, James Brown of CBS Sports and others to bring back wrestling to historically black colleges and universities. He continues to mentor young athletes in all walks of their lives.
Tony Dungy, former NFL Coach wrote: “Thanks to Tom’s spiritual mentorship, I was ready for the responsibilities that came with that job and for what came down the road—becoming the first African-American head coach to win a Super Bowl.” Tom and his wife Jeannie have served as the Minnesota Vikings chaplain couple for the past 35 years. They have five kids: Annya, Jon, Drew, Krista, and Makenzie, along with 10 grandchildren. He and Jeannie currently reside in Shakopee.
Josh McLay (Athlete)
Josh McLay attended Hastings High School, graduating from there in 2000. He participated in football and wrestling (Josh, anything else?) Josh was a captain his senior year in football and was a 3-year captain for wrestling. The football team finished second that year, losing to Cretin-Durham Hall and Joe Mauer in the finals. Josh was a 5x (Metro East) Conference Champion and a four-time state qualifier. Josh was a 4-time section champion. He won three AAA state titles, at 145 lbs. in 1998, 152 lbs. in 1999, and 160 lbs. in 2000. He helped his team reach the MN State Team Tournament in 1996 (State Champions), 1997 (5th), 1998 (2nd), 1999 (3rd), and 2000 (3rd) Josh never lost a match at state. Josh’s high school record was 180-30. He was named as an ASICS First Team All-American in 2000.
Josh was a 6-time finalist in Freestyle/Greco-Roman wrestling at the national level. He won Greco-Roman and Freestyle titles as a second year Cadet. He was a runner-up in Greco-Roman as a sophomore in the Junior age division. He was a champion at Greco-Roman his junior year, and as a senior Josh won both Greco-Roman and Freestyle honors.
Josh attended the University of Minnesota, where he earned a degree in Physical Education/DAPE/Health and also an administration degree. Josh’s college record was 63-52. He was a 4-year letter winner for the Gophers, and he was named a Big 10 Academic All-American. Josh was a 3-year starter for the Gophers. He placed 5th in the Big 10 Tournament as a junior, qualified for the NCAA Division 1 tournament, where he went 1-2. His senior year was cut short by injuries.
Josh began his teaching and coaching career at Woodbury High School in 2007. He then coached at Eagan High School in 2008, then at Hastings High School in 2009, and continued to serve as head coach there until 2019. Josh’s coaching record stands at 255-113. He guided five teams to the MN State Team Tournament, 2012 (4th), 2014 (4th), 2016 (5th), 2017(4th), and 2018 (6th). Josh helped 67 wrestlers qualify for the state tournament, had 23 state place winners, and had 2 state champions. Josh was an assistant coach at Hastings from 2019-2023, helping the team to four more state tournament appearances and a team state title in 2023. Josh’s head coach refers to Josh as “one of the most decorated high school wrestlers in Minnesota history. He has faithfully served both the sport of wrestling and his home community of Hastings for over a decade.” Josh’s high school principal commented “Josh is professional, caring, hard-working, experienced, positive, and incredibly student-focused. He is ‘that educator’ every school team needs that has a solid pulse of the school and presence within classrooms.”
Josh continues to teach and coach in Hastings. He and his wife Kasha have 3 kids: Emma, Addy, and Madden.
Robb Moser (Coach)
Robb Moser attended Frazee High School, graduating in 1990. Robb was a state entrant and MWCA All-Academic team member his senior year, competing at 160 lbs. He was also a member of the first two teams in Frazee wrestling history to go to state. He was coached by Hall of Famers Steve Carr and Clay Nagel while at Frazee. In addition to wrestling, Robb was an All-Conference football player for the Hornets. Robb continued his education and wrestling career at Concordia College, Moorhead, where he earned a degree in Social Studies Education. Robb obtained his Masters from Southwest State in Marshall, MN in 2001. Robb taught and coached at Perham High School from 1995-2019. He was the head coach from 2001-2019. His career coaching record stands at 425-99-1. He coached 126 state entrants, 49 of whom were place winners. He coached 16 finalists, and 6 were state champions. There were 3 Division 1 wrestlers and 7 NCAA All-American wrestlers that came out of Perham at that time. Robb’s teams were the first Perham teams to win a section wrestling title and compete at state. The Perham team had great consistency during his years as head coach–15 section finals appearances, 12 state tournament teams, and 9 teams that placed at the state tournament, all in AA. Two of his teams finished second (losses to St. Michael-Albertville and Simley). His teams were crowned Academic State Champs 3 times, and he had 14 MWCA All-State Academic team members. He was awarded Section Coach of the Year 8 different times, and he was named MN Coach of the Year both in 2007 and 2019. Robb’s colleagues acknowledge how Robb was a very hard worker that developed strong relationships with his wrestlers, fellow coaches, and fellow teachers. The “team first” concept was something that Robb and his assistants worked very hard to instill throughout their program.
When asked what his proudest moments were, Robb replied “Tough question. I am very proud that our program embraced the sport the right way—grades were important, high grades are honorable, giving people a second chance was necessary, having concern for others is essential, and being a part of many other activities is really healthy in a small town. On a personal level, I am very proud and fortunate to say that my very last match that I coached was my son Ty’s state championship match, capping off an undefeated season.”
Robb and his wife, Eryn, have three kids, Reid, Ty, and Drew. He is a retired teacher/coach and now works at KLN Family Brands in Perham. He continues to work in wrestling as the Section 8AA manager and as a radio commentator covering wrestling in lakes country.
Rich Pohlmeier (Contributor)
Rich Pohlmeier attended Hutchinson High School, graduating from there in 1972. He was active in football, wrestling, and baseball. Rich attended the University of Minnesota-Waseca where he played football and wrestled. Rich was also a long-time member of Gold Country Officials Association.
Rich has worn many hats over the years: Farmer, self-employed contractor, county commissioner, city council member, mayor, and sports official. He began his officiating in 1974. After taking some time off for family, he returned to officiating in 1993. He has officiated wrestling at all levels from kids through high school. Rich has worked regional, state, and national tournaments for NYWA, USA Wrestling, and MYAS associations, which took him to Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Nebraska, and North Dakota.
Rich’s excellence as an official has not gone unnoticed at the state level. His officiating career spans four different sports–football, volleyball, wrestling, and softball– with well over 130 “seasons” of service. Rich has officiated at least one state tournament in all four sports – this is incredibly unique and sets him apart. In 2024 Rich received an award from the Minnesota High School Coaches Association for Distinguished Service.
Even when not officiating, Rich finds other ways to help. He has worked tables for many years at the MSHSL State Wrestling Tournament, and continues to do so, always finding a way to give back. Over the past several years, Rich has provided support for girls wrestling in Minnesota by recruiting and mentoring female wrestling officials.
Rich’s peers have noticed and appreciated his impact, too. One of his colleagues from Gold Country commented “Rich was willing to drive anywhere to officiate. He was especially helpful in situations where we were short of officials.” Another colleague commented “Rich’s many years of service to develop wrestling officials as well as helping to mold young wrestlers into good humans is admirable.” A mentee of Rich noted that “Rich always makes me leave the mat feeling like I did more things right than wrong, and he always gives feedback constructively.” A coach commented “I appreciated Rich’s consistency and his ability to keep a cool head despite a lot of intense coaches like myself.”
Rich resides in Brownton with his wife Jackie. They have six kids: Heather DuFault, Kari Brecht, Shannon Cayler, Ryan Beich, Jaeme Pohlmeier, and Lukas Pohlmeier. They have eleven grandchildren.
Werner Family (Athlete)
The Werner wrestlers dominated the lightweights in Perham area from 1976-1985. Their overall record was 578-90-4. Together they have 12 state medals and went 44-9 at the state tournament.
Bruce: (1976 graduate) As a senior Bruce entered the 1976 State Class A 98 lbs. weight class with a 28-0 record, where he advanced to the semi-finals before getting upset. He then lost in the consolation semis. (History Lesson: the “trade-off” for going to the two-class system in 1975 was that the MSHSL would only medal four wrestlers per weight class. Bruce defeated the eventual state champion 12-4 a week earlier in the Region 6 finals. Bruce’s record was 68-19 with 30 pins). After graduation, Bruce moved back to Nebraska to farm. He has three kids (Heather, Melissa and Mike) and 4 grandkids.
Albert: (1978 graduate) Albert placed third in Region 6 as a senior at 126 lbs. The first and second place finishes in that weight class were Steve Carr (Battle Lake) and Joe Pilgrim (Verndale), and they finished first and second, respectively that year in state. Albert’s record was 64-24-4. He has been married to Lisa for 48 years and farms near Richville. They have 3 kids, Amy, Jackie and Joe and 14 grandchildren.
Steve: (1979 graduate) Steve was a state runner-up as a sophomore (98 lbs.) and a state champion as a junior (98 lbs.) and a senior (105 lbs.) Steve’s high school record was 120-3 with 60 pins. At the time, Steve held the highest winning percentage in MN state wrestling history (97.5 %). He was undefeated in his final two seasons of high school, winning 68 straight matches. Steve was selected to the U.S. All-Star team for the Pittsburgh Press Wrestling Classic in 1979. Amateur Wrestling News named Steve as a High School All-American as well as the number 9 ranked recruit in the nation in 1979. Steve competed on a MN Cultural Exchange team that traveled to Finland and was undefeated, pinning all of his opponents. Steve continued his wrestling at NSDU and was a 3-time NCC Conference Champion as well as a two-time All-American, finishing 7th at 118 lbs. as a junior and 5th as a senior. He was the one of the first members inducted in to the Perham School Hall of Fame. Steve has been working at the Good Samaritan Home for the last 32 years. He lives in Petersburg NE and is married to Brenda. He has two children, Denise and James, and has 3 grandkids.
John Jr (Jack): (1980 graduate): Jack competed at the state tournament at 98 lbs., advancing to the semifinals before losing to eventual state champion Dave Goeb of Monticello. He placed third and finished his career with a record of 50-7 with 28 pins. Jack is married to Angie and farms near Perham. Jack and Angie have four kids, Leah, Sarah, Jacob and Joshua and 18 grandkids.
Dan: (1982 graduate) Dan was a four-time state place winner. He placed 4th as a freshman at 98 lbs. in 1979, state champ in 1980 at 105 lbs. as a sophomore, third as a junior at 105 lbs. in 1981, and won his second state title as a senior at 105 lbs. in 1982. Dan’s high school career record was 125-10 with 40 pins. Dan was chosen to be a member of the 1982 Pittsburgh Press U.S.A. Wrestling Team. Dan continued his wrestling in the U.S. Army, where he won the Army Tournament in 1984 and finished third in the All-Service Tournament. He wrestled for NDSCS after his time in the Army. Dan is an over-the-road truck driver. He lives in Richville and has one son, Benjamin.
Wayne: (1985 graduate) Wayne was a three-time state place winner, earning a runner-up medal at 98 lbs. in 1983, a state title in 1984 at 105 lbs., and a third-place finish as a senior at 112 lbs. Wayne continued his wrestling at NDSU and got his education degree. Wayne has coached in Moorhead, Perham, Aitkin and New York Mills, including Perham head coach from 1996-1998. Wayne was inducted into the NDSU Hall of Fame in 2013 and the Perham School Hall of Fame in 2025. Wayne has taught physical education and special education in Perham. He is married to Kristi and they have 4 kids, Isaac, Elliot, Annika and Owen.
Tom Youngblom (Coach)
Tom Youngblom’s journey began in Brook Park, Minnesota, in 1970, where he was raised on a modest hobby farm by his parents, LeRoy and Karen. The youngest of five siblings, Karla, Mary, Andrea, and David, Tom was characterized early on by a relentless energy that caught the attention of teacher Mrs. Olson, wife of the head wrestling coach. In the third grade, her intervention guided him to the wrestling mat. Tom wrestled for Paul Olson at Hinckley High School. He finished his time there with multiple subsection and conference titles, finishing with a record of 70-18-1, while also competing in football and track and field.
Initially underestimating his potential for collegiate wrestling, Tom began his post-secondary journey at Vermilion Community College as a decathlete. However, a chance encounter with a University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD) wrestler reignited his competitive fire. Hall of Fame UMD Head Coach Neil Ladsten was glad to get “Youngnuts” on the team. Buoyed by elite practice partners like Shawn “Wonder Boy” Perkins, Cory Leopold, Tony Stenslund, Ron McClure, and Troy Haglund, he became a two-time individual NSIC Conference Champion at 150 pounds. He helped his team to consecutive conference titles. Tom placed at the national qualifier in his junior and senior years but did not qualify for D2 Nationals either year, finishing his college career with a record of 60-29 with 27 pins.
Tom got a job in Mora and began coaching/teaching in 1997. In a town of 3,000, Mora is easily one of the smallest AA schools in Minnesota, and with 4 winter sports, coaching wrestling in Mora was a formidable task. And it was trial by fire. In Tom’s first year, Mora would have the following coaches on their schedule: Randy Zimmer, Lyle Fruedenberg, Neil Jennissen, Gregg Greeno, Mark Jenson, Bob Adams, and Terry Sworsky. Rarely able to fill a full lineup, lessons were shared, but Mora would go 38-48-2 in his first 4 years. Then things started working, and Mora rattled off 23 seasons without a losing record, finishing with a coaching record of 454-257-2. During his 27 years at Mora he brought his team to the sections finals 11 times (qualifying 5 teams to the state championship), he coached 98 state entrants (30 placing), coached 3 individuals to the finals (2 state champs Jeff Ollestad and his son Andrew Youngblom), he had 5 Academic State Champions, Mora collected 16 academic team awards (6 Gold and in 2023 they were the AA Academic State Champions), and he was awarded 5 Section 7AA Coach of the Year Awards. One thing he is very proud of as a coach is being a pioneer/leader in the development of girls’ wrestling in Minnesota. In the fall of 2022, Mora vs Bemidji was one of, if not the first, all-girls dual in Minnesota.
Tom is extremely thankful for the following people; his wife Kris is the absolute most important reason he made it 27 years as a head coach; his kids Andrew (Kalli Jo), and Taylor (Hollie) for understanding how busy he was during the wrestling season; all of his assistant coaches over the years, Joel Foss, Dan Washburn, Tony Norlander, Dave Souba, Wade Lennox, Ben Presler, Chad Grahn, Brent D. Nelson, Brian Sjodin, Kristen Monkman, and long time assistant Ryan Sjodin; to Randy Zimmer and Neil Jennissen for going out of their way to share their knowledge on building wrestling programs in small towns and more importantly being great mentors; to Josh Hugley and Brady Hermel for being themselves! Finally, thank you to Jeff Ollestad for taking over the Mora wrestling program; it’s in good hands.
Alan Rasmussen (Minneapolis West) – Pioneer Recipient
Alan Rasmussen attended Minneapolis Roosevelt High School, graduating from there in 1943. He joined the United States Navy Air Corps after high school. The war ended the day he was due to ship overseas. In the fall of 1945, Alan started college at the University of Minnesota, as well as joining the wrestling team, which was coached by Dave Bartelma. He competed at 155 lbs. Alan graduated with a teaching degree in the sciences program. He also earned a Master’s Degree in Physics from the U. He started teaching at Minneapolis Folwell Junior High, and then moved to Minneapolis West High School the following year. When West High School closed, he moved over to Minneapolis Washburn High School to continue teaching and assisted Head Wrestling Coach Conrad Emerson. Two years later, Alan took over as the head coach. One of Alan’s teams won the City Championship in the mid-60s. Alan’s concern for kids was evident in the fact that he brought two wrestlers (twin brothers) home to live due to family circumstances. The wrestlers stayed for a year until they were placed in care permanently.
Coaches in the city and in the area met regularly, agreeing on the need for more training for coaches as well as athletes. Jim Short, Jim Simonson, and Roger Zeug and others joined AAU Wrestling. The wives, who formed the Mat Wives Coaches Association, would also meet to support and develop the necessary people to work tournaments (tables, bracketing, scoring) as well as bringing food to sell. These efforts raised enough money to start a scholarship fund. The first recipient was Todd Nelson (eventual father to former Gopher heavyweight Tony Nelson).
Alan retired from teaching in 1980 and started to build. He took on a variety of projects: a cabin up north on Big Deep Lake near Hackensack, MN, as well as jungle gyms for the growing list of grandkids. Alan married Carol Keeler, and they raised four kids: Mary Christensen-White, Marc Rasmussen, Marcy Podkopacz (PhD), and Mack Rasmussen. Marc wrestled at Bloomington Kennedy, and Mack wrestled at Bloomington Jefferson under Charlie Coffee. Mary’s sons (Carl and Kiel Christensen) wrestled for Charlie Coffee as well, and remain friends today. Mary has grandkids wrestling out of Harrisburg, Oregon, where Carl resides. Marc’s son, David Rasmussen, wrestled at Eastview. It was a “family event” when Jefferson wrestled Eastview because it meant the cousins would wrestle. According to Mary, “This was the only time my parents would be ‘quiet’ during a match.”
Today Alan resides in a memory care facility in Golden Valley.
Paul Conrad (Kerkhoven) – Pioneer Recipient
Paul Conrad, a first-year math instructor at Kerkhoven High School and a recent graduate of Gustavus College, was approached in the fall of 1963 with the idea of starting a wrestling program by then-Superintendent E.W. Solyst. The foyer in the rear of the old high school auditorium (torn down in 1996), between the trophy case and the seating area, became the team’s practice area. Tumbling mats were laid down and tied together. There is really no way of learning just how many boys showed up for early practices that November, but 17 survived long enough for the team picture that appears in the 1964 yearbook, ‘The Eagle.’ One of the famous Kerkhoven stories goes that Coach Conrad and Athletic Director Chuck Fering paid a visit to the Waldemar Haglund farm on a recruiting trip. That trip turned up huge dividends, although not evident right away. The boys that Paul and Chuck were after was Larry, a freshman, and Henry, an 8th grader. Waldemar was willing to allow the boys to give it a try, “but only one of them can practice at a time because I need them home to help with chores.”
One of the 17 boys on the first team joined wrestling after being in basketball for five-and-a-half years. It is likely that there are many KMS athletes who started a varsity basketball game and wrestled in the District tournament in the same season! There were 6 duel meets that first season, all considered exhibition. The first was at Cosmos before the Eagles would take on New London and Clara City twice each, and another with Bellingham. Anticipation ran high as those brand new three-piece Royal blue and white wrestling uniforms were passed out. The outer uniform consisted of leggings, which were blue tights that went on first. Next came a sleeveless men’s underwear-type blue top that snapped in the crotch like a toddler’s ‘onesie’. This was topped off by white shorts.
The first wrestler up for Kerkhoven was 7th grader at 93 lbs. Dean Shuck. He lost by a decision. Gary Welch, a freshman at 112 lbs., got the team on the board with a forfeit. Gary Watkins recorded the Eagles’ first-ever on-the-mat win with a decision. Sophomore Allen Lesteberg recorded Kerkhoven’s first-ever pin, as well as seniors Dan Iverson and Paul Smith getting pins as well. Also in the lineup were seniors David Weimerskirch and Gene Quale, as well as Dale Erickson, a sophomore. Cosmos would go on to win the meet, 33-23. A pin was five points in those days, three for a decision and a tie was good for two points to each team. A huge crowd packed the Kerkhoven High School on Monday, February 23, 1964, for the Eagles’ first-ever home wrestling meet. Jerry Slatery, the Willmar Junior College Wrestling Coach, was the official that night. Kerkhoven avenged an earlier loss to New London, winning 27-19, and their record that first year was 3-3. They competed at the end of the season at the District 20 tournament in Cokato. No one advanced to the Region 5 tournament. The next season, Paul coached the wrestlers to a 12-10 record. Coach Conrad moved on after the 1965 season. He took a teaching job in Park-Cottage Grove, and his involvement with wrestling went dormant for two years. He then, in 1967, took a job in Burnsville and was supposed to be the assistant coach, but that summer the head coach was killed in an accident and Paul was named the head coach. During his first year at Burnsville, his record was 10-4, and they won the Eden Prairie Holiday Tournament. They were crowned Missota Conference Champions. The next year, they hired a new head coach, and Paul became the assistant. In 1973, Dennis Braaten became Kerkhoven’s first state entrant (along with Jerry Baker). Dennis made the state finals, as did Bob Shandle from Burnsville, whom Paul Conrad coached and became a state champion that year at 132 lbs., and he would win it again as a senior.
Paul is now living in Burnsville, MN. He and his wife Marcia (deceased) have 2 kids, son Steve and daughter Karen. He has five grandkids.
MWCA Awards Recipients:
MWCA Awards Recipients’ biographies by Bill Schmidt
Matt Buysse – Minneota
Class A Wrestling Coach of the Year
Matt Buysee, son of Tom and Laura Buysse, was born and raised on a farm near Minneota, along with three sisters who all played volleyball and basketball. His younger sister, Ellen, also served as a statistician on the wrestling team. Tom is a farmer, and Laura works at U.S. Bank in Marshall. Matt started wrestling as a second grader under the direction of Kevin Fier and Matt Myrvik. In high school, Joel Skillings, Matt Myrvik, Les Engler, Drew Bouwman, and Kris Fier were all instrumental in helping Matt develop his wrestling skills as well as a love for the sport, not only as an athlete, but in his aspirations to coach. Matt was a solid wrestler for Coach Skillings, winning 134 matches along with two conference titles and three state tournament appearances.
Buysse was also an outstanding football player for Minneota, playing quarterback and safety on some good football teams and was a two-time All-Conference selection. Matt was also a three-time All-Conference performer in baseball as a shortstop and a pitcher. After graduation, Buysse enrolled at the University of Jamestown in North Dakota, where he wrestled for one year, compiling an 18-10 record at 184#. Matt also played football for five years at the strong safety position while earning a Health and Fitness degree along with a coaching certificate.
Matt and his wife, Kaley, whom he met at Jamestown, headed out to Colorado for a couple of years, where Matt served as Head Fitness Trainer at Gold’s Gym and Kaley worked as a middle school math teacher. Matt coached football at Vista Ridge and wrestling at Liberty High School during those two years.
Matt and Kaley returned to Minneota, where Kaley was hired to teach 5th and 6th-grade math, and Matt worked in construction. Matt was immediately hired to coach football at Minneota, where he continues to coach quarterbacks, defensive backs, and JV Defense. Over the past 11 years, Matt has been a part of seven State Football Championships at Minneota. Matt also coached wrestling under Jesse Nelson at Southwest Minnesota State University for one season before joining the Minneota wrestling staff under Coach Skillings. Since 2015, Matt has had the privilege of coaching 74 State qualifiers, 31 State place-winners, and 2 Individual State Champions. It has truly been an honor for Matt to coach wrestling alongside his former coaches throughout the years, including Head Coach Joel Skillings and assistant coaches Matt Myrvik, Drew Bouwman, Kris Fier, and Les Engler.
When Coach Skillings stepped down as Head Wrestling Coach in 2019, Matt Myrvik took over the head duties, and Buysse joined him as Co-Head Coach in 2022. Since the two Matts have joined forces, the Minneota grapplers have compiled an 89-20 dual meet record and recently garnered a fourth-place finish in this past State Wrestling Tournament.
Matt went back to get a Master’s Degree in Ag Education and serves as an Agriculture teacher and FFA Advisor, while Kaley has continued teaching 5th and 6th grade math and serves as Head
Volleyball Coach at Minneota. Matt and Kaley have three boys – Ryker (8), Maddox (7), and Kayson (4) — who are already very active in wrestling.
Matt Myrvik – Minneota
Class A Wrestling Coach of the Year
Matt Myrvik, son of Paul and Mary Ellen Myrvik, was born and raised in Minneota, where Paul worked in construction, and Mary Ellen worked in retail and later at Minneota High School. Matt was a solid football player and wrestler. He had an overall record of 114-47 in his high school career and was a state qualifier for Coach Joel Skillings. After graduating from high school, Matt attended Southwest State in Marshall. After a year at Southwest, Matt went into the sporting goods business and has continued to sell sporting equipment and apparel for the past thirty years and currently works for Borch’s Sporting Goods company. Matt was hired as an assistant in football and wrestling in 1997 and has coached wrestling at the youth, junior high, and varsity levels for the past thirty years. When Joel Skillings retired in 2018, Matt took over the head duties, and after three years, Matt was joined by Matt Buysse and they have served as Co-Head Coaches for the past four years. The Minneota wrestlers have been knocking at the door in the section for the past few years with BBE and Canby blocking their path, but this year were able to break through with a section title and their first State Tournament appearance in ten years. This year’s team, led by a couple of awesome captains, fought through injuries and setbacks throughout the season and put it all together at tournament time. After a first-round win over LeSueur-Henderson, Minneota fell short 34-27 to Chatfield and lost a 30-27 heartbreaker to Jackson County, but were proud of their effort throughout the section and state tournament.
Myrvik’s career record in his seven years as head coach is 145-44 with 37 state qualifiers and 16 place-winners. As an assistant to Joel Skillings, Matt had the privilege of working with seven state tournament teams – two fourth-place finishes, three third-place finishes, and one state championship. He was also grateful for the opportunity to serve as Minneota’s offensive coordinator for a program that has garnered eight State Football Championships. Myrvik has received numerous Conference, Section, and State Assistant Football Coach of the Year Awards, including the prestigious Broyles Award in 2022, and is a three-time recipient of the NYWA Wrestling Coach of the Year Award.
As Matt explained the Minneota program philosophy, he made it clear that the pursuit of excellence is an ongoing mission and that Youth, Junior High, JV, and Varsity Coaches are all on equal footing when it comes to their importance in developing that program. We don’t put labels on our coaches according to the level of wrestlers they work with. Everyone on the wrestling staff is referred to as “Coach” in the Minneota Wrestling Program. While coaching awards are a significant honor, they are truly a reflection of our entire program – made up of our athletes, parents, coaches, and support staff – including teachers and administrators, as well as the community.
Matt met his wife, Patty, at Southwest State, and she served as an athletic trainer at SMSU for 25 years before taking over the Athletic Director position at Minneota. Matt and Patty have three children. Son Owen is a sophomore at Minneota and wrestled on the state qualifying team. Daughter Taryn is an eighth grader, and son Jacob is a sixth grader.
Kevin Briggs – New Ulm
Class AA Wrestling Coach of the Year
Kevin Briggs, son of Lyle and Kathy Briggs, was born and raised in Cornell, Wisconsin (near Chippewa Falls), along with brothers Mike and Craig, and sisters Stacy and Ashley.
Kevin excelled in football, wrestling, and baseball, placing 5th and 2nd in the Wisconsin State Wrestling Tournament and was named a WIAA Scholar Athlete
in 2001. After graduating from High School, Kevin enrolled at UW-LaCrosse, where he earned a Science degree and later added a degree in Education.
After graduating from LaCrosse, Briggs worked as a carpenter in the LaCrosse area for a couple of years and married Nicole, who was born and raised in New Ulm. In 2013, Kevin was hired to teach Science at New Ulm High School, where he coached football and wrestling. After serving as an assistant from 2014 through 2020, Briggs took over the head wrestling position and has just completed his 6th year at the helm. In that time, the team has qualified 25 wrestlers for state, with 14 finishing on the podium. The team has shown steady improvement over those six years, making it to the final four of Section 3AA in four of the six years.
This past season, his New Ulm wrestlers broke through and qualified for the state tournament for the second time in program history and made it all the way to the state final match before losing to perennial powerhouse Simley. The team won 26 dual meets on the season, one more than they won in 2024. Briggs was named Section Wrestling Coach of the year in both 2024 and also this year before being named the 2026 Minnesota Class AA State Wrestling Coach of the year.
This year’s wrestling team won both the dual meet conference title as well as the individual conference tournament, knocking off an outstanding Jackson County team 39-20 in the conference dual meet finals, defeating a very good Marshall team 31-23 in the Section finals and continued to wrestle well all the way through the state wrestling tournament. Between the boys’ and girls’ wrestling teams, New Ulm had 12 All-Conference performers, most in school history. Kevin’s overall varsity record stands at 129-42. Briggs gives credit to his coaching staff, along with the 13 seniors who stuck with the program throughout their wrestling careers, culminating in a tremendous final season.
Kevin and his wife, Niclole, who manages Jensen Motors in New Ulm, have three children. Son Camdon, who was named to the State All-tournament Team at 160# and qualified individually at 172#, daughter McKenna, a future New Ulm volleyball player who is even more athletic than her brother, and Laken, a pre-schooler who plays baseball and just completed his first season as a wrestler.
Geoff Staab – Northfield
Class AAA Wrestling Coach of the Year
Geoff Staab, son of Anton (Tony) and Harriet (Hatsy) Staab, was born and raised in Barnagat, New Jersey, along with two older brothers, Mark and Chris, and one younger brother, Mike. Tony worked for IBM, and when he had an opportunity to move west, he thought Rochester, Minnesota, would be a good place to raise his family.
Tony also thought the sport of Hockey would be something the boys should do if they were going to live in Minnesota, but he had a good friend by the name of Virgil Andrist, whose sons were wrestlers, and so Geoff ended up playing football in the fall, hockey in the winter, and baseball along with wrestling in the spring. Geoff really enjoyed both Freestyle and Greco, but never got the chance to wrestle folkstyle in the winter because of hockey. He was an OK hockey player, but looking back, he regrets not having the opportunity to wrestle as a winter sport.
After graduating from Rochester Mayo High School, Geoff enrolled at the U of M, Duluth, where he earned a major in Math Education. Staab was hired to teach Mathematics at Lakeville High School and served as an assistant wrestling coach under Wayne Otto for two years, followed by Shaun Murphy for seven years, and then served as Co-head wrestling coach with Paul Donner for four years.
Geoff’s wife, Cheri, was first hired to teach Social Studies in New Ulm, then was hired to teach AP World History in Faribault, where she has remained for the past 24 years. With Northfield being between Lakeville and Faribault, they decided to buy a house in Northfield in 2003. Mark Woitalla talked Staab into coming down to Northfield in 2013 as Geoff’s kids were wrestling in the Northfield youth wrestling club. After two years as Mark’s assistant, Geoff took over the reins and has just completed his tenth year as Northfield’s head coach.
Staab has also served as the 8th and 9th grade football coach and currently coaches the Varsity and JV Offensive Line since coming to Northfield, and his wrestling team has qualified for state four times (placing 5th in both 2019 and 2022) in his ten years at the helm. This past year, his team battled to take close wins over Albert Lea and Rochester Century in the Section Tournament, but lost to Shakopee and Apple Valley at State. Geoff was proud of this team in that just qualifying for state was a major accomplishment.
Staab has taught Calculus, Algebra II, and Geometry at Lakeville and Northfield for the past
25 years and for the past seven years has had the privilege of teaching AP Calculus, which he has thoroughly enjoyed.
Geoff is grateful for the opportunity to serve as a wrestling coach and feels he has a wonderful coaching staff with everyone contributing to the success of the team. He is grateful to Paul Donner, Shawn Murphy, and Mark Woitalla for their comradery and for providing him the chance to coach wrestling alongside them.
Geoff and Cheri have two sons – Collin, a three-sport athlete at Northfield (currently a freshman at Mankato State), was looking forward to his final year of wrestling for his dad, but blew his knee out in football and needed surgery, so it was a tough winter. His knee has healed up, and he is moving on to the next chapter in his life. Caden is a junior and just capped his wrestling season off with a third-place finish at State.
Tim Haneberg – Hastings
Class AAA Wrestling Coach of the Year
Tim Haneberg, son of John and Gail Haneberg, was born and raised in Tinley Park, Illinois (a southern suburb of Chicago), along with his brother Sean and sister Maureen. His introduction to wrestling came as a first grader when his dad took him to his first youth wrestling practice. Tim took an immediate interest in the sport and continued wrestling through his elementary and junior high years. In addition to his parents, Tim cites grandpa Jim Gallagher as a huge positive influence in his life. Haneberg attended Marist High School and was fortunate to have an outstanding wrestling coach by the name of Mark Gervais. Tim also had a strong connection with assistant wrestling coach Brad Janacek, who was a great coach, mentor, and role model. Coach Janacek was also a house painter, and Tim did some painting with him while in high school and then a couple more years while attending Millikin University, where Tim wrestled for two seasons before transferring to Minnesota State University-Mankato. Tim thoroughly enjoyed his time in Mankato, where he spent two years wrestling under Jim Makovsky and met some great wrestlers and coaches like Ty Eustice, Mathias Bitz, Jon May, Andy Schmalzriedt, and Mike Niemczyk. Haneberg qualified for the Division II National Tournament at 133# as a senior and was blessed to be part of two outstanding teams with the Mavericks placing 2nd and 3rd at Nationals during his time there.
Haneberg graduated from Mankato with a Physical Education/Adapted Phy.Ed. degree and was hired as a teacher in the Hastings school district, where he served as an assistant wrestling coach (ninth grade) for eight years before taking over the head duties in the 2019-2020 season. Hastings takes pride in their lower-level programs and were Ninth Grade State Team Champions in 2014. The Raiders have won the Section Team Title nine out of the past ten years, as well as the State Team Title in 2023 and four top six finishes in the past seven years. Throughout Haneberg’s tenure as head wrestling coach, the Hastings Raiders have qualified 66 boys and 23 girls for the State Tournament with 28 All-State wrestlers and four State Champions: Blake Beissel, Trey Beissel, Skyler Little Soldier, and Beckett Edstrom.
Tim points out that none of this happens without a great coaching staff. Paul Vaith and Josh McLay, both former Hastings head coaches and Hall of Fame members, bring a ton of expertise along with enthusiasm to the program. Coaches Pete Kranz, Luke Vaith, Isaac Eichmann, Chris Cook, Paul Kendall, Rico Cooper, and George Lynaugh provide outstanding instruction and mentorship for both boys and girls who wrestle for Hastings, along with unwavering support from Athletic Director Trent Hanson.
This group of coaches shares Haneberg’s philosophy, which states: “I coach in order to create an opportunity for my athletes to strengthen their GRIT while developing a positive mental attitude and a strong work ethic. These three qualities enable our athletes to better serve their family, school, and community.” Tim is proud to carry on the Hastings Wrestling tradition of the two vital keys to success: a positive mental attitude and a strong work ethic.
Haneberg is blessed to have the love and support of his wife, Maria, and daughters Hadley (11), Harleigh (8), and Hollis (5). Tim also wanted to give a shout-out to Grandpa Jim Gallagher, who passed away in 2009, but whose wisdom and kindness will never be forgotten.
Chad Curry – Chatfield
Assistant Coach of the Year
Chad Curry, son of Rick and Pam Curry, was born and raised in Chatfield, Minnesota, along with older sisters Nicole and Sheena and younger brothers Zach and Josh. Chad decided to go out for wrestling at the encouragement of his best friend, Justin Erickson. Chad wrestled on the varsity team at 103# as an eighth grader and continued to grow and climb weights, finishing as a 152# senior. Curry qualified for state four times, finishing 6th as a junior and second as a senior, losing to former Mr. Minnesota, Kevin Steinhaus from KMS, in the State Finals. Curry was also an all-conference football player as a linebacker and an offensive guard.
After graduating from Chatfield High School, Chad went to work in the family rain gutter business. Chad has recently bought the business from his dad, and his wife, Amanda, has taken over the office duties from Chad’s mother, Pam. Curry continued to put his wrestling skills to good use in mixed martial arts and, after a couple of years, turned pro and saw considerable success, garnering the #1 ranking in his weight class in Minnesota and climbing to a #5 ranking in the USA. Chad also holds a black belt in Jiu-Jitsu. Chad is in his seventh year as an assistant wrestling coach under Matt Mauseth after volunteering for a year. He is appreciative of the great coaching and mentoring he received from Joel Viss and is grateful for the opportunity to coach wrestling alongside Matt Mauseth and Travis Bartels, who he feels are both outstanding coaches and great people. Chad and Amanda have three children. Son Shane, a junior, is an excellent gymnast and will be competing at Regionals in Portland in March with hopes of qualifying for Nationals in Oklahoma City in April. Son Killian, a fifth grader, is a football player and a wrestler, and daughter Adeline, a second grader, participates in soccer and gymnastics.
Chatfield Head Wrestling Coach Matt Mauseth describes Curry as “the consummate assistant wrestling coach,” explaining that Chad shares his wrestling knowledge as well as his professional-level nutritional and sports psychology expertise that he gained in his mixed martial arts training. In Mauseth’s words, “Chad truly does it all – from showing technique to running practice to working individually and mentoring as well as providing lessons on wrestling mindset and mental preparation. Curry sacrifices time from his business to help out at every level of the wrestling program, including the youth program. Chad has been one of the main contributors to the success that the Chatfield wrestling program has enjoyed in recent years, helping to produce 33 State Qualifiers, 17 place-winners, 9 finalists and 6 individual state champions, along with three straight Team Finals appearances and a Team State Title. Chatfield’s overall dual meet record since Chad joined our program is 103-14. Curry is an incredibly reliable and critical piece of the Chatfield Wrestling Coaching Staff.”
Caley Graber – Northfield
Ms. Minnesota Wrestler of the Year
Caley Graber, daughter of Jesse and Deb Graber, was born in Lonsdale, Minnesota, and the family moved to Northfield when Caley was in pre-school. Older brother Riley was a wrestler and started teaching Caley some moves when she was four years old. By first grade, Caley was going to tournaments and was seeing considerable success and really buying into the sport. Younger brother Jacob followed suit.
Caley wrestled in the Northfield club all the way through eighth grade, as she was not big enough to wrestle at the High School, and competed mainly against boys, but continued to hold her own. As a Freshman, Caley wrestled with the varsity at 106# and went 25-6 on the year against pretty much all boys, but wrestled at 100# in the girls’ section and State Tournament and dominated the competition with her first State Title. The following year, she had a similar record on the boys’ team and decided to stay with the boys’ section and State Tournament and came through with a fifth-place finish at state, losing to the eventual state champ by a 4-1 score and then losing in the semifinals of the wrestle-backs in overtime before securing 5th place. It was the first time a girl had ever placed in the Minnesota Boys State Tournament.
As a junior, Caley went up another weight class to 121# and decided to go back to the girls’ tournament at 118# as the competition was starting to get quite a bit better. Graber breezed through the section tournament and dominated the competition at State, winning all her matches by either a pin or a technical fall. Caley finished her senior season with another state title and again dominated the field with all technical falls in the State Tournament.
Head Wrestling Coach Geoff Staab had this to say about Graber, “Caley Graber’s work ethic is second to none. She leads by example in our wrestling room. The fact that she was one of the captains on our boys’ team speaks volumes. Caley puts in countless hours above and beyond what is required with an attitude that is always positive and upbeat. Caley Graber is truly one of the pioneers in Girls’ Wrestling in the state of Minnesota.”
As she looks back on her club and high school wrestling career, she is grateful for the support provided by her mom and dad throughout the years, as well as the guidance and support of her brother Riley. She was also thankful for all of her Summit Wrestling Club coaches, headed up by David Elson. It has been a great ride so far, and Caley will continue wrestling at McKendree University in Illinois and plans to major in Exercise Science. Competition to make the team will be tough, as McKendree won the Women’s NCAA Wrestling Team Title this past spring.
Titan Friederichs – Watertown-Mayer
Mr. Minnesota Wrestler of the Year
Titan Friederichs was born in Norwood, Minnesota, where he and his twin brother Joel started wrestling when they were three years old. They were allowed to practice for two years before their dad (T.J.) took them to their first tournament. They moved to St. Michael in first grade and then to Watertown in fourth grade. When they were in sixth grade, the boys got to work out with the Watertown-Mayer High School team a couple of times per week and officially started their High School careers as 7th graders on the J.V. team as Titan and Joel were both below the minimum weight required to wrestle on varsity at 107 lbs.
Titan’s first year on varsity as an eighth grader went very well, culminating with a Section Title, but he got caught and pinned in a cradle the first round at state by Robby Sherk from Park Rapids (coached by Matt Clark and Jeff Dravis), then Robby lost his next match, and Titan was done. A wrestler that he had beaten twice, including the section finals, finished 2nd at State.
That was Titan Friederichs’ last loss in High School. He went on to win four state titles with four undefeated seasons. Titan did not just win, he dominated the competition. After giving up only eight takedowns as an eighth grader, Titan gave up just one in the next four years. In his five varsity seasons, which included three team tournament appearances, five individual tournaments, and three Christmas tournaments, Titan accumulated an overall record of 234-3 with all three of those losses coming in his eighth-grade year. His winning percentage of 98.7% is the highest in Minnesota Wrestling History, edging out Gable Steveson, Mark Hall, and Brady Berge, to name a few. Twin brother Joel, a four-time place-winner, three-time Finalist, and two-time state champion, is close behind in every category.
Titan’s wrestling highlights include his four state titles, but the State Team Tournament appearances with his fellow Watertown-Mayer wrestlers at the Big Show were even more gratifying, and the State Team Championship in 2025 was the ultimate wrestling highlight for Friederichs. Co-Head Coach Bill McDonald describes Titan as extremely disciplined and conscientious, but a kid who loves to have fun with his teammates. When asked by a fellow coach what it’s like to coach kids like Titan and Joel, Bill replied, “I don’t coach them anymore, I study them.” The Friederichs twins are both going to the University of Minnesota next year to continue their wrestling careers. If you saw the piece on them on the Channel Four Sports a few weeks ago, you heard them say that they decided a long time ago that they were going to be a package deal and that they both felt they had made the other a better wrestler – Iron Sharpens Iron.
Titan feels extremely fortunate to have had so many outstanding coaches, mentors, and practice partners throughout his high school career, including Jake Saatzer, Dakota Trom, and Jeff Wichern, as well as his current high school coaches, Bill McDonald and Kurt Becker.
Through it all, he cannot give enough credit to his dad (T.J.), twin brother Joel, and uncle Ty (four-time state Champ for Kenny Droegemueller at Osseo) who have provided him with guidance, comradery, and unconditional support throughout his life.
Above all, the love and sacrifice of his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, has made everything possible for Titan and twin-brother Joel in this life on earth.
Brian Clark – Norwood-Young America
Lifetime Achievement Recipient
Brian Clark, son of Clayton and Elsie Clark, was born and raised in Norwood, along with his older sister, Dawn and his younger brothers, Bruce and Brad. When he was 11 years old, Brian’s best friend Lars talked him into going to a youth wrestling practice on Saturday morning. When Brad explained that he was really more of a basketball player, Lars flatly stated, “basketball is for sissies”. Brian agreed to accompany his friend to wrestling practice and was hooked immediately. There was something about one-on-one combat that was both exhilarating and challenging.
When Brian got to seventh grade, he wrestled in the junior high program. They practiced on the auditorium stage and had to roll out and roll up mats for every practice. The junior high wrestlers all looked forward to the day they could practice in the senior high wrestling room. Brian got called up as an eighth grader and got to wrestle a handful of times on the varsity team, logging a 4-4 record at 126#. The following year, he went up to 138# and won the varsity spot (could not beat the varsity 132-pounder), and went to 132# as a sophomore and was a District 12 Champ. As a junior, Brian won the District and Region at 138#, but came up just short of placing at State, going 2-2 in the tournament.
Clark returned to State at 138# as a Senior and lost a hard-fought match to Dennis Stoks in the quarterfinals, but came back strong to take third place at State. Clark felt fortunate to have wrestled for a couple of great coaches in Darroel Damman and Leeland Decker. Brian also participated in Track and Football, playing fullback and linebacker. Clark served as a Football captain and was a two-time All-Conference selection.
After graduating from Central High School, Clark enrolled at Concordia, Moorhead and wrestled with a great group of guys, including Mark Jensen, Tom Gruhlke, and Barry Bennett. Brian was a solid performer at Concordia, finishing with a .500 record and learning a lot. Clark graduated from Concordia with majors in Medical Technology and Chemistry and was hired by a company in Minnetonka to work on chemical analysis of printed circuit boards, and currently works in Chaska in the same area.
Brian started his coaching career volunteering with Darroel Dammann’s varsity squad, as he had a couple of brothers on the team, and also served as a wrestling official for a little over ten years. Coach Damman asked him to work with Matt Clark (no relation) at the junior high level for a couple of years before bringing him up as a varsity assistant. Brian assisted Coach Dammann for 14 years before Darroel retired, then served under five other head coaches, including the present head coach, Jordan Voigt. Brian was working in Chaska and had to bust it over to NYA every day for practice, but the number of practices he had to miss over the past 36 years can be counted on one hand. For many wrestlers, especially those with a tough home life, wrestling practice was a safe haven where they felt a family connection, and Brian made an effort to make sure every kid felt part of the NYA wrestling family. There were a few times when Brian thought it might be time to hang up his coaching shoes and let a younger guy take his spot, but about that time a new head coach came on board, and Brian felt a responsibility to make sure some continuity was maintained in the program and there would not be any opportunity for a wrestler to fall through the cracks. He also understood that each head coach would be bringing his own philosophy to the program, and he wanted to make sure the transition went smoothly for every wrestler on the team.
Brian married a girl from Norwood-Young America by the name of Roberta, who has worked in the financial office at Waste Management for the past 43 years. Brian and Berta have two children, Reid and Kali. Reid and his wife, Gien, live in Rogers along with their son Chandler, a ten-year-old who is a good little athlete playing football, baseball, and basketball (for now).
Chris Donnay – Rogers
Lifetime Achievement Recipient
Chris Donnay, son of Roger and Pat Donnay, was born and raised in Glencoe, Minnesota, along with his sister Kelly and brother Ryan. Roger worked as a parts manager for Ford, and Pat was a bank manager. Together, they managed a Pizza Ranch, so there was not much downtime in that household.
Chris started wrestling as a kindiebeaner in Jim Beshey’s youth program, but the family moved to Elk River when Chris was in seventh grade. Donnay continued wrestling and also played football and baseball up through tenth grade. Chris decided to concentrate on wrestling and started wrestling Freestyle and Greco in the spring. Donnay was not an outstanding wrestler for Elk River, but was a three-year letter-winner and a steady performer for wrestling coaches Steve Vevea, Ken Jordan, and Mark Huss. Mark is currently Donnay’s Principal at Rogers.
After graduating from Elk River, Donnay enrolled at Anoka-Ramsey and finished up at St. Cloud State, graduating with a Social Studies degree. Donnay came back to Elk River and served as an assistant wrestling coach under Kenny Jordan while subbing in the Elk River district. Chris was grateful for the opportunity to spend another year with his brother Ryan in the wrestling room and to be at mat-side when Ryan took 3rd place at State. After a year, Chris was hired to teach Social Studies at the middle school level, and when the Rogers High School was built, he transferred over to Rogers Middle School and served as the Middle School wrestling coach until 2012, when he took over as the Rogers head wrestling coach. When Donnay started coaching, the Rogers varsity program only had 9 wrestlers on the squad. Now they are over 50 in the wrestling room.
Donnay also coached baseball at Elk River Middle School and then a couple more years at Rogers before becoming the assistant softball coach at Rogers High School. The softball program at Rogers has flourished in recent years, bringing home a state title in 2024.
Chris and his wife, Renea, who serves as a special education instructor at Rogers Middle School, have three sons. Oldest son Tyler manages a barista. Tanner, a computer science major, lives in Lanesboro with his wife, Claire, who has a counseling degree. Youngest son Trey works with disabled veterans.
As Chris looks back on his career, he is grateful for the opportunity to coach at every level of wrestling. In his short time as a varsity head coach, he has worked with 40 state qualifiers and six place-winners, with at least one state entrant every year, with a high-water mark of seven in 2014. In the last wrestling match of his coaching career, Donnay had the distinct pleasure of being in the coach’s chair in the State Finals with heavyweight Sawyer Josewski. Chris has also felt pride in being part of the Rogers wrestling family and has been able to bring back many of his former wrestlers to be members of the wrestling coaching staff. One of his all-time coaching highlights did not happen at mat-side. After Chris McAlpine qualified for the state tournament as a sophomore, he gave Donnay a bear hug and thanked him for giving him a great start as a wrestler and said, “Coach Donnay, if not for you, I would never have accomplished my wrestling goals.” Chris McAlpine went on to be a two-time state champion for Elk River.