Clash XV notebook: Cougars go 2-1 on opening day

Zumbrota-Mazeppa coach Link Steffen hoped his team could finish in the top 15 at the Clash National Wrestling Duals over the weekend at UCR Regional Sports Center.

Steffen knew that would require an incredible effort and a near-perfect performance in the Cougars' opening-round dual. That's because the No. 7-seeded Cougars faced nationally ranked No. 2 seed Roseburg of Oregon right off the bat Friday morning.

That dual did not go in Z-M's favor, however, the Cougars owned the rest of the day.

Z-M won its final two duals to claim a spot in the Fifth Bracket Five today, which is the top bracket in the morning session. Z-M will wrestle at 9 a.m., 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. again today, and it can finish as well as 17th and no lower than 20th.

"We wanted to be in the top 15, but going against a No. 2 seed, we knew that was going to be tough," Steffen said. "There were some things we could have done better in that dual, but I'm sure they're thinking the same thing. Overall, I'm very pleased. I thought we wrestled well in those last two duals."

Z-M opened Friday's action with a 44-19 loss to Roseburg, but it bounced back with a 36-28 victory over No. 6 seed Glenbard North, which has long been a power in Illinois.

Finally, the Cougars wrapped up a successful day at Clash XV with a 34-21 victory over Hastings, which was a No. 4 seed and ranked No. 8 in Class AAA.

"That's a tough AAA team, so we had some kids battle and got the job done," Steffen said.

Z-M had three unbeaten wrestlers on Day 1. Freshman Michael Majerus turned in an impressive effort, going 3-0 at 106 pounds. Not only did Majerus go 3-0, but he scored bonus points in all three matches with two pins and a major decision.

"Michael is getting better every day, every time he's on the mat," Steffen said. "For him to come here and wrestle well isn't necessarily a surprise, but it's impressive. He's aggressive and fearless."

Jarret Haglund also was 3-0 Friday. Though he weighs in at 220, Haglund wrestled all three matches up at heavyweight and he took out some solid competition.

"He's such a coachable kid, he listens and then you see him do it, and that's a fun thing to see as a coach," Steffen said.

Caden Steffen also went unbeaten (2-0) Friday. He did not wrestle in the first dual of the day, partially due to a match-count issue.

Thanks to Z-M upsetting higher seeded teams in its final two duals Friday, that means Saturday won't be any easier. Owatonna, Corona del Sol (Ariz.) and De La Salle (Calif.) will join Z-M in Bracket Five today.

"We're looking forward to it; it should be a good challenge, lots of good duals," Steffen said.

Knights go 1-2

Kenyon-Wanamingo made a serious upset bid in its opening-round dual during the night session of Clash XV.

The Knights did enough to push No. 2-seeded and nationally ranked Washington, Ill., all the way until the final match of the dual. With K-W trailing 31-29, the winner of the final match would win the dual.

Jaeden Sokolowski gave a good effort against a solid Washington wrestler, but it wasn't enough as Washington escaped with a decision win and a dual win, 34-29.

After that, K-W ran into another outstanding team in Corona del Sol of Arizona. The Knights struggled in close matches again, and Corona del Sol pulled away late for a 38-19 victory.

Wins by Bray Olson (113), Jeron Matson (120) and Bradley Kish (132) allowed the Knights to pull within 10 points with three matches remaining. But Corona del Sol won the final three matches to put it away.

The No. 7-seeded Knights finally found some success in the final dual of the evening session. Thanks to early pins from Matthew Houglum (170), Peyton Hilke (182) and Kaya Lindell (220) and a forfeit to Logan Quam (195), the Knights built a massive early lead against Thompson, Ala., in the final round. K-W added to that lead and finished with a 57-19 victory over the No. 8 seed.

"I thought we wrestled well in the first dual," K-W coach Matt Ryan said. "We lost some close matches, and you just can't do that here. Those were the difference. But like I said going in, you come here so you get exposed, and we got exposed a little bit on (Friday). That's good for our young kids. Some of that youth showed at times."

The win over Thompson put K-W in the Seventh Bracket this morning. Glenbard North (Ill.), Hermiston (Ore.) and Foley are joining the Knights in the Seventh Bracket. K-W already has a one-point win over Foley this season.

"It'll be some good, intense duals, and it's a chance to show what we're made of," Ryan said. "That's what this event is all about. We'll find out how tough we really are."

Three K-W wrestlers were a perfect 3-0 on the day -- Dylan Craig, Matson and Kish. Matson scored bonus points in every match, recording two pins and a major decision.

"Overall, I'm not too disappointed, I thought we wrestled well for most of the day," Ryan said. "We came here to figure out what we needed to improve on, and we're seeing a few of those things, and now these young kids have some very specific examples to look at and learn from."

K-W, like Z-M, will wrestle at 9 a.m., 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. today.

Upset central

The biggest upset of the day came bright and early Friday morning. Anoka's Tyler Eischens had nothing to lose in his showdown with Austin Gomez of Glenbard North, which is a perennial Illinois power.

Gomez is ranked No. 2 in the nation at 138 pounds. Eischens came in unranked.

But Eischens dominated a wild match that saw both competitors on their backs briefly in the third period. When the dust settled, Eischens had his hand raised following an 11-4 victory.

Eischens was a state runner-up in Minnesota last season, and the junior is sure to find a spot in the national rankings following his big upset.

Hall of fame

The Clash announced its inaugural Hall of Fame class during Friday's morning session.

Four athletes were inducted Friday -- Destin McCauley of Apple Valley, Tony Ramos of Glenbard North (Ill.), Cyler Sanderson of Wasatch (Utah) and Mike Thorn of St. Michael-Albertville.

Glenbard North coach Mark Hahn of Glenbard North was the lone coach to make the first Hall of Fame class. Founder Steve Patton and longtime recruiter Randy Cirksena also made the Hall as "contributors." Both were instrumental in making the Clash the top dual tournament in the country.

Finally, the Clash created "The Moment" for a special moment in Clash history as part of the Hall ceremony. Honored for the inaugural Hall class moment was the heavyweight showdown between Apple Valley's Trevor Laws and Kyle Devan of Vacaville, Calif., at Clash I. Laws won a thrilling 5-4 decision. Both Laws and Devan went on to play in the NFL.

No. 1 seeds

Three of the four No. 1 seeds advanced to the Championship Bracket today, and one No. 2 seed earned its spot in the finals.

No. 1 seeds Buchanan (Calif.), Lake Highland Prep (Fla.) and St. Edward (Ohio) all moved into the finals with ease. No. 2 seed Park Hill (Mo.) upset No. 1 seed Oak Park River Forest (Ill.) 33-20 in the bracket finals Friday to claim its spot in the Championship Bracket today.

The final session is a round-robin, with teams wrestling at 4 p.m., 6 p.m. and 8 p.m.

1/2: Kenyon-Wanamingo's Logan Quam wrestles Washington's Jack Apgar in a 182-pound match of the first round Friday, Dec. 30, 2016, at The Clash XV at UCR Regional Sports Center in Rochester.

2/2: The Kenyon-Wanamingo bench cheers as Dylan Craig pins Washington's Garett Rich in a 170-pound match of the first round Friday, Dec. 30, 2016, at The Clash XV at UCR Regional Sports Center in Rochester.