Koethe finally reaches the finals

DES MOINES – A house of horrors transformed into a happy home for Justin Koethe.

The Iowa City West senior watched his last two state title bids fall like the opponents he was penalized for illegally slamming in the 2010 quarterfinals and 2011 semifinals.

Koethe avoided any problems in his final chance, advancing to the 160-pound championship by pinning Pleasant Valley's Brady Letney in 44 seconds during Friday's semifinals of the Iowa High School Athletic Association's Class 3A state wrestling tournament at Wells Fargo Arena.

He was ecstatic after exorcising the demons that ended his title runs.

“I feel great right now,” Koethe said. “I've never felt this good in this building ever.”

Koethe hasn't left anything to chance while eliminating his opponents quickly. He opened with an 11-second fall and then advanced to the semifinals with a pin in 2:18 over Clint Underwood of West Des Moines Valley.

“I just came in the tournament with the mindset to go out and just pin everybody,” Koethe said. “Get it over with as fast as I can so I don't have to worry about anything happening.”

Top-ranked Koethe (53-1) faces No. 2 Zeb Wahle (49-2) of Council Bluffs Lewis Central in the finals. The key will be to continue his recent dominance.

“Just go out and wrestle,” Koethe said. “Especially the way I've been wrestling lately.”

Koethe was one of three finalists for the Trojans, who were in third with 102.5 points and only 1.5 ahead of fourth-place Linn-Mar. The team race has narrowed to Bettendorf and Southeast Polk with Bettendorf entering the final day with a 138-129.5 advantage.

West's Phillip Laux (49-3) and Dakota Bauer (51-2) have returned to the finals. Laux, 112-pound champion last year, defeated Cedar Rapids Prairie's Josh Wenger, 6-3, to reach the 113 finals. Bauer, a 2A state champ for Ballard as a freshman who was a runner-up for West last year, avenged a loss to future Iowa State teammate Kyle Larson of West Des Moines Valley, using a third-period takedown for a 3-2 win.

Bauer will meet Cedar Rapids Kennedy's Luke Kremer in the 132-pound championship. Kremer scored a takedown with eight seconds left in sudden-victory period to beat Linn-Mar's Joel Northrup, 4-2.

Kremer said reach the finals is “exciting” and “nerve-racking,” but it is great way to end a season that started with the tragic death of Cougars assistant, Jeff Clark, whose brother, Kyle, was an assistant in Kremer's corner.

“It feels really good,” Kremer said. “We did get off to a shaky start. I know he's here with us … I know he helped in that match.”

Kremer (39-5) scored a reversal in the third for a 2-1 lead, but Northrup's second escape forced overtime. Kremer recognized the urgency to score and finished a shot with time winding down.

“I knew I had to beat him on our feet,” said Kremer, who continued wrestling for a couple seconds after the winning score because he forgot it was overtime. “He would have gotten his choice on the mat and I'm better on my feet.”

Prairie's Chris Walters used an overtime takedown to blaze a trail to the 120-pound finals. Walters scored a takedown with 17 seconds left to spare in overtime for a 3-1 victory over Mason City's second-ranked Andres Gonzalez.

He had been in on takedown attempts earlier in the match but couldn't finish. Walters shot in and exploded to lift Gonzalez off the mat and return him for the win.

“Just an adrenaline rush,” Walters said about that lift. “I gave it everything I had right there.”

Walters lost a 5-3 decision to Gonzalez earlier this season, and owned the confidence to overturn the result when it mattered most.

“I was shocked, excited (and) nervous a little bit,” Walters said about his feelings after the match.

He was joined in the finals by Zach Witte, who trounced Spencer's fourth-ranked Tanner Schaefer, 16-1 in the 152-pound semifinals, helping Prairie to fifth with 73.5.

The Hawks senior seems to be more loose and offensive.

“The first couple matches I was nervous,” Witte said. “I usually don't get nervous. I shouldn't be nervous.”

Witte (22-0) became a three-time state finalist and is trying to become Prairie's first back-to-back champion since Matt Hatcher in 1991-92. He extended his win streak to 66 straight matches, dating back to his sophomore year and faces Southeast Polk's Dylan Blackford (44-3) in the finals. Expect him to keep it simple.

“Don't do anything stupid,” Witte said. “Basics win matches.”

Just like Witte, who started the season out due to a wrist injury, Linn-Mar's Mark Atwater missed the first part of the season due to shoulder surgery. Ever since his return, and adding the disappointment of not qualifying last year, Atwater (31-3) has been working for this moment.

“It's a great feeling, a great crowd and our team's doing well,” Atwater said after his 4-3 win over Southeast Polk's Casey Marnin in the 182 semifinal. “You just can't ask for much more right now.”

The injury may have been a blessing, providing time off to keep his body fresh in the postseason. It has allowed him to perform his best in Des Moines.

“I'm really starting to peak right now,” Atwater said. “I'm wrestling my best matches here. At this point, it's just move on. I've kept doing that and I have to keep doing it.”

Matt Wempen (106) and Ross Lembeck (145) also reached the finals.

Wempen (47-2) defeated Fort Madison's Bryce Meyer, 7-4, to advance to the finals, while Lembeck dropped West's 2010 state runner-up Gradey Gambrall, 5-2.

Lembeck reversed the outcome in the Misissippi Valley Conference championship won by Gambrall. Getting on the scoreboard first was imperative for Lembeck.

“I turned it around,” Lembeck said. “I wanted to score the first takedown and get after it.”

Avenging a loss made reaching his first state championship match even sweeter. Now, Lembeck (48-2) he has to continue his aggressive style for one more match.

“It's so great to get a little payback,” Lembeck said. “I have to be ready for it. I have to come out tough and hopefully score points and get it done.”