Iowa high school wrestling reset: What to watch for in January

The Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union opened 2023 with a notable announcement.

The news gave a clearer picture of the postseason.

Regional assignments were released Wednesday, informing coaches and competitors what state-qualifying tournament they will wrestle on Friday, Jan. 27. The Alliant Energy PowerHouse, Luther College in Decorah, Iowa Events Center in Des Moines and Sioux City’s Tyson Events Center will host two regionals each.

The top four regional finishers at each weight advance to the state tournament Feb. 2-3 at Xtream Arena in Coralville.

Regions 5 and 6 will be held in Cedar Rapids with 25 teams in each tournament. Belle Plaine, Benton Community, Cedar Rapids Jefferson, Cedar Rapids Kennedy, Highland, Independence, Iowa City High, Linn-Mar, Maquoketa, Mid-Prairie, Midland, Mount Vernon, Tipton, Washington (Iowa) and West Liberty are in Region 5.

“I like our regional,” Kennedy Coach Craig Mallicoat said. “There are tough teams and tough girls wrestling that day, and we will have to compete hard to qualify for state, but if you qualify out of our regional, you’re going to make some noise at the state meet. It’s going to be a great day of wrestling.”

Region 6 includes Cedar Rapids Prairie, Cedar Rapids Washington, Central City, Clear Creek Amana, East Buchanan, English Valleys/Tri-County, Iowa City Liberty, Iowa City Regina, Iowa City West, Iowa Valley, Marion, Solon, Vinton-Shellsburg and West Branch.

The Luther regionals are the smallest of all eight. Each field includes 20 programs. Region 7 includes Anamosa, Cascade, Decorah, MFL MarMac, North Fayette Valley, Oelwein, Union Community, West Delaware and Western Dubuque.

Alburnett, Center Point-Urbana, Elkader Central, Postville, South Winneshiek, Starmont and Waukon are the Gazette-area teams in Region 8.

Linn-Mar faces big week

The Linn-Mar boys return to action with some major tests. Linn-Mar, ranked fourth in Class 3A by the Iowa Wrestling Coaches and Officials Association, hosts No. 9 Iowa City High on Thursday. The dual will likely determine the Mississippi Valley Conference Valley Division champion, even though No. 1 Dubuque Hempstead remains in the mix. The Lions already beat Hempstead, 44-27, Dec. 1. The Little Hawks wrestle the Mustangs Jan. 26.

Tucked inside the team competition are some marquee matchups. The 182-pound match could feature City High’s top-ranked Gabe Arnold and Linn-Mar’s No. 2 Tate Naaktgeboren. It would be a rematch between nationally-ranked seniors, following Arnold’s 8-3 decision over Naaktgeboren, 8-3, in the semifinal of the Dan Gable Donnybrook. At 132, the Lions’ No. 3 Brayden Parke could face the Little Hawks’ No. 4 Kael Kurtz. Both are returning state medalists with Parke posting a 5-2 win in the third-place match at the Donnybrook.

The Lions will also face 2A No. 4 Mount Vernon in the Linn-Mar Duals Saturday. Also in the nine-team field is No. 22-ranked Western Dubuque, which is also in the MVC Valley.

Watch for resurgent West Delaware

West Delaware’s boys had a good start, but it hasn’t been as smooth, or successful, as recent seasons. The Hawks have endured injuries in the first half. The break has provided a much-needed break from competition, helping most to recover and ready for a return.

“The first half of the year was a matter of putting our team together,” West Delaware Coach Jeff Voss said. “We had some guys drop weight for the Battle of Waterloo. We had some shifting going on there. The thing that excited me was every kid we had in the lineup battled real hard.

“Now, kids are settling in to their weight classes.”

Voss said West Delaware had nine underclassmen in the lineup for the Battle of Waterloo. They beat good teams and built depth. The Hawks will get state tournament veterans Brent Yonkovic and Logan Peyton back.

“I think that is important coming down the home stretch,” Voss said. “If someone misses a meet, we have someone with experience who can go in there and wrestle hard.”

West Delaware has won the last four Class 2A state duals titles. The Hawks have dropped slightly in the rankings after a tournament loss to 2A No. 1 Osage and dual losses to Linn-Mar, Don Bosco and West Des Moines Valley before the break.

In the next two weeks, West Delaware will compete at Benton Community’s Jerry Eckenrod Bobcat Invitational on Saturday and a tournament at Perry the following weekend. The Hawks also have duals against Wamac foes No. 18 Williamsburg, No. 28 Benton and No. 7 Independence.

“I love the way our schedule is set up,” Voss said. “We’ll see most of the top teams in 2A and the other classes. We have some time to grow in January and the competition we’re seeing will allow us to do that. We’ll see what we have to work on against some of the best kids in the state.”

Anamosa hosts important events

Anamosa is overlooked as one of the top schools when it came to being the first to recruit girls to wrestling. The Raiders have 19 wrestlers out for the inaugural season and they will have a busy weekend.

On Saturday, Anamosa will host a 17-team individual tournament. The competition will include structured weight classes and mostly varsity wrestlers, trying to emulate regional meets instead of some of the scrambles that have been held.

The field includes Bettendorf, Cedar Falls, Jefferson, CPU, Independence, City High, Linn-Mar, Mount Vernon, Central City, Midland, Vinton-Shellsburg and Washington (Iowa).

“I think it is necessary for the girls to experience the format before it really happens,” Anamosa Activities Director Bret Jones said. “Just like basketball coaches try to get into shootouts in bigger venues. Many of the girls only know round-robin scrambles where they are paired with girls of somewhat similar ability. I have gotten a lot of feedback from coaches and ADs liking our format.”

The Raiders will have a quick turnaround, hosting a quadrangular on Monday. They will host Linn-Mar, Solon and Elkader Central.

Comments: kj.pilcher@thegazette.com