Coe excited, prepared for postseason challenge at NCAA Division III Region VI wrestling tournament

Coe Coach John Oostendorp said he is enthusiastic about the postseason.

He recognizes the potential in the experienced veterans and capable underclassmen.

The Kohawks will face a tough test at the NCAA Division III Region VI Championships on Friday and Saturday at the Five Flags Center in Dubuque. The top three finishers at each weight advance to the national tournament March 13-14 at Alliant Energy PowerHouse in Cedar Rapids.

"Our guys are excited to wrestle and compete as a team in a team tournament event," Oostendorp said. "We're ready for the opportunity. We think our guys are well prepared for it."

The sum of the parts of Coe’s lineup has been better than the individual parts, yielding 10 dual victories and climbing to No. 7 in the National Wrestling Coaches Association dual rankings. The Kohawks have five ranked wrestlers but did not crack the tournament-team ratings.

Oostendorp said they each have their own strengths but merge to create a potent lineup. Now, they have to take care of individual battles to advance.

"We just have some talent, but they're also good competitors,” Oostendorp said. "They're used to competing at a high level and they've been able to do that this year.”

Brayden Park is the highest-ranked Kohawk, sitting in eighth at 125 pounds. Freshmen Zachary Montez (157) and Bo Koedam (165) are each ranked 11th. Dresden Grimm (141) and heavyweight Wyatt Smith sit at No. 12.

Montez is part of a bracket that includes five ranked wrestlers, including Wartburg’s No. 1 Charlie Dojan, No. 5 Eric Kinkaid, of Loras, Cornell’s A.J. Parrish and Dubuque’s 12th-ranked Colton Weiler. Koedam is one of four ranked 165-pounders, joining Luther’s top-ranked All-American Clayton McDonough, Cornell’s No. 12 Brian Petry and Wartburg’s No. 15 Aiden Brosinski.

"You really just want the guys focusing on some of the basics and competing really hard," Oostendorp said. "You come into this competition and the people who control their emotions, the people who go out there and wrestle sound, tough and hard for seven minutes are the ones that are going to have success.

"And we really try to emphasize that all the time. It helps to have some experience, but if you're a young guy and you're used to competing at a high level, it's really no different whether you've done it for three years or your first year."

Parke, one of Coe’s junior leaders, owns an 18-4 record. He has posted bonus-point victories in all but two, recording seven pins, six technical falls and three major decisions. Parke has shown a knack for peaking for the postseason.

"Very similar to last year where he is putting it together and competing at the top of his game these last three weeks," Oostendorp said. "That's kind of what happened last year in regionals."

Parke produced an impressive run as an unranked No. 4-seed a year ago. He opened with a technical fall and pinned the top-seeded foe in the semifinal. He parlayed his title into a fifth-place finish for All-American honors at the NCAA tournament.

"I think with all high-level competitors it's a mental thing, for the most part," Oostendorp said. "We talk about embracing the fight, and the challenge, and how a match is going to be a fight for every position throughout it. He's just a competitor."

Thirty wrestlers in the field closed the regular season in the rankings. All but 184 and 197 have at least three ranked competitors. Wartburg has 10 ranked wrestlers and Loras has seven. Luther boasts three ranked wrestlers, including No. 6 Bryce McDonough at 174 and No. 10 133-pounder Connor Kidd. Central has two ranked wrestlers, including former Lisbon prep and eighth-ranked 149-pounder Cade Siebrecht.

"We still have an extremely highly competitive regional," Oostendorp said. "You're gonna need to be at the top of your game to qualify for the national tournament."

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