Wrestling opens with first official day of practice

MARION - Linn-Mar wrestlers sat around the Lions wrestling room, sharing their names, grades, nicknames and the influential women in their lives.

The Lions were getting re-introduced to each other, but they will have to get acquainted with some big expectations that accompany the upcoming campaign.

Wrestlers from across the state in all classes opened the 2013-14 wrestling season Monday with the first official day of practice. Before Linn-Mar started to drill takedowns and hand-fighting, the team bonded by sharing personal information.

"It's something we started years ago," Linn-Mar Coach Doug Streicher said. "It's an icebreaker."

The Lions have a lot of talent back, going 27-10 in duals, including 12-1 in the Mississippi Valley Conference, last season. Linn-Mar reached the state duals for the third straight year and was fifth at the Class 3A state meet. The Lions are looking for bigger things, entering the season ranked 42nd in the country by InterMat. Southeast Polk is 25th, Bettendorf is 28th and Waverly-Shell Rock is 31st. All are in 3A.

"We didn't end last year very well," Streicher said. "It has been a long offseason, getting ready to get back to this point to have a chance to work to remedy that at the end of the season."

Linn-Mar returns five state medalists. Junior Matt Wempen was fourth at 113 after winning the 106-pound title as a freshman. Seniors Alijah Jeffery and Ross Lembeck will look for their fourth straight medal. Lembeck was a runner-up as a sophomore and placed fifth a year ago at 152. Damon Griffin, a two-time medalist, was sixth last season at 126 and Andrew Holladay was fifth at 182.

Many wrestlers welcomed the start of the season.

"It feels good," said Jeffery, who will wrestle at Northern Illinois in college. "It is a little odd, knowing it's my last season in high school. I'm going to get after it this year. We're going to have a great team, great room. I'm just ready to get after it."

Jeffery already has an impressive accomplishment. He won the 120 title at the USAW Preseason national tournament on Nov. 2 at the UNI-Dome in Cedar Falls. He had about 60 kids in his bracket, including a couple highly-ranked wrestlers. It was just his second medal, placing eighth previously.

"I trained pretty hard for it," said Jeffery, who is ranked 16th nationally by InterMat. "I just found a way to win every match and got the job done."

Jeffery placed fifth at state last season, finishing third his first two seasons. He wants this to be the year his hand gets raised on Saturday night in February at Wells Fargo Arena.

"I know it will be," Jeffery said. "I've been focusing on my goals everyday."

The lineup promises to be stronger at the lower through middleweights. The emphasis is on individual development, leading to strong overall performances.

"If we can get each individual to perform then the team comes together when it needs to," Streicher said. "We try to get better through the season and be better by the end of the season."

The road to state for all of the state's prep wrestlers began Monday.