Linn-Mar looks to continue strong season at Mississippi Valley Conference Super Meet

Linn-Mar has avoided any holiday break hangover and performed well since the new year.

The Lions are coming off a team title at the Bob Lueders Invitational at Clinton, winning by 43 points. They also won their home dual tournament and finished third at Ankeny’s Bob Sharp Invitational.

Linn-Mar will be one of the favorites at the competitive Mississippi Valley Conference Super Meet on Saturday at Cedar Rapids Xavier. The MVC meet is one of many conference championships before the postseason begins next week.

The Lions won two straight MVC Super Meet titles in 2022 and 2023 but Cedar Rapids Prairie budged in front of them last season. They want to return to the top but their approach is similar to other events.

“Our main goal is to have 14 guys competing hard and putting their best product on the mat individually,” Linn-Mar co-head coach Beau Westpfahl said. “ Our preparation and mindset don't really change much from one competition to the next. When each guy is focused on what they need to do to compete at their best, the team results will follow. We have a young team and only six of them have experience at the MVC tournament, so we are excited to see how they come out and compete.”

The Lions have been one of the most consistent teams. They have a handful of Class 3A ranked wrestlers, including Malik DeBow (126), Hud Turner (138), Aidan Ehlinger at 144, Noah Howk-Erwin (150), Barrett Mieras at 165 and 175-pounder Philip Jacobs. The big guns will have to dominate, the entire team will need to contribute and bonus points are a premium,

“All of those things play a role in the team having success and finishing where we are capable,” said Westpfahl, whose No. 4 Lions will host a regional dual and face the winner of No. 17 Bondurant-Farrar and No. 18 North Scott on Tuesday. “We have to take the opportunities to put guys away and continue scoring to earn bonus points, especially early in the tournament. We have had a lot of success this season by being a balanced team and contributing team points at every weight class.”

Iowa City West had more champions than Linn-Mar at Clinton and finished third overall. The Trojans has title contenders in state champion Alexander Pierce, who has recently dropped to 113, Cole Krutzfeldt (138) and 150-pounder Justin Avila. Matt Tran is another possible finalist at 120 for West.

The Trojans is the last non-Cedar Rapids/Marion Metro program to win the tournament, which was 2020.

“These guys have put together a pretty good training phase since we came back from Christmas and have had some extremely positive results,” West Coach Nate Moore said. “They are showing improvement, especially on Saturdays.

“Consistency is key up and down the lineup. It would take everyone doing their job and some to compete with the top few teams. It has been done before. We are excited to kick off the post season this weekend.”

West, Prairie, Xavier, Iowa City High and Western Dubuque are among the area teams that should finish in the top half. Hawks Coach Derick Ball said Linn-Mar is a favorite but it should be a fun contest.

“Lots of evenly matched teams,” Ball said. “Should be some great finals matches. Much of the time it comes down to who can stay healthy. Twenty years of coaching and this has been the worst, by far, for illness. We have yet to have our full healthy lineup.

“I feel like things are more evenly matched. While there is a favorite, team race will be a lot of fun.”

Chase Watkinson at 106, Dylan Munson at 113 and 175-pounder Louden Bloxham are the leaders for Prairie, who will wrestle Fort Dodge in a regional dual at top-ranked Southeast Polk. The MVC Super Meet is a good primer for the postseason.

“This is the final tournament tune up before districts for teams that don’t qualify for duals,” Ball said. “Last chance to assess and correct things before the final push.”

REGIONAL DUALS FIELD SET

The Iowa High School Athletic Association released the regional duals fields for all classes Wednesday. Linn-Mar is the lone host in 3A.

In Class 2A, Wamac teams will host three sites. West Delaware faces the winner of North Fayette Valley and Union Community. Williamsburg receives a regional semifinal bye and takes on the winner of Anamosa and West Liberty. Independence hosts Solon and Benton Community.

Alburnett and Jesup will hold regional duals. The top-ranked Pirates will face the winner of West Branch and Iowa Valley. No. 13 Lisbon and #24 Westwood will compete at No. 4 Jesup.

NFV WINS DENNY CHRISTENSON TOURNAMENT

North Fayette Valley captured the team title at the Denny Christenson Tournament on Saturday at Anamosa. The Tigerhawks scored 220.5 points, topping runner-up Anamosa by 26.

Thirteen Tigerhawks placed sixth or better. Heavyweight Layne Kleppe, Tate Germann (144) and Jaxson Lundgren at 138 won titles. Cain Rodgers at 132 and 150-pounder Logan Boehm placed second.

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