6 Area Wrestlers Enter As Top Seeds
At 106 pounds Hortonville’s Eric Barnett enters his second On the Water Tournament a top seed after finishing 3rd last year at both Oshkosh on the Water and at the WIAA State Tournament. Barnett beat Kolton Gryzbowski of Coleman in the third place match last year in Oshkosh. Gryzbowski is seeded second at 106 setting up a possible rematch, only for the gold this year as both enter the field unbeaten.
At 113 pounds, the defending Champion at 106 leads the way. Steven Point’s Brady Koonz looks to win another title after claiming the Division 1 State Championship last year.
At 120 pounds, Bonduel’s Jordan Boldt’s quest for a trip to the finals of the Oshkosh on the Water Tournament will likely have to go through a defending Tournament and State Tournament Champion, Dylan Koontz of Steven’s Point. Knooz completed the perfect season last year.
The 126 pound weight class is stacked with four Semifinalists from last year. Leading the way is Jacob Barnett of Hortonville. The Polar Bear Senior lost in the OTW Finals in 2015. Steven Point’s Chance Bailey is seeded second, and is currently top ranked in Division 1. Caleb Ziebell of Slinger is seeded third after finishing third last year. His big one this year was against two time State Champion AJ Schoenfuss of Stratford.
Jake Baldwin of Coleman is the top seed at 132 pounds. Baldwin is 10-1 this year and had a big win over Hortonville’s Jacob Barnett at the Pulaski Duals.
At 138 pounds, Logan Bernhardt of Waupaca is out for big things. He enters the OTW Tournament as a two seed and has a 14-0 record. Bernhardt was injured during or just before Regionals the last two seasons, after making State his freshman year. The top seed is defending OTW Champion Cal Hanson of Deerfield.
Hortonville has another wrestler to watch at 145 pounds in Nathan Lichtfuss. The Polar Bear Senior made the finals last year, but lost a close 8-7 match. Lichtfuss is 11-3 on the season, but has not lost to a Wisconsin wrestler this year. Lichtfuss enters the field as the top seed. Three undefeated wrestlers, including Bryce Ash of Oconto Falls are also among the higher seeds.
Last year undefeated State Champion Nate Trepanier of Oconto Falls leads the way at 152 pounds. Trepanier suffered a loss to Michael Bertrand of Southern Door this year, and is ranked 2nd.
Horotnville’s Elliot Luker was a win away from making the OTW finals for the second time, after finishing runner up freshman year. Luker finished runner up at a tough Dvorak tournament last week and could make a run at this year’s OTW. Michael Bertrand of Southern Door and Jose Acosta of Manitowoc Lincoln are both seeded higher.
At 170, Coleman’s Jordan Blanchard is seeded third behind two wrestlers who both wrestled in the State Finals last year. Helton Vandenbush of Random Lake and Zach Coeffen of Laconia are both unbeaten entering the week. Blanchard is 9-1.
At 182 pounds, Alex Peplinski of Wittenberg-Birnamwood and Jacob Banker of Bonduel will both be making a run towards the medal stand. The field is led by defending OTW Champion Jared Krattiger of Waterford.
At 195 pounds, Dalton Hahn of Reedsburg Area will look to get back to the finals this year, after finishing runner-up last year. Hahn is the top seed at 14-0.
At 220, Max Villnow of Amherst leads the way with a 12-0 record. Jacob Zietler of Coleman and Daniel Cole of Ashwaubenon both are seeded in the top three after placing last year.
Donte Johnson of Fond Du Lac is 8-0 and his the top seed at 285 pounds.
Hortonville won the team title last year.
Tournament Top Seeds
106- Eric Barnett- Hortonville
113- Brady Koonz-Steven’s Point
120-Dylan Koonz-Steven’s Point
126-Jacob Barnett-Hortonville
132-Jake Baldwin-Coleman
138-Cal Hanson-Deerfield
145-Nathan Lichtfuss-Hortonville
152-Nate Trepanier-Oconto Falls
160-Jose Acosta-Manitowoc Lincoln
170-Helton Vandenbush-Random Lake
182-Jared Krattiger-Waterford
195-Dalton Hahn-Reedsburg Area
220-Max Villnow-Amherst
285-Donte Johnson-Fond Du Lac