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Glen Strandberg
Sports Editor
Getting the last weekend in January behind them must have been a relief for the Forest Lake wrestling team.
After hosting No. 2 ranked Hastings on Jan. 25, the boys then took part in the White Bear Lake duals the very next morning.
Those two days were met with mixed results, but they did set up the Rangers to have a successful match against Stillwater on Jan. 31.
Hastings, ranked 15th in the nation, handed Forest Lake a 46-15 defeat, and then the Rangers came in third place at White Bear’s duals.
Last Thursday, though, head coach Billy Pierce would see his crew come out on top, with a 38-25 victory over the Ponies.
“It was good,” he said. “The guys wrestled hard and it turned out well.”
The team members who stood out for Pierce and his coaching staff were Brent and Andy Kolbow as well as Dan Blaser.
“I was really happy with the way Brent wrestled,” Pierce said. “He wasn’t looking for the one big throw; he went after the kid, scoring points in many different situations, with takedowns and using his movement and multiple moves.”
Brent won by technical fall after pushing Brett Michel around the mat, in what resembled a sparring session more than anything else.
As for the other Kolbow, Pierce summed up Andy’s technical fall victory with a simple, glowing comment.
“I told Andy that was the best I’ve ever seen him wrestle.”
The evening started with the Rangers’ Tony Chamberlin losing at 103 pounds, and then Tony Smith following him in the loss column at 112 pounds.
Ben Morgan had an easy time at 119 pounds, earning his win by way of a forfeit, which led to Kevin Nelson’s (125 lbs.) efficient showing over Alec Cruz, and Jake Riehle’s fantastic match at 130 pounds.
The 6-3 decision against Cody Madsen didn’t turn out in Riehle’s favor, but it was quite a spectacle. Pierce said Riehle has been out with a broken hand, but now that he’s back, it shouldn’t take him long to prepare for sections.
After Cody Kendrick lost a tight 2-0 decision at 135 pounds, the night started to shift toward Forest Lake.
Andy Kolbow locked up his 24-9 win, and Charlie Jannsen (145 pounds) worked for a major decision.
Ben Ulrich was pinned at 152 pounds by the Ponies’ Tom Powers, but next up was the rapidly improving Blaser at 160 pounds, battling for an 8-7 decision over Tony Sims.
“That was great to see,” Pierce said. “He’s very determined, very strong and a hard worker. He has a great record in jayvee, but in varsity he’s had to wrestle some of the toughest kids in the state. This could be a real confidence boost for him.”
Caleb Corrow won by decision at 171 pounds, and then Brent Kolbow collected his 22-7 technical fall at 189. Forest Lake’s Josh Mabry pinned Tyler Jansen at 215 pounds, but then heavyweight Jon Heim was pinned by Stillwater’s Caleb Weinberg to end the match.
This weekend the boys’ attention begins to shift from definite team goals to more personal ones. The Rangers will be in Hastings for the Suburban East Conference tournament, with the section tournaments soon to follow.
“Now it’s time to be a little selfish,” Pierce said. “You got to do what’s best for you. What’s is going to take to make you better? If a wrestler develops his individual needs, that’s still going to help the team.”
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