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December 7, 1999
No. 5 NUHSrouts downlow, holds offJayhawksBy PAUL DUNLAP Journal Sports Editor NEW ULM -- A season of great expectation began on the right foot Monday evening as the fifth-ranked New Ulm wrestling team built a 25-3 lead after six weights and held off Madelia-Truman 41-20 in nonconference action at NUHS gym. "You could definitely tell that Madelia-Truman had a chance to wrestle in the Blue Earth Tournament this (past) weekend," Eagle coach Dar Arndt said. "The Eagles, you could tell, had a little bit of rust in them. They took it away from us a little in the middle weights, but we pretty much expected what happened." Brandon Miller gave the Jayhawks an early 3-0 lead as he used two three-point near falls in the final period to pull out a 13-7 win over New Ulm's Cole Waibel. That would spur the Eagles to five straight wins, though, as 112-pounder Josh Luneburg began the string by pinning T.J. Forstner as the first period expired. Nate Gieseke then won a tight 9-8 decision over Adam Leiferman at 119 pounds for a 9-3 Eagle advantage. "That (win) was the big match, when Nate Gieseke beat that kid (Leiferman) that was in the state tournament last year," Arndt said. "He wrestled at state, and that was probably one of our better matches tonight. There were a lot of pins, but Gieseke's match that went the distance was probably the best." Peter Zangl then stepped on the mat and made short work of freshman Jason Forstner with a fall at 2:32, and Shane Gulden, at 130 pounds, amassed seven takedowns in the opening period before finally sticking Dustin Heckman at 2:38. Robby Gieseke wouldn't get a pin, but he would dispose of Jared Stevensen on a 20-8 major decision that gave the Eagles a commanding 25-3 lead. "That's something we pretty much expected," Arndt said of the early lead. "They (Jayhawks) were able to come back a little then at (1)40, (1)45, and (1)52." The Jayhawks would get within eight points on major decisions by Kyle Cole (over Travis Hermel) and Quentin Knaak (over Justin Windschitl) followed by Jake Hood's pin of Tony Ruch (2:44) at 152 pounds. Bill Bastian would get New Ulm back on track with a pin of Derik Garry at 3:06 to push the lead to 31-17, and Andy Bernard would then ensure the victory as he built a 7-1 lead after one period on his way to a 12-3 major decision over Neil Arkell. The third Eagle captain, 189-pound Gus Martens, started his senior season in style with a :34 fall over Madelia-Truman's Andy Miller. The meet would then end with perhaps the most exciting match of the night. New Ulm junior Andy Howk battled highly-touted heavyweight Aaron Stickler to an 11-11 tie after regulation before succumbing on a takedown by Stickler in the extra frame. "I thought we had a chance to win that match," Arndt said. "That one, and the one at 103 pounds, we had some opportunities." The Eagles, now 1-0 on the young season, will travel to face South Central Conference foe United South Central Thursday night. "United South Central will probably be a team a lot like Madelia-Truman," Arndt said. "We'll probably expect about the same thing there." NEW ULM 41, MADELIA-TRUMAN 20 103-Brandon Miller (MT) dec. Cole Waibel 13-7; 112-Josh Luneburg (NU) pinned T.J. Forstner 2:00; 119-Nate Gieseke (NU) dec. Adam Leiferman 9-8; 125-Peter Zangl (NU) pinned Jason Forstner 2:32; 130-Shane Gulden (NU) pinned Dustin Heckman 2:38; 135-Robby Gieseke (NU) maj. dec. Jared Stevensen 20-8; 140-Kyle Cole (MT) maj. dec. Travis Hermel 12-3; 145-Quentin Knaak (MT) maj. dec. Justin Windschitl 8-0; 152-Jake Hood (MT) pinned Tony Ruch 2:44; 160-Bill Bastian (NU) pinned Derik Garry 3:06; 171-Andy Bernard (NU) maj. dec. Neil Arkell 12-3; 189-Gus Martens (NU) pinned Andy Miller :34; HWT-Aaron Stickler (MT) dec. Andy Howk 13-11 OT.
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