April 13, 2022 at 10:53 a.m.
Hodag wrestling team holds year-end banquet
Hodag wrestling team holds year-end banquet
The Hodags finished tied for third in the Great Northern Conference this season, avenging a dual-meet loss to Lakeland by soundly out-pointing the Thunderbirds for third at the conference tournament.
That momentum carried into the WIAA tournament where the team had five sectional qualifiers, and its first boys' state qualifier in two years.
"From where we were at the beginning of the season to where we ended, most teams don't make those kinds of gains in one wrestling season," Arneson said during the banquet. "We turned a lot of heads at the end of the season with the success that we were having. When we showed up to sectionals and went 5 for 5 in the first round, people were like, 'Oh boy, we do not want to wrestle these guys.'"
The team presented five main awards to four individuals on Sunday. Senior Gavin Ostermann took home most valuable wrestler award as well as the Jim Kreitlow "Mini-Machine" Award. Ostermann's younger brother, Aiden, was named the team's rookie of the year. Joe Fugle and Tony Barnett were the team's most improved wrestlers.
Voting for the awards was done by the wrestlers on the team.
Gavin Ostermann returned to the sport after taking two winters away to be part of the Rhinelander boys' swim team. Not only was Ostermann a conference and regional champion, he finished runner-up at 182 pounds at sectionals and nearly finished on the podium at the WIAA state meet, finishing one win shy of qualifying for the placement rounds. Ostermann finished his season 39-6 overall.
In an attempt at brevity, Arneson did not elaborate on award winners much during Sunday's banquet, but previously lauded Ostermann's attitude in his return to the mat.
"He's just been an awesome leader for us," Arneson said prior to the WIAA state meet. "He tries to keep a positive attitude, even when wrestling practices aren't the most enjoyable. There are probably a lot more sports that are more enjoyable than going out, getting punched in the face, getting some bloody noses, but you've got to embrace it. That's what he brings to the program."
Aiden Ostermann went 24-7 in his freshman campaign, finishing runner-up at 106 pounds at the GNC meet and placing fourth at WIAA sectionals.
"He had an awesome season," Arneson said previously. "To have less than 10 losses as a freshman, that's a really good season, I don't care what weight class it is."
The team had two separate most improved awards, one for an upperclassman and one for an underclassmen. Fugle won the upperclassman award following a 23-18 season that resulted in a runner-up finish at the GNC meet at 220 pounds. He dropped down to 195 for the postseason and qualified for sectionals, placing fourth.
"He put in a lot of time," Arneson said during the banquet. "After practice, he was asking, 'Coach, how do I ride legs a little better? How can I turn some more people?' It paid off for him."
Barnett, a freshman, wrestled in a handful of varsity and JV matches for the Hodags this winter.
"I had a strong feeling that Tony was winning either rookie of the year or most improved. Tony did an awesome job this year," Arneson said.
Fifteen wrestlers received varsity letters, achieved by competing in nine varsity meets and finishing the season on the squad, or by having a perfect attendance record at practice. Gavin Ostermann, fellow senior Cole Lehman and freshman Logan Schwinger received the team's "Guts Club" award, for attending every practice.
The team also voted on class leader awards from its underclassmen groups. Aiden Ostermann and Schwinger were named the freshman leaders, Kaeden Piller and Owen Kurtz won the sophomore award and Abby Swanson and Kyle Wiese were the junior winners.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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