There will be plenty of purple in Madison this week.

Led by three-time WIAA Sectional Champion Charlie Stuhl, the Panthers advanced five wrestlers to the WIAA State Individual Wrestling Meet that starts Thursday at the Kohl Center on the campus of UW-Madison.

The Panthers started the day at the Division 2 Osceola Sectional – arguably the toughest in the state – with 10 wrestlers. Ellsworth had two champions – Stuhl and Logan Peterson at 285, who avenged a loss in the WIAA Regional championship in the Sectional title match, defeating Gale-Ettrick-Trempealeau/ Melrose-Mindoro’s Trevor Daffinson, 5-3, in one of the most thrilling matches of the day.

Joining Stuhl and Peterson on the state stage will be Bailey Poellinger, who took third at 132, Carter Huppert, who was second at 152 and Kyle Anschutz, who took third at 220.

Looking at the tough Sectional field, the Ellsworth coaching staff was hoping to get five wrestlers through to the state meet.

“We kind of figured the over-under was five, so pushed,” coach Mark Matzek said at the close of the long day of wrestling. “It all started at the lower weights. At 132, we’re real proud of senior Bailey Poellinger punching his ticket. Three or four weeks ago, he was having a hard time. He spent some time working on it, some mental preparation. Honestly, he’s back and it’s fun to see him wrestle like that. I’m proud of him.”

Stuhl was again dominant in earning his trip to state at 138.

“Charlie came out hard. He ended up beating a guy who was ranked fourth in the state. Charlie’s on fire,” said Matzek.

At 152, Huppert was third on the day.

See STATEBOUND, Page 17

SECTIONAL ACTION

It was a big day for the Ellsworth wrestling team Saturday, as five Panthers qualified for the WIAA Individual State Wrestling Tournament in Madison this week. Above, Charlie Stuhl waited for the referee to signal a pin as he won a championship at 138. At right, Logan Peterson won the title at 285. He’s pictured in his title match. AT left, Bailey Poellinger qualified for state at 132. Photos by John McLoone. “He had a tough match in the finals, but he’s down at state for the second time. He has to get two or three wins to put his name on the wall,” said Matzek.

At 220, Anschutz was greeted by a firedup Matzek when he won his third place match to qualify.

“It was fun to see Kyle Anschutz go as a sophomore. It’s tough as a sophomore in these upper weights to get through to the state tournament. It’s very hard to do. I’m proud of Kyle for doing that,” said Matzek.

Peterson won in double overtime with a reversal to advance to the title match.

“Logan Peterson getting some revenge in the finals on that kid that pinned him last week, that was cool to see,” said Matzek.

Overall, Matzek was pleased with his team’s performance.

“The other kids fought hard too. It just wasn’t their year.

“This sectional is tougher than it was when I cam back six years ago, I’ll tell you that. Six years ago when I came back, we had a team very much like this and we qualified eight or nine kids. This Sectional is a whole lot tougher. To move five guys through is an accomplishment.”

As a whole, Ellsworth finished second in points out of the 24 schools represented at the sectional.

At 106, sophomore Eli Rohl competed in one match at the Sectional meet, falling 12-0. At 120, senior Cole Nelson scored a 12-6 decision in round one before falling to eventual champion Blaine Brenner in the semifinals. He won his first consolation match but lost in the battle fir third place.

At 132, Poellinger won his first match and lost his second. He stormed back with two major decisions to claim third place.

At 138, Stuhl had two pins and a major decision to keep his post-season slate perfect.

At 145, junior Braden Matzek lost to the eventual champ in his first match and then lost to another state-qualifier in his first consolation match. At 152, Huppert advanced to the finals with a major decision before losing in the title match. He ended up third overall after losing a second-place wrestle-back.

At 160, sophomore Eli Rohl lost his first match to the eventual champion and fell in his first consolation match to another state qualifier.

At 170, sophomore Ryan Matzek faced the eventual champion in found one and lost a decision. He fell in his first consolation match by an 8-1 decision.

Anschutz, at 220, pinned his first opponent before taking on eventual champ Jake Rau of Medford. Rau won, sending Anschutz to the consolation side of the bracket, where he picked up a 10-3 win in his first match, setting the stage for a fight to get to Madison. Anschutz pinned his way to the Kohl Center in 2:44.

At 285, Peterson worked hard to get to the championship match for that Regional rematch and captured a 5-3 decision to claim the championship.

Photos by John McLoone.

Photo by John McLoone.