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ROCHESTER — Roughly 20 defending state champions, including Class A titleholder Miklo Hernandez of Pipestone Area Schools, will compete in the MatBoss Christmas Tournament Friday and Saturday, Dec. 19-20.
This intense, individual bracketed tournament will feature 49 high schools across Minnesota, South Dakota, North Dakota and Wisconsin.
The historic Mayo Civic Center will serve as the site of the event.
The Mayo Civic Center in Rochester will serve as the site for the MatBoss Christmas Tournament. (Contributed photo)
Young reported Friday’s matches will begin at noon, with Saturday’s bouts starting at 10 a.m. Finals will begin at 3 p.m. Saturday.
All 13 weight classes will feature an astonishing 64 wrestlers, and the top-12 contestants will receive some sort of honor.
“There will be a lot of top-tier competition,” Young said. “I’m excited for our team to showcase what we can do. We want to make some noise.”
Pipestone Area Schools’ head coach Paul Young said he’s confident the Arrows will perform well at the MatBoss Christmas Tournament Friday and Saturday, Dec. 19-20. (Contributed photo from the Pipestone Area Schools district)
The last time the Arrows competed at this event was 2017 — with Michael Suda and Garrett Ploeger as placewinners.
This serves as a fundraiser for the Gopher Wrestling Club, which was founded in 1977, and is a nonprofit 501(c)(3).
The first tournament was conducted in 1987, with Bismarck (N.D.) Century winning the team title. Apple Valley’s Mark Hall is a six-time event champion (2010-15).
St. Michael-Albertville was last year’s team champion, with 382 points.
There will be three nationally ranked wrestlers, including Miklo Hernandez, at 127 pounds, tournament organizers reported.
Pipestone Area Schools’ Miklo Hernandez earned seven takedowns during his match at 139 pounds on Thursday, Dec. 4. (Star photo by Eric Viccaro)
A potential bracket in the weight class also could feature Nic Enzminger from Bismarck Legacy (N.D.) and Titan Friederichs from Watertown/Mayer Lutheran. Both Hernandez and Enzminger took the garland in national tournaments this past summer at Fargo.
However, Hernandez could also compete at 133, and that’s exactly how it went down. Miklo is the No. 1 seed in that weight class.
Other nationally ranked grapplers set for competition are Kellen Wolbert from Oconomowoc, Wis., Trey Beissel of Hastings, Gage Lohr from Watertown, S.D., Davis Parrow of Farmington, Cooper Rowe (Mound-Westonka), Kyler Walters from Shakopee and the STMA pair of Lincoln Robideau and John Murphy.
Admission prices are as follows: All-session, $40 adults, $25 senior citizens (65-older) and $20 students; daily passes are $25 for adults, $15 senior citizens and $12 students.
The event will be streaming on FloWrestling.