The Mandan Lions will again add some new flavor this season.  Longtime entry Dickinson, currently ranked second in the North Dakota individual team rankings, has been replaced at the Lions with the Killdeer Cowboys.  Killdeer joins Hettinger/Scranton as the only North Dakota Class B teams in the field.  As always, Sturgis, Rapid City Central, and Rapid City Stevens will represent the state of South Dakota.  Last season, Bismarck High edged RC Central for the team title with 289 points.  The Demons are the favorite again this year, with three state champions in the lineup including defending Lions Champion Laken Boese at 126.  Ryan Ripplinger and Chase Dockter are also favored in their respective weight classes.

Five individual champions return to the tournament this season looking for another title.  Cael Larson of Rapid City Central won the 106 pound bracket last December and was state runner-up in Class A South Dakota as well.  Larson is the Lions favorite this season at 113.  The most intriguing weight class in Mandan might be 120, where two state champions plus five other wrestlers with state ranking or previous state placement reside.  The front runners are Reece Barnhardt of St. Mary’s Central and Jacob Wood of Sturgis.  Barnhardt won the Lions and a Class A state title at 113 pounds last season.  Wood has won back to back South Dakota Class A titles at 106 pounds.  Wood previously edged Barnhardt two seasons ago in the Bismarck Rotary semifinals.  Another wrestler to watch here is Rapid City Stevens’s Logen Fischer.  Fischer was fifth in the state of South Dakota last season at 120 and returns to the weight class this winter.

Two of last year’s Lions champions could also collide at 126.  Hettinger/Scranton four-time Class B champion Kyle Burwick is back at the same weight he won a Lions title at last December.  Burwick had previously wrestled Bismarck High three-time state champion Ryan Ripplinger in the last three Mandan Lions finals.  With Ripplinger up to 138, Burwick will likely run into another Demons state champion in Laken Boese.  Burwick defeated Boese via 16-1 Technical Fall in the semifinals at the Rumble on the Red last January.  Bismarck Century state runner-up Clay Radenz is also a finalist contender at 126.  Matt Kaylor of Legacy will look to grab his third consecutive Lions title; each at 195 pounds.

Last Season Team Results

1. Bismarck  289.5
2. RC Central  270.0
3. RC Stevens 220.5
4. Sturgis 199
5. Mandan 189

Last Season Individual Lions Champions (Bold Wrestlers competing this season):

106:  Cael Larson (RC Central)

113:  Reece Barnhardt (St. Mary’s Central)

120: Laken Boese (Bismarck)

126:  Kyle Burwick (Hettinger)

132: Adam DeBoer (Bismarck)

138:  Chance Davis (Legacy)

145:  Devin Steidler (Bismarck

152:  Bailey Brengle (Sturgis)

160:  Jared Franek (West Fargo)

170: Kolby Kost (RC Central)

182:  Dante Colicheski (RC Stevens)

195:  Matthew Kaylor (Legacy)

220:  Joel Carpenter (Sturgis)

285:  Riley Roesler (Century)

Wrestlers to Watch at the Lions

North Dakota wrestlers are listed based on their current NDwrestle ranking.    South Dakota’s wrestlers are listed based on their state tournament finish last season.

106

Christian Tanefeu (Bismarck)

Tyler Porter (West Fargo)

Jacob Ersland (Century)

Peyton Tuhey (Hettinger/Scranton)

Jace Anderson (Killdeer)

Kaden Olson (Sturgis)

Jack Schoenhard (RC Stevens)

113

Cael Larson (RC Central) 2nd at 106

NDA1 Neal Bohrer (Century)

Hayden Johnsrud (Century)

NDA6 Wilfried Tanefeu (Bismarck)

120

NDA1 Reece Barnhardt STATE CHAMPION

Jacob Wood (Sturgis) 106 STATE CHAMPION

Logen Fischer (RC Stevens) 6th 120

NDA5 Brock Fettig (Bismarck)

NDA5 Kaden Renner (Bismarck)

NDA2 @ 113 Kaleb Porter (West Fargo)

NDB 5 @ 113 Conner Andress (Hettinger/Scranton)

126

NDB1 Kyle Burwick (Hettinger/Scranton)  STATE CHAMPION

NDA1 Laken Boese (Bismarck) STATE CHAMPION

NDA2 Clay Radenz (Century)

Cody Stockman (RC Stevens) 4th @ 113

132

NDA1 Drew Steidler (St. Mary’s Central)

NDA4 Devin Schulz (Century)

NDA 5 Preston Fettig (Bismarck)

NDA6 Maverick Martin (Legacy)

Declan Malone (RC Stevens) 6th @ 106

NDA6 @ 126 Ben Weigum (Century)

138

NDA 1 Ryan Ripplinger (Bismarck)

NDA5 Will Kleinknecht (Mandan)

NDA 6 Tate Laducer (Turtle Mountain)

Kadyn Kraye 8th @ 126

145

NDA 2 Ethan Fleck (Mandan)

TJ Morrison (RC Central)

NDA3 Matthew Rader (Century)

NDA4 Brandt Kringlie (Bismarck)

NDB5 @ 152 Dylan Tabor (Killdeer)

152

Cooper Voorhies (RC Stevens) 5th @ 145

160

Nate Allen (RC Stevens) 4th @ 152

Wren Jacobs (Sturgis) 4th at 145

NDA2 Kolten Reisenauer (Mandan)

NDA3 Gage Roaldson (Bismarck)

NDA4 Bryant Nelson (Century)

NDBHM Zack Anderson (Killdeer)

170

Wyatt Jungclaus (RC Central) 8th at 160

NDA5 Nolan Demery (Turtle Mountain)

182

NDA1 Cade Pederson (West Fargo) STATE CHAMPION

NDA4 Connor McGregor (Bismarck)

NDA5 Levi LaFountain (Turtle Mountain)

195

NDA1 Matt Kaylor (Legacy)  STATE CHAMPION

NDA2 Louis DeCoteau (Turtle Mountain)

Nolan Smith (RC Central) 5th @ 195

NDA4 Houston Visto (West Fargo)

Tice McVay (Sturgis) 7th 195

220

NDA1 Jacob Boehm (Mandan)

Hunter McMath (RC Stevens) 8th @ 220

285

NDA1 Chase Dockter (Bismarck) STATE CHAMPION

NDB3 Curtis Hall (Killdeer)

NDA4 Konnor Stordalen (Century)

NDA5 Seth Baker (Turtle Mountain)

NDA6 Levi Haugen (Mandan)