Governor Draw for The Clash Released

On Monday December 26th, the draws for The Clash were released with the Pierre Governors earning a 7th seed in Bracket B (see all four team brackets below).  They will face Apple Valley (MN) who is currently ranked #34 in the nation in the opening round at 9:00 CST on December 30th. In reviewing the Minnesota Class AAA High School rankings released on December 23rd, Apple Valley is currently ranked second behind Shakopee, and has 11 wrestlers ranked in the top ten in their respective weight class.  

Following the release of the brackets, Governor assistant coach John Wayne Kalda noted, "I think it is hard to not look right away at rankings and past state placings. Things have changed a lot with Track Wrestling in the recent years where it is relatively easy to see where and what kind of competition they have been to.  What is great about most of our kids, is that they have also been exposed to some big national tournaments, where we may even be able to find some head to head or common opponents.  From there it’s up to us to perform like we can on the mat." The current head-to-head match-ups between the Governors and Apple Valley for the opening round include:

• 106lbs - #6 Jack Van Camp vs. #8 Dylan Anderson
• 113lbs - #1 Lincoln Turman vs. #6 Regan Schrempp
• 120lbs - #2 William Turman vs. Peyton McLagan
• 126lbs - #8 Cade Hinkle vs. #8 Brady Gross
• 132lbs - #1 Michael Lusk vs. #5 Sebas Swiggum
• 138lbs - #3 Austin Senger vs. #5 Kyle Rathman
• 145lbs - #1 Aric Williams vs. #5 Nate Larson
• 152lbs - Maguire Raske vs. #9 Devin Roberts
• 160lbs - Garrett Leesman vs. #5 Jalen Thul
• 170lbs - Gage Gehring vs. Will Ramsey
• 182lbs - Lucas Stoltenburg vs. #10 Jonah Johnson 
• 195lbs - #1 Spencer Sarringar vs. Tyler Kim
• 220lbs - #4 Levi Stoltenburg vs. #5 Tanyi Besong
• 285lbs - #8 Ty Paulsen vs. #1 Gable Stevenson

An event like The Clash provides teams from around the country the opportunity to see teams and wrestlers that they know little about.  "Getting to see different styles and philosophies colliding is fun to watch and as coaches we are always looking to see new things and then trying to implement them into our room," said Governor head coach Shawn Lewis. "Getting to see this variety of competition allows us to pick up new things.  Our wrestlers are looking to compete against the best kids/teams in the nation.  They know it is an honor to be invited but they also know it means they will have to bring their best each and every dual.  A lot of these kids have competed at high levels during the summer months and now they get to do it during the season in their singlet."   

Governor's 106lber Jack Van Camp competes at the AAU Scholastic Community Duals at Disney this past summer. 

Over the course of the two day event, Governor wrestlers will complete in six duals and are allowed to bring up to 20 wrestlers to fill spots which allows coaches to strategically make key line-up changes if necessary. "As a coaching staff we know how grueling of a tournament this can and will be, and it showed this summer in Disney that depth is very important," said Kalda. "Its nice to get individuals a break here and there and get rested up when needed.  So as we put the team together we generally looked for weight classes that we can double up on and make line-up changes where it benefits us the most."  In addition to the varsity wrestlers noted above Jace Bench-Bresher, Lee Snyder, Logan Meyer, Riley Kruger and Pryce Dyk may each see action sometime during tournament.