WIAA WRESTLING: Three Westosha wrestlers move forward

Westosha Central’s Reid McNeill pins Lake Geneva Badger’s Patrick Keplar to come away with third place at the Feb. 3 Southern Lakes Conference tournament hosted by Delavan-Darien High School (Mike Ramczyk/The Report).

McNeill earns regional title

By Jason Arndt
Editor

Before Westosha Central High School started its wrestling season, the Falcons core of seniors led by example, often working out during the summer to build strength.

The strength showed Feb. 10 at the WIAA Division 1 regional at Elkhorn Area High School, where three Falcon seniors advanced to the Saturday’s Fort Atkinson sectional, including regional champion Reid McNeill.

Joining McNeill, who won at 182, are Dennis Grubb at 145 and in 170, Zach Bell.

“All of our seniors have really put in time in the offseason to improve,” said Falcons coach Jason Ladd. “They have been going to camps, working out at the club level, and coming to open mats.”

For McNeill, the offseason conditioning bolstered his confidence, according to Ladd.

McNeill, who drew a first round bye, moved to the title bout after he won a 14-6 major decision against Elkhorn’s Nathan Welsh.

McNeill then defeated Janesville Craig’s Mitchell Schumann on a 6-2 decision to come away with the win. McNeill holds a 29-9 record.

“Reid has gained a lot of confidence,” Ladd said. “He is really good at going out and executing his plan for the match. He fights through adversity, which has paid off in the close matches.”

Meanwhile, for Grubb, he battled through his own adversity after missing last year’s regional competition due to injury.

Grubb won his first two regional matches on pins, which set up a first bout with Lake Geneva Badger’s Michael Sanders, who edged the Falcons wrestler in a 14-5 major decision.

The loss in the title match sent him to the second place wrestle back, but dropped an 11-2 major decision against Brandon Constable of Elkhorn.

“Grubb wrestled well,” Ladd said about Grubb, who has a 22-14 record. “Last year, he missed regionals due to an injury. It was nice to see him out there battling this year.”

Bell had a tougher time on the mats, dropping decisions in both the semifinal and third place matches, but eventually qualified for sectionals in a fourth place wrestle back with a pin of Lake Geneva’s John Lininger at 3:47.

“It is all about moving forward in the tournament. He had to mentally reset and go out there and get it done, which he was able to do,” Ladd said.


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