The Albert Lea Wrestling Club completed a successful 2002-03 season with a second-place finish in the Northland Youth Wrestling Association state tournament.

While the locals fell 40-22 to Hastings in the championship meet, coaches Jack Kortan and Jon Hansen said they were much closer to winning it all than the score indicates. Lucas Hansen sustained a broken collarbone and lost by injury default, and Albert Lea dropped a pair of heartbreakers, getting pinned in overtime and falling 5-4 after leading 4-0 in the third period.

&uot;Throw those three matches back our way and that more than ties it,&uot; said Jon Hansen. &uot;It’s frustrating, because that’s who beat us last year.&uot;

Still, the coaching staff, which also includes Layne Hable, said it was a very successful season as the locals finished 21-3 in dual meets.

&uot;It was a very good year,&uot; said Kortan. &uot;As sign-ups go, it was our best year ever. We will miss our sixth-graders.&uot;

Teams in the NYWA state tournament include wrestlers up to sixth grade. Individuals may compete through eighth grade.

Albert Lea opened the tournament with a 49-12 victory over New London-Spicer. The locals defeated Prior Lake 38-29 in the quarterfinals and, in the semifinals, dominated Foley 54-10.

Members of Albert Lea’s team, by weight: 45 pounds, Dakota Wangsness; 50, Tylor Nelson; 55, Lucas Hansen; 60, Trey Hable; 65, Cory Hansen; 70, Dalton Westerlund; 75, Adam Clark; 80, Carter Kortan; 84, Connor Kortan; 88, Matt Tiegs; 93, Cody Hansen; 102, Logan Kortan; 115, Nick Flores; 130, Ethan reed; heavyweight, Casey Schroader. Alternates were Garrett Wangsness, Brody Larson, Mitch Webb, Kyle Kriewall and Brandon Ranum.

Two of Albert Lea’s six individual state champs, Cody Hansen and Logan Kortan, took the title for the third consecutive year. They never lost a match in the dual-meet state tournament in that span.

The other individual state champions this year were Westerlund, Lucas Hansen, Cory Hansen and Connor Kortan. Hable placed second, Carter Kortan third, Logan Hansen and Matt Morris fourth, Tim Frazier fifth, Jacob Cibert sixth.