Albert Lea wrestlers begin the Clash duals today in Rochester

A day away from the toughest wrestling tournament of the season, the Albert Lea wrestling team cruised to a 54-6 win on the road over a senior-led Mankato West squad.

Tigers head coach Larry Goodnature was pleased with how his team performed the day before the Clash National High School Wrestling Duals in Rochester.

“Our team wrestled intense and tenacious tonight,” Goodnature said. “They competed out there and it was fun to watch.”

Brothers Dakota and Garrett Wangsness opened the match by pinning their opponents in 30 and 49 seconds, respectively.

“Those boys got us started and are our leaders on this team to get us going,” Goodnature said, of his 103- and 112-pounders.

Lucas Hansen lost 9-3 to Zach Lowe at 119 pounds before the Tigers notched 10 straight victories.

“Lucas ran into a very good wrestler,” Goodnature said. “He put up a battle.”

At 171 pounds, Carter Kortan picked up a scrappy 8-6 win over Tyler Jakes, a state tournament qualifier last season.

“It was fantastic match to watch,” Goodnature said, of the 171-pound match. “They went after it.”

Conner Kortan pinned Connor Wanderscheid in 1:16 at 189 pounds and Caleb Gaudian defeated Thomas Williams 3-0 at 215 pounds.

Heavyweight Alex Nielsen lost a close 1-0 battle to Hunter Wanderscheid to end the dual.

“We wrestled tough all the way through,” Goodnature said. “I told our kids ‘That’s how Albert Lea wrestles’ and it was really fun to watch.”

The Tigers wrestled no seniors through 152 pounds and no juniors through 140 pounds.

“Those young kids are really wrestling well,” Goodnature said. “They’re showing signs of improvement each time they step on the mat.”

The Tigers also received wins from two eighth-graders and a ninth-grader.

“They wrestled kids that are older than them and looked really good,” Goodnature said, of Devin Nelson, Tristan Westerlund and Bany Chan. “They were scrappy and West had a lot of seniors at those weights.”

The Tigers wrestle again at 4 p.m. today against Carl Sandburg, Illinois, in the opening-round of the Clash.

“They’re a solid, strong team,” Goodnature said, noting Carl Sandburg has nationally-ranked wrestlers. “I like getting our guys in this type of competition. It is tougher than the Minnesota High School State Tournament.”

Look to AlbertLeaTribune.com at 4 p.m. today for live coverage of the Tigers’ match against Carl Sandburg, Illinois, and the rest of Day 1 action. Rochester.

Albert Lea 54, Mankato West 6

103 — Dakota Wangsness (AL) fall Charlie Dundas (MW)

112 — Garrett Wangsness (AL) fall Carter Burroughs

119 — Zach Lowe (MW) dec. Lucas Hansen (AL) 9-3

125 — Spencer Carstens (AL) fall Josh Hendrickson (MW)

130 — Devin Nelson (AL) dec. Tyler Herwig (MW) 6-4

135 — Tristan Westerlund (AL) dec. Aaron Wall 5-2

140 — Bany Chan (AL) fall Dalton Matthies (MW)

145 — Trey Hable (AL) dec. Hunter Friesen (MW) 11-2

152 — Dalton Westerlund (AL) dec. Alex Thompson (MW) 7-1

160 — Cory Hansen tech. fall Ben Enz (MW) 17-0

171 — Carter Kortan (AL) dec. Tyler Jakes 8-6

189 — Conner Kortan (AL) fall Connor Wanderscheid (MW)

215 — Caleb Gaudian (AL) dec. Thomas Williams (MW) 3-0

HWT — Hunter Wanderscheid (MW) dec. Alex Nielsen 1-0