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A total of nine wrestlers from the Albert Lea program made their way to St. Paul Friday to take part in the Minnesota State wrestling tournament attempting to enter their name into the school’s history books.

Eight boys and one girl started the day for the Tigers and by the end of the opening round nearly half had been relegated to the consolation bracket or had their tournament hopes cut short.

Starting in the boys division, at 114 pounds, sophomore Devon Groess took on No. 7-ranked Saitaro Kong of Apple Valley. Despite putting up a good fight, Devon Groess came up short in a 4-2 decision, putting him into the consolation bracket. As of press time, it was unsure as to whether he would get another opportunity to wrestle as he would need Kong to win his second-round match to be able to continue.

Ranked No. 5 at 121 pounds, sophomore Dylan Gross had better luck in his first round match, defeating Moorhead’s Michael Jenkins in a third-period pinfall. Dylan Groess then moved into the quarterfinals where he took on No. 10 Grant Bergeron Friday evening. Results from that match were unavailable as of press time.

Senior Logan Davis, ranked No. 2 at 127 pounds, also won his first round match via a 19-4 technical fall over Park Center’s Zaye Vang. Davis moves into the quarterfinals where he will take on Jaden Neusinger Friday night. Results from that matchup were unavailable as of press time.

Unranked sophomore Ryan Collins came up short in his first match in the 133-pound bracket, losing to Will Schneider of Mounds View in an 8-6 decision. Collins awaits the results of the quarterfinals before knowing whether he will continue on the consolation side of the bracket.

Senior Brody Ignaszewski, ranked No. 7 at 145 pounds, fell in a narrow loss against unranked Kenny Ferrario of St. Francis in a 4-1 sudden victory. Ignaszeski moved into the consolation bracket where his fate was to be determined by the results of the quarterfinals.

At 160 pounds, senior and No. 6-ranked Nick Korman, defeated Alex Newby of Bemidji in a close 4-3 decision. Korman moved up into the quarterfinals where he took on No. 5 Zane Engels. Results from that match were unavailable as of press time.

Sophomore Brecken Wacholz continued to impress at 172 pounds, as the No. 7-ranked Wacholz defeated Nic Lunemann of Woodbury in a 17-1 technical fall. He faces a tough take in the quarterfinals where he meets No. 1 Jarrett Wadsen of St. Michael-Albertville. Results from that match were unavailable as of press time.

Finally, senior Evan Schroeder lost his first-round match at 215 pounds, falling to No. 4 Blake Krause of Lakeville North. He also awaits the results of the quarterfinals to determine if he will continue in the consolation bracket.

Albert Lea’s lone girl qualifier, sophomore Maggie Olson, will start her tournament run Saturday morning when the girls quarterfinals begins.

Check albertleatribune.com on all Albert Lea and area wrestlers as they become available.