February 6, 2024
Cardinal Boys Win 1 of 2 at Regional Duals
There were plenty of white-knuckle moments for the Cardinals in their match against Pleasantville at regional duals in Alburnett on January 30, but the tension reached a peak at the very end. With the Cards leading, 36-35, the matchup at 132 was next in a winner-take-all bout. Earlham’s Josh Winey was pitted against the Trojan’s Blake Rowson. Winey got it done, winning by fall at 3:06.
Overcoming the pressure of the moment was the first obstacle for Winey.
“It was pretty scary,” he said. “I’ve wrestled that guy two other times this season. I beat him once and he beat me once. It was very nerve wracking knowing that he’s a good opponent and I was the last one up to wrestle and I would have to beat him in order to win the dual.”
Winey was ahead 8-2 before he got the pin, but Rowson did look to have Winey in precarious positions a couple of times. He had come back on Winey before—but the Earlham sophomore was not going to let it happen again.
“The last time we wrestled, I had him in a cradle,” Winey said. “He’s very athletic. He jumped over and he pinned me. We didn’t have a very long match. He’s just a very strong wrestler. He knows what he’s doing. He’s smart in those positions. So I knew I had to just do something.”
He did ‘something,’ indeed. His win gave Earlham their first regional dual victory ever. He was ready for his time in the spotlight.
“It was both mentally and physically exhausting,” he said. “I had to go in there prepared, make sure that I was mentally ready. And I had to go out there and work my hardest. It was all about who wanted it more. I showed him what the Cards were about.”
The Cardinals were certainly familiar with conference rival Pleasantville. The Trojans handed the Cards their only dual loss to a 1A team this season on December 12. The Cardinals knew that this would be a tough match, but felt ready.
“We made some adjustments to what we did last time when it comes to our lineup,” said Coach Strandberg. “Putting kids where we think we can score the most points. Tonight we had a couple of kids that won before that lost, but we had a couple kids that lost before that won. I think the game plan worked out and it came down to the last match against two state qualifiers—and we walked away with it.”
While Winey’s match stood out because of the significance, this was a total team win by the Cardinals.
The match started at 138 with Malachi Hruska taking on #9 Caleb Cook. Cook dominated, winning by major decision, 16-1, and the Trojans led, 5-0.
Hruska refused to be pinned by the talented Cook, though, saving the Cards 1 point. In a match as close as this one was, obviously, those points can—and did—make a huge difference.
“We talk about, in a dual scenario, you’re out there to win and you’re going to keep on trying to wrestle to win,” said Coach Strandberg, “but if you can’t win for yourself anymore, it’s time to turn around and wrestle for the team.”
At 144, Ethan Winey lost by fall to #11 Zane Mullenix at 1:24. Cole Eitel (150) lost by fall at 1:24 to Carter Metcalf, and the Cards trailed, 17-0.
Jackson Berkley (157) got the Cards on the board with a win by fall over Silas Koenig at 3:09. Down 2-1 early in the 2nd period, Berkley got a reversal to go ahead. After the wrestlers went out of bounds, Berkley started on top, quickly flattened Koenig, and eventually turned him for the pin. The Cards trailed, 17-6.
#3 Ryan Stiles (165) was up next for the Cards. He made quick work of Owen Rule, winning by fall at 1:20.
After the Cards forfeited at 175, they trailed 23-12.
Ty Willem (190) needed just 13 seconds to dispose of Xavier Schrader by fall, and the Cards were back within striking distance, 23-18.
Corbin Etter (215) fought off a pin in the 1st period, but eventually succumbed to Carson Ammons by fall at 3:38. Keegan Long lost a hard-fought decision to Colton Miller, 5-1, and the Cards trailed, 32-18.
Max Millage (ranked #9 at 106) dominated Tanner Booth. Millage piled up 8 points before finishing Booth off at 3:17 with a pin. Pleasantville still led, 32-24.
Dallas Canoyer tightened things up with a quick 34-second win by fall over Kooper Hamilton. The Cards trailed by just 2, 32-30.
Nathan Hansen (120) was up next for the Cardinals. He took on #10 ranked Tommy Booth and gave him all he could handle. With a reversal in the 3rd period, Hansen got within 1 point of Booth, but eventually lost by decision, 9-6. The Trojans led, 35-30.
Like Winey, Payton Harger (126) was in a must-win situation for the Cardinals. The Trojans’ Kurt Kuhnen wrestled hard against the #5 ranked Harger, but the Earlham senior was too much for him, winning by fall at 3:17. That put the Cards ahead for the first time, 36-35, and set up the drama in the bout at 132.
With the win over Pleasantville, the Cards took on Alburnett for the right to advance to the state dual tournament on February 3. The #1 ranked Pirates were as advertised, beating the Cardinals, 60-14.
Ryan Stiles won by decision, 4-1, over Hunter Sauer. Ty Willem won by fall at 2:35 over Wyatt Schrader. Dallas Canoyer won by technical fall, 16-1, over Clayton Strong.
The Cardinals’ dual season came to an end, but getting to regionals and winning a match showed just how far the Cards have come in a short time.
“I’ve always told the kids, ‘Take the good, leave the bad,’” said Coach Strandberg. “We got humbled a bit in that second one, but that can be good this time of year to see where you’re at. We’re going to have to wrestle these kinds of guys at the district tournament. We’re going to have to wrestle these guys at the state tournament. So it’s back to the process.”
Cardinal Boys Win Conference Tournament
With four individual champions, Earlham dominated the WCAC tournament in Guthrie Center on February 1. The Cards won with 205.5 points, finishing ahead of Pleasantville (171.5) and Woodward-Granger (166).
Max Millage (106), Dallas Canoyer (113), Josh Winey (132), and Ryan Stiles (165) all got 1st place.
Millage won his quarterfinal by fall over Blake Holman (Panorama) at 2:35. Next, he won by technical fall (17-2 at 4:43) over Tanner Booth (Pleasantville). In the 1st place match, Millage won by fall over Quinn Arellano (Van Meter) at 3:51.
Canoyer opened with a win by fall over Solomon Hubbard (Van Meter) at 1:00, then won by fall over Isaac Dominick (Ogden) at 1:14. He won the 1st place match by fall over Tommy Booth (Pleasantville) at 5:50.
Winey beat Cylir Joint (WCV) by fall at 1:14, then won his semifinal by fall over Austin Wagner (Panorama) at 5:07. Winey won the 1st place match by fall over Blake Rowson (Pleasantville) at 2:37.
Stiles won his quarterfinal by fall over Steven Hepworth (Van Meter) at 1:01. Next, he won by decision, 4-0, over Nathan Comer (Ogden). In the final, Stiles beat Bode Stanley by decision, 7-5, in 1 overtime period. Nathan Hansen (120), Payton Harger (126), Ty Willem (190), and Keegan Long (285) got 3rd place finishes. Malachi Hruska (138) and Jackson Berkley (150) both finished 4th. Konnar Stiles (157) was 5th, Cole Eitel (144) was 6th, and Corbin Etter (215) did not place.
Glade 5th at Girls’ State Tournament
Wrestling in her third straight state tournament, Haley Glade landed on the podium for the first time, earning 5th place. It was a hard-earned award for the Earlham junior.
“It’s something I’ve worked at for a long time,” she said. “I’ve been wrestling for 5 years. It’s pretty satisfying.”
Girls’ wrestling is a big deal. Xtream Arena in Coralville was packed to the rafters last Thursday and Friday for the state tournament. While Glade was focused on the job at hand, she made sure she embraced the environment, too.
“In the middle of your match, when you’re kind of taking a breath and you look up and see all the people, it’s kind of cool,” she said. “Not everybody is watching you, but it’s cool that you get the opportunity to be on that stage in front of that many people.”
Seeded #8, Glade won by fall over #25 Emerson Bartlett (Cedar Falls) at 3:27. Next up was #9 Lauren Rodgers (Woodward-Granger). Rodgers had beaten Glade three times this season, but Glade and her coaches went to work before the match.
“I knew I could beat her, but our styles, the way they mixed, I just didn’t come out on top,” Glade said of her earlier matches with Rodgers. “So I sat down with Coach Strandberg and Coach Spieker and my dad and we talked through our game plan. We went back and watched some film and just set out exactly what I needed to do to wear her down. That’s one thing that I have over a lot of girls, that I can go long into the 3rd period. So I definitely like to use that to my advantage.”
Glade dominated, winning the match by decision, 7-0.
In the quarterfinal, Glade wrestled #1 seed Marhi Manz of Lewis Central. Glade lost by major decision, 11-2, but the match was closer than the score indicated.
“We both wrestled really well. It was a very competitive match,” said Glade. “Did I do some things that ended up costing me some points? Yes, but I don’t have anything to lose at that point—going against the #1 seed.”
Glade’s ‘blood round’ opponent did not make weight, so Glade advanced to the medal round. She beat Phoenix Gryp (Williamsburg) by decision, then lost to Tayla Stiefel (East Buchanan) by decision, 6-3. Glade’s opponent in the 5th place match forfeited due to injury.
After a long, arduous season, Glade admits to being a ‘little sore.’
“Just wrestling the guys all season, I think it puts a lot more wear and tear on my body,” she said. “But at the very end, it’s like, ‘Finally, we’re done!’”
Done, ‘sort of.’ Glade still has a few national tournaments that she’ll attend and will wrestle with a club team in some dual matches. And, her club softball team gets rolling next week.
“I have this week off entirely,” she said. “But I still have to watch it a little bit to make sure I’m eating healthy.”
Earlham Echo 
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