By Jason Wesseldyk
Sports Editor
ALLEGAN
The 2024-25 season was a special one for Allegan.
Under the guidance of former Tiger standout Chase Beard, Allegan won a state quarterfinal match for the first time in more than a decade before falling in the state semifinals.
The Tigers finished with a 31-3 record.
And with some key members of that team back again this year, Beard has high hopes for another strong showing in the new campaign.
“The goals and expectations I have for the team remain similar to those of last year,” said Beard, who is entering his fifth season at the helm of his alma mater. “We hope to continue to see positive results while the team continues to grow in skill.
“I believe we should see a strong outcome in team results and more wrestlers on the individual podium in March.”
A total of 10 wrestlers are back for the Tigers, with all of them having qualified for regionals last season and five of them having qualified for the individual State Finals.
Seniors Rysten Williams and Ryan Sparks headline that list after each placed at the Division 3 State Finals.
Williams was fifth in his weight class, while Sparks placed sixth.
The other state qualifiers were senior Treydan Vander Kooi, junior Jake Collier and sophomore Sully Morgan. Senior Ayden Oisten, juniors Cooper Prentice and Cesar Mendoza and sophomores Hudson Vander Kooi and Dylan Ritsema all qualified for regionals.
Newcomers who should see time at the varsity level include the junior duo of Hunter McKee and Trent Adrianson along with the freshmen tandem of Cullen Vander Kooi and Kaden Krusinga.
In addition to doing well at the state level, a goal for the Tigers is to win the SAC championship.
But doing so, Beard knows, will not be an easy task given the level of competition in the league.
“I believe the conference duals will be very exciting this year as our conference contains three other state-ranked teams: Martin, Constantine, and Gobles,” he said.
Allegan has the highest pre-season ranking of those teams.
“The duals against the other state-ranked teams will make for some exciting nights where our team will have to perform smart to succeed,” Beard said.
FENNVILLE
A new season brings with it excitement and optimism for most teams.
Fennville is no exception.
As the Blackhawks prepare for the 2025-26 season, longtime coach—and former Blackhawk wrestler—Steve Fries is looking forward to the possibility of what’s to come.
“We’re very excited for this season,” Fries said.
Much of that excitement revolves around a group of newcomers who are hoping to make an impact for Fennville.
“We have lots of new faces, with is great,” Fries said. “All of them are solid athletes and we are excited about their growth and the potential they have.”
Many of those newcomers are freshmen, including the likes of Kolton Hagger (157 pounds), Benett Maccune (175/190) and Anthony Mullins (190/215).
“This is a good group of freshmen for us this year,” Fries said. “Many of them have a few years of experience on the mats already, so that should help with the learning curve.”
Returning wrestlers include senior Luis Vanquez at 150, junior Gabbie Vanstaalduinen at 170 and junior Ryleigh Wilson at 110.
“It should be a fun group to watch this year,” Fries said.
HAMILTON
The 2025-26 season will make the fourth at the helm for Hamilton coach (and former Hawkeye grappler) Trenton Holyfield.
To say his first three seasons have been successful would be an understatement.
In his first three campaigns, Holyfield has led Hamilton to a 91-8 dual record that includes three district titles and two conference titles.
Holyfield is quick to deflect credit for that success.
“The wins don’t count as accomplishments in my personal record books,” he said. “It’s the relationships I get to form and the development of young athletes I get to witness that count as accomplishments for me.”
It’s continuing to build those relationships that has Holyfield most excited about the new season.
“It’s an exciting time to be a coach at Hamilton because of the youthfulness and inexperience on our team,” he said. “I will get to do a lot of intentional coaching and see a lot of growth in each wrestler’s ability.
“Our goal is to create an environment where our wrestlers have a chance to be successful first as people, second as students and lastly as wrestlers. More importantly, our goal is for our wrestlers to wrestle to their capacity, do the best they can, and have an opportunity to be a champion.
“We want each wrestler to have the opportunity to be more successful in life because of their association with this program.”
The following wrestlers return for Hamilton: 106 pounds—junior Cade Mitchell; 113 pounds—sophomore Louis Garvelink and junior Weston Geerlings; 120 pounds—sophomore Jeremy Raab, senior Broden Van Wieren and sophomore Cohen Polet; 126 pounds—sophomore Liam Collins; 132 pounds—sophomore Chase Morrison and senior Carmine Cordova; 144 pounds—juniors Seth Hoppes and Miguel Cerda; 150 pounds—sophomore Austin Paskvan; 157 pounds—senior Bryce Morrison; 165 pounds—junior Jordan Brice, senior Tyler Block and sophomore Brayden Stezowski; 190 pounds—sophomore Brayden Haynes, sophomore Isaiah Garza and junior Shawn Lawson; and 285 pounds—junior Brandon Tucker.
“We expect continuous improvement from all of our wrestlers throughout the season,” Holyfield said. “Getting one percent better every day is what we preach to our wrestlers.”
Holyfield has no doubt this group will give its best effort each practice and match.
“The strength of our team is their willingness to work hard and be discipline in the practice room,” he said. “I can say this is one of the hardest working groups of kids I have coached. We will be concerned if we do not wrestle to our capacity and show continuous improvement.
“As of now, I have no concerns for this team. It is a great group of young people. We are going to have a lot of fun together.”
It’s a group that Holyfield believes can win conference and district titles yet again.
“We should be a top contender,” he said.
HOPKINS
Joel Eding is approaching the three-decade mark in terms of his tenure as head coach in Hopkins.
Given that level of experience, Eding generally has a pretty good feel in terms of what kind of team he has going into a new season.
And this season, he likes what he sees.
“We have a pretty good-looking squad this year,” said Eding, who is entering his 28th season leading the Vikings. “Our retuning state qualifiers will lead the way for us.”
Those state qualifiers include senior Cooper Anderson at 144 pounds, sophomore Wyatt Runkel at 126 pounds and Luke Klinge at 138 pounds.
In addition to that trio, three other Vikings return after qualifying for the individual regional tournament a year ago.
Those three are senior Trevor Anderson at 175, junior Tim Well at 165 and Vinny Garza at 157.
Also returning are sophomores Carson Struble (106 pounds), Charlie Eding (113), Tyler Williams (132), Wyatt Jackson (138) and Dylan Cook (150) along with juniors Cameron Phillips (157) and Dilson Rodas (150) and senior Levi Jackson (215).
Newcomers include seniors Gabe Holweger (285) and Zane Siebright (120), sophomore Jamesen Boyer (215) and freshmen Connor Harrington (113), Quinton Miller (120), Wyatt Wolbrink (138) and Emmett Housman (150).
It’s a team that Joel Eding believes will be competitive in the OK Silver and will have a chance to make some noise in the postseason.
“Top teams in the OK Silver are Fruitport and Belding,” Eding said. “We lost duals to both these teams last season. But we will be a competitive team looking to compete in the postseason.”
MARTIN
The 2025-26 season promises to the a memorable one for Martin.
Not only are the Clippers no longer in a co-op with Climax-Scotts for the first time in a decade, but they are also celebrating the 50th anniversary of the program’s existence.
“It should be an exciting year,” said Martin coach and former mat standout Logan Curry, who led the Clippers to a Division 4 state runner-up finish a year ago. “We’re expecting to put together a strong season.”
As has become a usual situation for Curry, his team will be playing a little bit of catch up early in the season.
That’s because, due to the success of the school’s football team, several wrestlers will be getting a late start in terms of practice.
The Martin football team won the 8-Player Division 1 state title for the third time in the past four years.
“We’re coming off another football state championship, so we may start a little slow as we get some of those guys healthy and back on the mat,” said Curry, who’s compiled an 81-12 record in his three seasons at the helm and was named Division 4 Coach of the Year. “But by the end of the year, I fully expect us to be competitive with the top teams in Division 4.”
Senior Haylen Buell leads the charge when it comes to returning wrestlers. He’s slated to compete at 165 pounds.
Also back are fellow seniors Anderson Keeler (190) and Michael Chilel-Chun (157), juniors Logan Curry (157), Seth Toris (144) and Lucas Totten (138), and sophomores Urijah Joostberns (132), Jacinto Lopez (113) and Gabe Anaya (175).
“An area of strength for our team is the number of wrestlers we can rely on in big-time matches,” Coach Curry said. “Many of them have competed on the biggest stage and understand what it takes to win when it matters most.”
Newcomers include senior Peyton Schuring-Harris (285), sophomore Adler Hofer (132) and freshman Zaiden Buell (120).
All in all, it’s a group Coach Curry believes should be in the thick of things when it comes to the race for the top spot in a tough SAC.
“Our conference will have some really good teams in it, including a handful that could make an appearance at the team state finals,” he said. “I expect us to be able to compete with those top teams in our conference
“Individually, we will have a handful of kids who will look to be a conference champion. That group is led by Haylen Buell, Urijah Joostberns, Jacinto Lopez, Adler Hofer, Peyton Schuring-Harris, Seth Toris, Logan Curry and Zaiden Buell.”
OTSEGO
A good mix.
That’s how longtime Otsego coach Brian Sparks describes the makeup of his team’s roster as it prepares to head into the new season.
“We have a good mix of experience and new wrestlers,” Sparks said of his 30-man squad.
Senior Lane Blanchard (157 pounds) leads the charges for the Bulldogs. A two-time state qualifier, Blanchard is expected to reach the 150-win plateau this season.
“He should be a force in the postseason,” Sparks said of Blanchard.
Juniors Zeke Andrina (132) and Ryder Balkema (285) are two others who Sparks thinks will help lead the way for the Bulldogs.
“Zeke—a state qualifier last season—and Ryder Balkema also will look to get back to the State meet and make some noise,” Sparks said.
Senior Kole Engleright (190) has also qualified for the State Finals.
Also returning are: 113 pounds—sophomore Connor Mitchell; 120—sophomore Kaleb Cole; 138—junior Noah Barber; 150—sophomore Sawyer Kalman; 157—sophomore Blake Mathieu; 165—sophomore Gabe Conely; 190—sophomore Brandon Mendoza; 215—sophomore Cage McNeese, senior Rowan McKinley, senior Cordell Stoneburner and senior Jose Stoneburner; and 285—senior Logan Brinkhuis.
“We have great leadership from our captains—Lane Blanchard, Zeke Andrina and Gabe Conley. Not only vocally do they do a great job, but they have unmatched work ethic that makes a huge impact in our room daily.”
Sparks is looking for improvement both as a team and individually.
“I hope to be more competitive in the team portion of the schedule,” he said. “And last year we qualified three guys to the State Finals with three to four more just falling shy of qualifying.
“I hope to build on that and be more consistent in the team portion of the season. I’m very excited about getting some kids back out and the solid group of freshmen this year.”
WAYLAND
Wayland graduated a talented senior class that included four wrestlers with 35 or more wins as seniors, three of whom were state qualifiers and two of whom are currenting wrestling at the college level. One of those was a two-time state champ.
Despite losing such a talented group, longtime Wayland coach Roy Harter is optimistic what the potential his team has for the season ahead.
“This year’s group is ready to step up and might be deeper than we were a year ago,” Harter said.
It’s because of those reasons that Harter believes his team has chance to win a league title for the third straight time … which would be a first in program history.
“We have a battle-tested, experienced team with lots of in-house competition,” Harter said. “We expect this to be a good team.”
Returning letter winners include: junior Miles Nesbit (126/132 pounds), sophomore Lennon Nesbit (126/132), senior Rex Emmorey (132/138), sophomore Wyatt Nesbit (138/144), senior Jake Smit (157/165), senior Henry Maass (157/165), junior Jake Reeder (175/190), senior Ryan Sipkema (175/190), senior Logan Hall (215).
Maass is team captain along with Sipkema.
“We have some great returning wrestlers, with experience, and we have good leadership from our upperclassmen.”
There are a total of 44 wrestlers on the boys team.
“We have potential to win a conference title given the returning talent we have,” Harter said. “TK is also going to be good this year they will have an experienced squad and had a good post season last year. Northview continues to build and also looks like they could be in the mix.”
And as bright as this season looks, the future is equally as bright. There are more than 60 wrestlers in the youth program, with approximately 30 in the middle school program.
