Clark gets 100th win as Rebel Jays dominate on the mat

The Laona-Wabeno-Three Lakes varsity wrestling team ended their second week of action with four grapplers winning eight matches each with no losses. This occurred during two tournaments and followed a season-opening week when the same four teammates had a collective 37-3 record. Leading the pack this week was Max Clark, who not only finished the two events with an 8-0 record, but also earned his 100th high school career victory in his final match during the Rebel Invitational at the Forest County Potawatomi Community Center in Crandon on Saturday.

Joining Clark with an 8-0 week was Brody Hoffman, who is undefeated at 18-0 this season, as well as Reegan Roy and Ryker Schingeck, who share a 17-1 record with Clark. Not only do Clark, Roy and Schingeck share the same record, but they are also each ranked third in their respective weight brackets in the WIAA D3 category by Wisconsin Grappler, a popular online wrestling site. Hoffman is ranked 11th in the competitive 190-pound bracket. Collectively, this group of four has a 69-3 record this year with 26 pins.

Other notable wrestlers in last week’s action include Cameron Tilton, who went 7-2 on the week with four pins, and Jayse Demerath, who went 5-2. Tilton holds a solid 15-4 record for the season, while Demerath is just behind him at 11-5. While Clark, Roy, Schingeck and Hoffman placed first at the Rebel Invitational in their weight classes, Tilton and Demerath were the only other boys to place in the top five.
As a team, the Rebel Jays are enjoying one of their strongest starts in many years, as Wisconsin Grappler has them as the eighth-best Division 3 team in the state. In last week’s competition, the team earned second-place finishes in a quad event at Bonduel High School on Wednesday and then in the major Rebel Invitational against more than 20 high schools on Saturday in Crandon.

The Rebel Invitational was special for the team, not only due to the statistical successes, but it marked the 50th year of the event, dating back well before the current co-op arrangement with Wabeno High School and the high schools in Laona and Three Lakes. The event also carried an emotional backdrop as the home invitational was dedicated to the life of a former Wabeno student, Clark Lightfoot, who passed away near the start of the season last year. Lightfoot was on the wrestling team at the time, and co-head coach Colin Schubert led the crowd in sharing a moment of silence to honor him.

“It was another great week on the mat for the team,” co-head coach Seth Senter said after the week’s events. “Our leaders of Brody, Reegan, Max and Ryker continue to impress. It was great to see Max get his 100th win in front of a home crowd and he had a nice tournament placing first at his weight. Not only did he finish first, but he had to wrestle a state qualifier to get it done. As head coaches, Colin and I are proud of the work effort with this kid, and we’re glad to see him having a successful senior year.”

Another wrestler putting in hard work, according to Senter, is Hoffman.

“He worked hard before the season started and coach Schubert has put special emphasis on specific takedown techniques that fit his skill level. This has helped Brody to jump to some very quick match leads and he seems to wrestle best when he has the lead.”

The invitational on Saturday also marked three female wrestlers on the Rebel Jays team who earned placement awards. Kyra Beaber earned a first-place finish, while Idalynn Vladik and Somerr Ridgeway placed second in their weight brackets. Beaber was 5-0 with five pins to her credit, while Ridgeway was 2-2 with two pins, and Vladik was 1-1 with a pin victory in her opening match. The entire team will
compete together again this Saturday, December 20, at 9:30 a.m. for the Shawano Holiday Classic, where they will face wrestlers from more than 30 different schools.