Portland Raider Wrestling Postseason Summary

The Raider Wrestlers concluded their season in strong form both as a team and individually.

As a team, the Raiders Wrestlers advanced to regional finals by way of defeating Belding (57-21) in the district semifinal, Lakewood (47-28) in the district final, and Williamston (45-34) in the regional semifinal. Unfortunately, their season came to a close in the regional final, as the #3 ranked Alma (43-27) proved to be too strong. Coach Pulling stated, “We knew we had to show up and perform to our very best as a team and I felt that we did. We had a great time competing at a high level despite our transportation and Covid-related interruptions today. It was a rewarding experience for me to step back and see our guys band together, compete and have fun, we just weren’t good enough today to be regional champions and advance to states.” The Raider Wrestlers finished with an impressive 23-4 team record.

The individual seasons were still alive as 14 Raider Wrestlers entered the individual postseason for a chance to qualify to regionals and then to individual state finals. Of the 14 wrestlers entered, half of the team placed 4th or higher at districts, earning their spot at the individual regional tournament. Qualifying to regionals were: Connor Gleason placing 3rd at 112 lbs, Ethan Webert placing 3rd at 119 lbs, Drew Miller placing 4th at 130 lbs, Isaiah Pelc placing 2nd at 135 lbs, Trent Trierweiler placing 1st at 140 lbs, Chandler Murton placing 2nd at 171 lbs, and Branson Goodman placing 4th at 215 lbs.

On March 27th, the seven regional-qualifying Raider Wrestlers performed very strongly, advancing six to individual state finals and celebrating Trent Trierweiler’s 100th Career Victory! Congratulations Trent, this is a rare accomplishment as Trent is only the 42nd Raiders Wrestler to accomplish this feat, and he did it as a junior! Advancing to individual state finals were: Ethan Webert placing 3rd at 119 lbs, Drew Miller placing 4th at 130 lbs, Isaiah Pelc placing 1st (and avenging a loss in overtime!) at 135 lbs, Trent Trierweiler placing 2nd at 140 lbs, Chandler Murton placing 1st (and avenging a loss!) and Branson Goodman placing 4th at 215 lbs.

On April 2nd, the six individual state qualifiers traveled to Wings Event Center in Kalamazoo to test their skills against the best wrestlers in Division 3. Each wrestler met adversity and battled well. Half of the qualifying wrestlers earned All-State Honors: sophomore Isaiah Pelc established a 3-2 record on the day earning 4th place, junior Trent Trierweiler established a 4-1 record earning 3rd place and sophomore Branson Goodman finished the day 4-2 earning 5th place. Coach Pulling was pleased with all six of the Raiders who qualified, noting that “Just one year ago we brought seven guys to this tournament and left with only one All-State Wrestler placing 5th. It was obvious this year each wrestler competed to their ability and had fun, resulting in a more successful tournament as a group. I’m proud of each of these guys, we battled in a tough tournament in a season with so many uncertainties.”

Image courtesy of Renae Goodman.