D3 Preview: Seeking 4 on Familiar Floor
March 4, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Few if any Michigan high school wrestlers have more MHSAA championship match experience than Richmond senior Devin Skatzka.
He helped his team to the Division 3 championship last weekend in Battle Creek and also to the title in 2012 – plus runner-up finished in 2013 and 2014. And this weekend, he’ll compete to join only 19 others who won four individual titles during their high school careers.
Skatzka enters the favorite at 160 pounds, having won 152 as a junior, 145 as a sophomore and 135 as a freshman.
See below for 10 contenders to watch this weekend, plus others who enter the tournament undefeated or coming off runner-up finishes in 2014. Follow all the matches beginning with Thursday's first round on a subscription basis live on MHSAA.TV, and click here for results at MHSAA.com.
Those listed below are only a handful of the numerous contenders for this weekend’s Division 3 championships. Come back to Second Half at the end of this weekend, when we’ll have post-match thoughts from all 14 title winners.
112: Tristan Serbus, Corunna junior (37-7) – Corunna actually might have the two best wrestlers at this weight, with Serbus getting a lot of matches at heavier weights after winning the title at 103 as a freshman.
119: Aaron Kilburn, Richmond junior (40-6) – Last season’s champion at 112 also earned a third place at 103 as a freshman and is coming off helping Skatzka and their team with the Division 3 team title.
119: Devin Schroeder, Grand Rapids Catholic Central junior (43-1) – The reigning champion at this weight is the only wrestler to have beaten Division 2 favorite Lucas Hall of Lowell this season, and Schroeder’s only loss was to reigning Division 4 champ Logan Griffin of Erie-Mason.
125: Jerry Fenner, Birch Run senior (48-3) – The 2013 champion at 119 earned that title with an overtime win and then fell to Foster Karmon (see below) by a 2-1 decision in the 125-pound championship match last season; Fenner earned a third place at 103 as a freshman.
135: Kanen Storr, Leslie junior (50-1) – Storr finished second to GRCC’s Schroder at 119 last season, losing 5-2 in the Final, but won the title at 103 in 2013.
135: Grant Turnmire, Almont senior (46-1) – The reigning champion at 130 has jumped up a class and been even better; he’s 93-5 over the last two seasons and 135-11 over his last three after finishing seventh at 125 as a sophomore.
140: Nate Limmex, Grand Rapids Catholic Central senior (40-0) – The champion last season at 135 and at 130 in 2013, Limmex hasn’t lost since his freshman year when he took fourth in Division 2 at 125 pounds wrestling for Lowell.
145: Foster Karmon, Allegan junior (26-0) – The reigning champion at 125 moved up four weight classes in his third high school season and has yet to lose after finishing 58-2 as a sophomore title winner.
160: Devin Skatzka, Richmond senior (50-2) – As mentioned above, he’s looking to graduate with four titles and carries a 189-15 career record into this weekend.
215: Trent Hillger, Lake Fenton sophomore (54-0) – Hillger finished fourth at 171 pounds his freshman season after entering the tournament with eight losses; he’s raised his performance to a championship level going undefeated after moving up two weights.
Other 2014 runners-up: Saginaw Swan Valley junior K.J. Suitor (125, 49-1, 112 in 2014), Dundee senior Tye Thompson (189, 44-6, 171 in 2014), Croswell-Lexington sophomore Collin Lieber (152, 53-3, 135 in Division 2 in 2014).
Also undefeated: Caro senior Marshall Conley (47-0, 140), Chesaning senior Justin Sloan (47-0, 171), Millington sophomore Jared Roehl (45-0, 189).
More of note: Howard City Tri-County freshman Dakota Greer (36-1, 103), Corunna freshman Jarrett Trombley (42-1, 103), Farwell sophomore Glenn Beardsley (45-2, 130), Saginaw Swan Valley junior Matt Santos (50-1, 130), Allendale senior Brandon Dyke (40-3, 152), Dundee freshman Brandon Whitman (53-2, 171), Allegan sophomore Chase Beard (51-2, 189), Williamston junior Maddox Maki (48-6, 285).
PHOTO: Richmond's Devin Skatzka celebrates his win as part of his team's Division 3 title match victory Saturday against Dundee. (Click to see more at HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
Led by 1st-Year Coaches, Dundee Adds to Longtime Tradition with Another D3 Win
By
Jeff Chaney
Special for MHSAA.com
February 25, 2023
KALAMAZOO – Nate Hall and Garrett Stevens knew what they were taking over when they were announced as co-coaches of the Dundee wrestling team before this season.
Longtime coach Tim Roberts did not leave the cupboard bare when he decided to retire.
His Vikings program had won five straight MHSAA Division 3 team titles and was littered with talented and powerful wrestlers.
Hall and Stevens proved to be the right picks to take over the legendary program, as they helped coach the Vikings to their sixth-straight title, and 14th overall.
And Dundee did it in its usual impressive fashion, with a 60-18 win over Whitehall in the Final on Saturday at the Wings Event Center in Kalamazoo.
"The well was not dry, and don't wreck it," said Hall, whose team finished duals at 19-2. "We didn't change much. We have all been around the program long enough, we had a great idea of what was taking place and how we are successful."
Which is?
"The commitment of the families, that is 100 percent why this program is so successful," Hall said. "I am not chasing kids down to have them wrestle in the summer. I'm chasing them trying to keep up with them."
And that is exactly what the Vikings' three opponents were doing all weekend in Kalamazoo – chasing down Dundee's talent.
In the Final, the Vikings were down 12-0 after two pins by Whitehall. But after that, Dundee went on to win 11 matches in a row, seven straight by pin.
Freshman Haydn Nutt began with a pin in 3 minutes, 9 seconds. Nutt was one of six freshmen who took to the mat this weekend for the Vikings. And all six are ranked among the top 10 in their respective weight classes by Michigan Grappler, including Nutt, who is the state's top-ranked 106-pounder in Division 3.
"We started the year and we had 13 freshmen, and I can't say enough the way our program has developed those kids," Hall said. "They were ready from day one this year, and they stepped up and progressed properly. They were ready to go."
It helps when you have a senior class of state champions leading the way like Braeden Davis at 132 pounds, Kaden Chinavare at 138 and Aiden Davis at 157.
"Dundee is the best place to be when you want to pursue wrestling," said Braeden Davis, who will look to win a fourth-straight individual title next weekend at Ford Field and couple that with his now four team titles. "We have a great staff, a great community. It's all about wrestling at Dundee."
Braeden Davis went 3-0 for the weekend and helped Dundee defeat Hart in the Quarterfinals 64-15 and Constantine in the Semifinals 59-16.
Braeden Davis was most impressive in the Final, when he won by fall in 15 seconds.
Whitehall co-coach Justin Zeerip knows good wrestling when he sees it. A four-time Individual Finals champion himself, Zeerip was impressed with the Vikings.
"Dundee is so tough, " said Zeerip, whose team ended with a 32-4 record. "From 106 to 175, they have seven top-ranked guys. And a couple other guys are ranked really high, so hats off to them, they are a great program. Our kids wrestled hard, they are just a super team."
Whitehall did wrestle hard during the two-day event as well, downing Gladstone in the Quarterfinals 48-24 on Friday, and then Algonac in the Semifinals 40-27 earlier Saturday. Whitehall wrestled over its seed in that match, as the No. 3-seeded Vikings got past the second seed.
"I was proud how my guys wrestled this weekend," Zeerip said.
PHOTOS (Top) Dundee’s Kaden Chinavare, right, goes for a takedown during his 126-pound match with Whitehall’s Caden Varela. (Middle) Whitehall’s Jackson Cook wrestles to a 7-3 decision win at 190 in the Semifinal against Algonac. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)