Chris Waba begins his 22nd year as head coach of the Madison Bulldogs wrestling team. He currently has a 259-168 overall dual record.
As the season gets under way on Thursday, Waba has 33 wrestlers from 7-12 grades out for the team. Three seniors, three juniors, seven sophomores, eight 8th-graders and seven 7th-graders are vying for a spot on the Bulldogs roster.
Heading the list of returnees are seniors Truman Stoller at 120 (39-8 last season), Sam Olson 138 (34-5) and Tyler Reck 220 (12-19).
Other top returnees include juniors Isaac Henry 126 (25-15), Jess Englert 145 (12-26) and Riley Kearin 170 (11-25); along with sophomores Blake Johnson 126 (13-23) and Sutton Bern 160 (8-9).
"We are going to be fairly competitive where we have experience," Waba said, who worries about the lack of varsity time. "We will have a lot of kids with very little varsity mat time trying to wrestle at the varsity level."
Madison lost five seniors to graduation.
"They accumulated a total of 115 wins last season," Waba said. "That will be tough to replace."
Waba tabs Canton as the favorite in the Dakota XII Conference.
"Canton is always going to be a favorite," he said. "They are returning state champions and have another packed lineup."
Madison finished last season with an 11-6 record in dual meets.
Madison opens the 2020-21 season with a dual meet against Milbank at Milbank on Thursday beginning at 6:30 p.m.
Assisting Waba this season are Marty Konechne, Travis Johnson and Zach Johnson.
