VARSITY ROSTER
Tyler Craig, senior
Alec Johnson, senior
Jed Johnson, senior
Logan Meyers, senior
Bray Olson, senior
Carter Quam, senior
Isaiah Thompson, senior
Josh Thompson, senior
Armani Tucker, senior
Danny VanEpps, senior
Noah Bermudez, sophomore
Jaedin Johnson, sophomore
Tate Miller, sophomore
Dillon Bartel, freshman
Trent Foss, freshman
Gavin Johnson, freshman
Kiefer Olson, freshman
Landon Trump, freshman
Reed Sommer, 8th grade
2021 SCHEDULE
Jan. 15 — at Goodhue, Chatfield, 5 p.m.
Jan. 21 — vs. Pine Island, 7 p.m.
Jan. 23 — at Chatfield, Triton, 10 a.m.
Jan. 25 — at WEM/JWP, 7 p.m., JWP
Jan. 28 — at Triton, GMLOKS, 5 p.m.
Feb. 2 — vs. Westfield, Lewiston-Altura, 5 p.m.
Feb. 4 — vs. Cannon Falls, 7 p.m.
Feb. 8 — at Maple River, NRHEG, 5 p.m.
Feb. 11 — at Stewartville, 7 p.m.
Feb. 16 — at Dover-Eyota, FC/L/MC, 5 p.m.
Feb. 19 — at Lake Crystal-Wellcome Memorial, Byron, 5 p.m.
Feb. 23 — vs. Caledonia, Lewiston-Altura, 5 p.m.
Feb. 25 — vs. Kasson-Mantorville, Lake City, 5 p.m.
March 2 — vs. Plainview-Elgin-Millville, Zumbrota-Mazeppa, 5 p.m.
March 4 — at Maple River, United South Central, 7 p.m.
KEY MATCHUPS
Jan. 15 at Goodhue, Chatfield — The season for the Knights will start with a pair of measuring sticks. K-W, which finished second in the Hiawatha Valley League last season, will travel to Goodhue, which finished fourth in the HVL a season ago and lost 42-30 to the Knights. While a win against Goodhue asserts K-W as a top-tier HVL team again this season, perhaps the more intriguing matchup is against Chatfield, which is ranked No. 11 in Class A to start the season. The Knights, on the other hand, are just outside the Class A state rankings, and an opening-night sweep of this triangular may propel them into the next batch of rankings, which are released Jan. 20. Additionally, the result may be decided by each team’s top two wrestlers. In the 160-pound weight class, Chatfield features fourth-ranked senior Seth Goetzinger, while Kenyon-Wanamingo possesses seventh-ranked senior Bray Olson. At 220, Chatfield has fourth-ranked senior AJ Karver, who will likely be opposed by fifth-ranked senior Carter Quam. K-W and Chatfield will also face off Jan. 23 in a triangular at Chatfield that also includes Triton.
Feb. 25 vs. Kasson-Mantorville, Lake City — The KoMets have been unmatched in the HVL recently, and have not lost a conference dual since the 2007-08 season, when the Knights finished undefeated in the conference. Last season, Kasson-Mantorville delivered K-W its only conference defeat, and although the final score of 69-6 was not that close, the KoMets lost just twice last season — to Class AAA state champion Shakopee and to Class AA state champion Simley. K-M starts the season ranked No. 2 in Class AA (behind Simley) and feature six wrestlers ranked in the individual Class AA rankings. While a dual-meet win is likely out of reach, there’s no other opportunity this regular season to face this level of talent. The second match of the triangular, Lake City, features a team that narrowly lost to K-W 31-24 last season. This will be the only time this season K-W battles both of these teams.
March 2 vs. Plainview-Elgin-Millville, Zumbrota-Mazeppa — The second-to-last match of the season will likely decide the second-place finisher in the HVL. Last season, the Knights edged the Cougars 36-31 to secure second place, and in the program’s last season in the HVL, another second-place finish is a good note to end on. Z-M is led by junior Gabe Tubber (No. 4 at 182 in Class A) and senior Ethan Kovars (No. 2 at 195 in Class A). P-E-M, meanwhile, lost 40-33 against K-W this season and enters this season headlined by senior Cael Marx, who’s ranked No. 8 at 160 in Class AA. This will be the only time this season K-W faces either of these teams.