JOSHUA KRUMP

by Scott Krump

Joined Dec 2021
Published Books 4

Wahpeton’s wrestling team won a triangular against the hosting Grand Forks Central Knights and the Devils Lake Firebirds. Wahpeton edged GFC 39-33 before beating up on DL 57-24. The Huskies are wrestling on their own turf this weekend in the Dan Unruh Tournament on Friday, Dec. 2 and Saturday, Dec. 3.

Wahpeton 39, Grand Forks Central 33

Wahpeton 57, Devils Lake 24

Grand Forks Central

113: Deshaun Lewis (GFC) over Bailee Heitkamp (WAHP) (Fall 2:59). 120: Ethan Lee (GFC) over Shea Truesdell (WAHP) (Fall 1:39). 126: Tanner Thiel (WAHP) over Joshua Isassi (GFC) (Dec 12-5). 132: Aaron Waterman (GFC) over (WAHP) (For.). 138: Noah Wiek (WAHP) over Alec Humble (GFC) (Fall 2:14). 145: Hayden Lunos (WAHP) over Carson Williams (GFC) (Dec 10-8). 152: Casey Frankhauser (WAHP) over Cole Oen (GFC) (Fall 0:32). 160: Brandon Thiel (WAHP) over William Rohrich (GFC) (Fall 3:01). 170: Aaron Deike (WAHP) over Tyler Pursley (GFC) (Fall 0:46). 182: Kyle Bjugstad (WAHP) over Cameran Bridgeford (GFC) (Fall 1:59). 195: Gordon Isler (GFC) over Christopher Thiel (WAHP) (Dec 9-4). 220: Drew Bajumpaa (WAHP) over Andres Hernandez (GFC) (SV-1 7-5). 285: Brady Terrill (GFC) over Josh Krump (WAHP) (Fall 0:37). 106: Tyson Gass (GFC) over Kaleb Mostoller (WAHP) (Fall 4:00)

Devils Lake

106: Kaleb Schwandt (DELA) over Bailee Heitkamp (WAHP) (Fall 1:17). 113: Brant Fisk (DELA) over Kaleb Mostoller (WAHP) (Fall 0:53). 120: Shea Truesdell (WAHP) over (DELA) (For.). 126: Everett Gunther (DELA) over Tanner Thiel (WAHP) (Fall 5:02). 132: Chandler Gunther (DELA) over (WAHP) (For.). 138: Noah Wiek (WAHP) over James Fisk (DELA) (Fall 2:55). 145: Hayden Lunos (WAHP) over (DELA) (For.). 152: Casey Frankhauser (WAHP) over Parker Vilandre (DELA) (Fall 5:22). 160: Brandon Thiel (WAHP) over Colby Rance (DELA) (Dec 9-6). 170: Aaron Deike (WAHP) over Jace Estenson (DELA) (Fall 1:33). 182: Kyle Bjugstad (WAHP) over Jayce Moor (DELA) (Fall 1:05). 195: Drew Bajumpaa (WAHP) over Robert Serumgard (DELA) (Fall 5:52). 220: Christopher Thiel (WAHP) over George DeMarce (DELA) (Fall 3:05). 285: Josh Krump (WAHP) over Shane Cavanaugh (DELA) (Fall 0:54).

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Three Wahpeton Huskies were crowned champions at the Larimore Wrestling Invitational. Aaron Deike (170), shown above, Kyle Bjugstad (182) and Chris Thiel (195) each took home the gold in their respective weight classes. Casey Frankhauser and Brandon Thiel were the first runner-ups in the 152-pound and 160-pound weight classes, respectively. Drew Bajumpaa took third, while Tanner Thiel and Josh Krump logged fourth-place finishes. Wahpeton goes back to work with a road dual against Fargo North at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 31.

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Josh Krump was victorious in the Wahpeton Huskies’ dual against Grand Forks Central.

Turner Blaufuss

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Josh Krump and Braden LeNoue were both victorious in the Wahpeton Huskies’ dual against Grand Forks Central. The Huskies fell to the Knights on their home mat by a score of 65-15 and in the follow-up dual against the West Fargo Packers they lost 66-13. Wahpeton goes back to work with a triangular at West Fargo Sheyenne High School at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 25.

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To qualify for the North Dakota State Wrestling Tournament, competitors have to place at their conference tournament. Nine Wahpeton wrestlers took the podium at the Eastern Dakota Conference Tournament on Saturday, Feb. 9 to earn a spot in the exclusive tournament.

The top placer for the Huskies was once again Josh Krump. “The Krumper” topped second-seeded Robby Serumgard from Devils Lake, North Dakota, in the semifinals with a 9-5 win by decision.

“In the semifinals (Krump) had a returning state-placer that had been out all year with an injury. Because he was a returning state-placer, he got seeded second,” Wahpeton coach Scott Tischer said. “Any time you throw a returning state-placer in the mix, it’s like, ‘Oh, man. I wonder how this is going to go,’ and he ended up wrestling really well to beat that kid to make it to the finals.”

West Fargo Sheyenne’s Shane Kennedy, who defeated Krump earlier in the season, edged a 7-6 victory in the finals.

“(Krump) learned a lot in that match about himself and about what he needed to do if he gets a chance to wrestle that kid again in the state tournament. Like we’ve told him before, ‘It doesn’t matter how many times you lose to a kid up to this point. The only thing that matters is if you pull the win this coming week,’” Tischer said. “His 0-2 record going against this kid going into state doesn’t mean anything. Everyone starts Thursday 0-0, so get the win when it matters because it’s the only time that matters.”

Shea Truesdell was another top-three finisher at 132 pounds, but the day didn’t start off the way he wanted. The sophomore Huskie got a bye in the opening round and the first wrestler he battled was three seeds below him. Truedell got put on his back, but battled back for another shot at the same wrestler in the third-place match. The Wahpeton standout ended his day with an 8-4 win.

“(Truesdell) got there the hard way. He wrestled to his seed, he just did it the hard way,” Tischer said. “It was one of those deals where I don’t know if it was a little bit of jitters, but once he got it out of his system and was ready to go he stepped it up. He understood that he could wrestle with these kids.”

Two Huskies moved on in the 145-pound bracket with Jackson Burchill taking fourth and Tanner Thiel following in fifth.

Garrett Lathrop also took fifth at 160 pounds in a strong showing. He even nearly edged his way into the third-place match, but fell to one of the top-ranked grapplers in the state. The final win of the weekend, which was a 5-2 victory by decision, was especially sweet for Lathrop who was 0-2 against his opponent this season.

“(Lathrop) ended up having a good match,” Tischer said. “Any time you wrestle someone and you’re 0-2, that starts to play some mind games on you. He stepped up to the plate and was ready.”

Hunter Owens (113 pounds), Bryce Awender (120 pounds), Wauker Spanel (152 pounds) and Austin Blair (170 pounds) will also be heading to state.

The state tournament begins on Thursday, Feb. 14 at the Fargodome.

“I thought the kids wrestled well. This is kind of that last chance where if you’re not satisfied with the way you wrestled you have a couple more days to tweak anything before you go into the time that matters,” Tischer said. “We have some kids that probably weren’t satisfied with their performance whether they won or lost. We’ll hopefully get them in the room, tweak that the next three days and get ready for to for a grinder starting on Thursday.”

The tournament wraps up on Saturday, Feb. 16 and a pair of former Huskies will be inducted into the North Dakota Wrestling Hall of Fame that day. Coach Kelly McNary and Justin Solberg will be honored at the tournament and later at 8 p.m. there will be a celebratory get-together at City Brew Hall.

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A hungry team of Wahpeton wrestlers made quick work of the short- handed Fargo South Bruins on Tuesday, Nov. 21. The Huskies claimed four pins and plenty of open weights in the 63- 12 season opener.

“Fargo South’s numbers are down. Injuries and illness have affected them. We have a young team and I thought they came out very well and ready to wrestle,” Wahpeton coach Scott Tischer said. “Tonight we had two seniors, a junior, a sophomore and the rest were ninth and eighth graders, so to see that kind of wrestling out of our kids is nice to see for the beginning of the season.”

One of the Bruins’ few wins of the night came in the first match, which was followed by four consecutive open weights. Braden LeNoue was the next Wahpeton wrestler up and the junior nabbed his first varsity victory with a pin. It was LeNoue’s first match back since last participating in the sport in eighth grade.

Two byes later Garrett Lathrop got a pin of his own. Tischer gave the sophomore credit for defeating someone two grades above him.

Austin Blair also made his varsity de- but for Wahpeton. The hard-fought match in the 170-pound class ended with Blair claim- ing another pin for the Huskies.

“He’s only an eighth grader so getting a pin is pretty cool,” Tischer said.

Chris Thiel made quick work of his opponent and won by pin at 195 pounds. Wahpeton freshman Chase Moderow was pinned for the Bruins’ final points of the night.

“Chase Moderow wrestled hard. The first time in varsity can be a little jittery,” Tischer said.

The best match of the night came in the fi- nal weight class. Josh Krump trailed 5-1 at the beginning of the third period and the heavyweight showed off his athleticism with a Granby roll escape. A second after freeing himself Krump went right for the takedown, cutting the lead to one. Tristen Hagen got out to make it 6-4, but Krump tied it up with another strong take- down. A last-second stalling violation on Hagen gave the Wahpeton freshman his first win of the season.

“I didn’t think he knew the Granby and all of a sudden he hit it,” Tischer said. “That guy outweighed him by at least 30 pounds so for him to go out there and wrestle hard was good for him.”

The Huskies head to Grand Forks Red River for a triangular with the hosting Roughriders and the Devils Lake, North Dakota, Firebirds on Tuesday, Nov. 28.

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This was Ed the cow. Josh was not happy with me (Dad) for taking him to the locker plant. But later loved the steaks!!: )

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Josh at the plow down on a Wd Allis Chalmers.

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JOSH BECOMES THE NORTH DAKOTA STATE HEAVY WEIGHT CHAMPION.2021

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Josh is the number one twin towns top 10 winter sports moments.

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One of Joshes fans!

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My Daughter Cassandra says the Gomer Pyle smile in this photo!!

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Josh just finished parking when taking his drivers test!! He did pass but the instructor did not like his parking ..

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Funny. Just grab me something simple.. ha ha

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2nd place at North Dakota State 195 pounds

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Josh with Dan Ross, a meeting of the minds.

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Josh, Sandy, Ashlley and Ace the dog.

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Wahpeton FFA Josh is back row and from center third one to the right.

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SHOWING OFF HIS GUNS!

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Josh dropped down to 195 pounds for state Wrestling and finally was able to have a Breakfast of CHAMPIONS!

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The bus all decorated for all the high school wrestlers going to state at the Fargo dome.

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Being like dad .

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Yes that is right!! That’s me Mr Scott Krump.

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The little guy is my son Josh . Next is my son Chris and Andy and then my daughter Cassandra.

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Big brother Chris and little brother Josh.

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HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

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Class picture and Josh again with the Gomer Pyle smile.

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Josh working on his driving with a stick shift on the old brown turd.

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NORTH DAKOTA STATE WRESTLING 2ND PLACE.

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JOSH AND DAN.

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SCOTT ,JOSH,ANDY

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SANDY,SCOTT,JOSH, OWEN,ASHLLEY.

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STATE WRESTLING AT THE FARGO DOME.

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TERRY BOSCH ONE OF JOSH’S BIG FANS!

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JOSH AND ONE OF HIS FANS.(DAD)

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THE SEND OFF TO STATE WRESTLING AT THE HIGH SCHOOL.

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ANOTHER BLOODY NOSE.

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ONE OF THE FANS MADE THIS.

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WAS ON THE WALL AT THE FARGO DOME!!

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JOSH,SANDY,PAYTEN

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PAYTEN AND JOSH AFTER A FOOTBALL GAME!

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KINDA REMINDS ME OF A COKE COMMERCIAL. OR IS IT PEPSI?

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FOOTBALL FANS!

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JUST HAD MY PICKUP READY FOR FOOTBALL SEASON!!

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JOSH AND HIS SISTER CASSANDRA!

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THE HUSKIE BEFORE EACH FOOTBALL GAME.

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Wrestling for the heavy weight champion!

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I just knew he was a pickup man!

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SENIOR PICTURES UP NEXT.

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GOD BLESS AMERICA!

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THE NORTH DAKOTA STATE CHAMP!!

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JOSH,JACKSON AND COACHES.

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SANDY AND DAD CONGRULATING JOSH AT THE FARGO DOME.

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Having a pep talk!!

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Was sure some very fun matches to watch!

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They all had a hard time holding this kid down. Up and out!!

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This match had many over times.

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Cassandra and little brother Josh.

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Having fun dancing with his sister Cassandra.

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Sandy,Josh,Scott (DAD) at the Fargo dome.

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Step mom Sandy and Dad cheering at the Fargo dome.

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Parents night.

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Andy and Josh .

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New North Dakota state wrestling champion Josh Krump has been one of the most dominant wrestlers in Wahpeton’s school history. It all started when Krump was at Wahpeton Elementary School. Tanner Thiel gave him the suggestion to come to wrestling practice, so he thought he was going to be the next John Cena or Steve Austin. The next day, he showed up to practice in jeans and knew that it definitely wasn’t what he thought it was. His youth coach, Wayne Hample, enhanced the experience.

“Ever since that first year, I’ve loved it,” Krump said.

Since the day he showed up to wrestling practice in jeans, he’s wanted to be great. Watching all the seniors who came before him pushed Krump to become the best version of himself.

“I was at the 15 and under, and I went 0-2 and I remember saying, ‘You know what, I’m going to be a state champion someday.’ I remember Hunter McCall, our coach, was sitting right in front of me and just looked back at me and said, ‘This guy thinks he’s going to win the state title?’ and that very next year, there he was coaching me in the finals match,” Krump said. “All that time watching other people be successful really drives a guy.”

Krump gave Head Coach Ryan Brandt high expectations when Brandt filled in during the 2019-20 season.

“The first day I got to meet him, he was very respectful towards me,” Brandt said. “He walked in with his cowboy hat and cowboy boots on, a bigger kid, looked like he had a build to him, so I was pretty happy with that.”

Brandt loved Krump’s work ethic from day one.

“He’s worked his butt off in the offseason and he’s lifted everyday and he’s tried to do as much as he could everyday to get better in that wrestling room,” Brandt said.

After making the state title match his sophomore year, junior year came around and Krump suffered a gruesome arm injury, keeping him out of the state tournament. Krump was devastated when the injury happened.

“It was heartbreaking,” he said. “It was probably one of the lowest points ever.”

Krump said it was hard and very stressful to go through his injury. He set a long-term goal to get back to the state title match and win it. He asked himself, ‘Is this all you want to be?’ and worked on himself. Coming back to wrestling wasn’t as easy as many think. He couldn’t thank his teammates and coaches enough for their support through the roughest time of his life.

This past offseason, Krump wasn’t sure if he was going to come back and wrestle.

“To be honest, I didn’t do jack crap during quarantine,” Krump said. “What happened was, I wasn’t even sure if I was going to wrestle. After that, I was at such a low point, to where I didn’t care no more. I was weighing 270, 260 and I looked at myself and said ‘Josh, how do you want to be remembered?’”

Krump would work out like crazy after practices, putting in extra time. He was making up time lost because everyone else was putting in the work throughout the summer.

“I had more drive than anyone in the state of North Dakota in my weight class did because I knew this was my last year, and I was going out with a bang,” Krump said.

It took a while, but Krump got back to 100 percent by the time he was at his first leg that he had to wrestle at. He was the most happy with his arm because it didn’t tweak, he said. There was a “warm fuzzy feeling” in there, as he described it, but overall, there were no problems with his arm. He came back and had an 11-0 record during his senior season.

Over the last four years, being on the wrestling team has taught him a lot.

“I learned that you’re gonna get hit, and you’re gonna get hit hard. It all depends how you land, because if you land on your back, you can look up and you can get up,” Krump said.

The other two things Krump learned about were family and work. He learned that the wrestling team was family, including the coaches. He also learned how to put in the work to become a state champion.

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Josh Krump and Daniel Erlandson squared off in the 220-pound division during Wahpeton’s home triangular on Thursday, Dec. 19. Krump eeked out the overtime victory, 3-2.

Coming into Wahpeton’s home triangular, everybody in the gym knew what match everybody was most excited for.

Josh Krump from Wahpeton and Daniel Erlandson from Breckenridge squared off in the final match of the night at 220 pounds. The pair were so evenly matched it took multiple overtimes to determine the victor.

Krump, who scored first in the match, got to pick where he started the fourth overtime. He chose bottom and slipped out of Erlandson’s grasp to clinch a 3-2 victory.

“Erlandson’s No. 3 in Minnesota and Josh is No. 2 in North Dakota. Erlandson pinned Isaiah Gates, who’s No. 1 in front of Josh right now and Josh just beat him so I guess that proves that Josh is the best in North Dakota at 220 right now,” Wahpeton coach Ryan Brandt said.

Erlandson and Krump were locked in a stalemate for most of the match. All five of the points between the two wrestlers came on escapes.

“The match that everyone was waiting for lived up to the hype,” Breckenridge coach Tom Haire said. “I would like to be on the other side of that and I know Daniel would, too, but this is going to motivate him.”

Krump’s victory capped off a 52-22 Huskies home win. Even though the thriller match got the entire crowd on their feet, it’s debatable if it was the biggest Wahp win of the night.

Prior to taking on Breckenridge, Wahpeton battled West Fargo Sheyenne. Jackson Burchill took the mat for the final match at 182 pounds with his team down by three. The junior came through with a pin in the first period, giving the Huskies a 42-39 win over the Mustangs.

“(Burchill) stepped up big there,” Brandt said. “We had a full-round team effort that dual, whether not giving up pins or getting our wins where we needed to. That was an exciting dual.”

Prior to the heroic victory by Burchill, the Huskies came through for three consecutive wins. Two were by forfeit and one came courtesy of a Wauker Spanel pin to put their team in striking distance.

The Mustangs bounced back to beat the Cowboys in their next dual.

The Border Battle started off as a forfeit party. Wahpeton claimed three open weights in the first four weights and Breckenridge claimed one of their own. When two wrestlers finally took the mat at the same time, Alex Martel picked up a pin for Breckenridge.

Hunter Owens came back in the 132-pound class with his second pin of the night.

The Cowboys took the next two weights with Grant Davis nabbing a pin and Aidan Ruddy winning by a 14-1 major decision.

“That’s what wrestling is all about. You go through a dual and as coaches you want to get your kids good matches,” Haire said. “We matched up well, we battled and wrestled hard.”

Breck forfeited three out of the next five weights and the two they didn’t forfeit were won by Burchill (8-3 win by decision) and his teammate Tanner Thiel (11-2 win by major decision).

The dual was in hand already when the pair of powerhouses battled at 220 pounds to end the night.

Breckenridge moves on to a tournament in Moorhead, Minnesota, at 9 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 4.

“At the end of the day, we’re going to go back into the wrestling room, take a look at the film and learn from tonight,” Haire said. “We’re going to continue that trek to the end of the year where we want to be at our best.”

Next up for Wahpeton is the Valley City Hi-Liner Tournament at 10 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 21.

“We got two wins tonight and I think we’re going in the right direction,” Brandt said.

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Best moments from the 2020-21 high school sports season — Josh Krump’s state championship win was a highlight for Wahpeton during the winter sports season.

Daily News File Photo

The high school sports season was a tremendous one as there were plenty of great moments that happened in the Breckenridge-Wahpeton community. There were great senior classes at both Wahpeton and Breckenridge this past season. Here are highlights of some of the best moments for each school’s sports season.

Wahpeton fall:

Huskies win first football game

Wahpeton football battled plenty of adversity during the 2020 season, including losing by a possession in three of their six losses on the season. Oct. 2, 2020 was a great day for the Huskies, as they defeated Valley City 34-32 in triple-overtime. This was a day where Beau Arenstein rushed for over 100 yards and Colin Samuels having three total touchdowns. They broke a 12-game losing streak, dating back to 2018. This was a big moment for the Huskies as they look to build a new foundation for the 2021 season.

Wahpeton winter:

Krump wins state championship

Wahpeton Huskie wrestler Josh Krump goes down as one of North Dakota’s best wrestlers. He finished off his season on Feb. 19, 2021, winning the state championship and taking down K.C. Ortiz of West Fargo, finishing with a perfect 11-0 record for his senior year. Krump was the first state champion under Head Coach Ryan Brandt. Krump also overcame a season-ending injury during the 2019-20 season to recover just in time for the 2020-21 season.

Wahpeton spring:

Manock wins EDC championship in Javelin

Ethan Manock came out as an Eastern Dakota Conference Champion in the Javelin, throwing for 168’10”. Manock was a first year varsity athlete who has made tremendous strides since the start of his high school career. He is the lone EDC champion for Wahpeton during the spring season.

Breckenridge fall:

Breckenridge football wins Section 6A championship

Breckenridge overcame many scheduling conflicts during the season to win the Minnesota Section 6A championship. They finished with a 6-1 record after having just a three-week notice before the season started. Jacob Vizenor had five total touchdowns in the win and his performance down the stretch was essential for the Cowboys after Chris Nieto’s season-ending injury. The Cowboys defeated Otter Tail Central 49-30. Cooper Yaggie also followed Vizenor’s five touchdown performance with four total touchdowns.

Breckenridge winter:

Erlandson qualifies for state championship wrestling match

Daniel Erlandson was one of Breckenridge’s best wrestlers last season. He went to the state tournament for the third consecutive season as he would go down as one of the best wrestlers in school history. Erlandson made his first state championship match appearance along with his third straight state tournament appearance. Erlandson’s championship appearance also made it the last Cowboys’ wrestling match we will see for a while, as Breckenridge has voted to co-op with Wahpeton next season.

Breckenridge spring:

Johnson wins Section 6A championship in two events

Johnson wins sections for two events as he is the first field athlete in over 30 years at Breckenridge to win the section in two events. Johnson was one of five athletes that went to the state meet for Breckenridge. Johnson had multiple first place finishes throughout the entire season. It was only fitting that he’d finish first in both events to win sections. Johnson placed 13th in the discus and seventh in the shot put at the state meet.

This season brought a lot of great moments by some memorable athletes. Next season is only bound to do the same.

Wahpeton fall:

Huskies win first football game

Wahpeton football battled plenty of adversity during the 2020 season, including losing by a possession in three of their six losses on the season. Oct. 2, 2020 was a great day for the Huskies, as they defeated Valley City 34-32 in triple-overtime. This was a day where Beau Arenstein rushed for over 100 yards and Colin Samuels having three total touchdowns. They broke a 12-game losing streak, dating back to 2018. This was a big moment for the Huskies as they look to build a new foundation for the 2021 season.

Wahpeton winter:

Krump wins state championship

Wahpeton Huskie wrestler Josh Krump goes down as one of North Dakota’s best wrestlers. He finished off his season on Feb. 19, 2021, winning the state championship and taking down K.C. Ortiz of West Fargo, finishing with a perfect 11-0 record for his senior year. Krump was the first state champion under Head Coach Ryan Brandt. Krump also overcame a season-ending injury during the 2019-20 season to recover just in time for the 2020-21 season.

Wahpeton spring:

Manock wins EDC championship in Javelin

Ethan Manock came out as an Eastern Dakota Conference Champion in the Javelin, throwing for 168’10”. Manock was a first year varsity athlete who has made tremendous strides since the start of his high school career. He is the lone EDC champion for Wahpeton during the spring season.

Breckenridge fall:

Breckenridge football wins Section 6A championship

Breckenridge overcame many scheduling conflicts during the season to win the Minnesota Section 6A championship. They finished with a 6-1 record after having just a three-week notice before the season started. Jacob Vizenor had five total touchdowns in the win and his performance down the stretch was essential for the Cowboys after Chris Nieto’s season-ending injury. The Cowboys defeated Otter Tail Central 49-30. Cooper Yaggie also followed Vizenor’s five touchdown performance with four total touchdowns.

Breckenridge winter:

Erlandson qualifies for state championship wrestling match

Daniel Erlandson was one of Breckenridge’s best wrestlers last season. He went to the state tournament for the third consecutive season as he would go down as one of the best wrestlers in school history. Erlandson made his first state championship match appearance along with his third straight state tournament appearance. Erlandson’s championship appearance also made it the last Cowboy’s wrestling match we will see for a while, as Breckenridge has voted to co-op with Wahpeton next season.

Breckenridge spring:

Johnson wins Section 6A championship in two events

Senior Gavin Johnson wins sections for two events as he is the first field athlete in over 30 years at Breckenridge to win the section in two events. Johnson was one of five athletes that went to the state meet for Breckenridge. Johnson had multiple first place finishes throughout the entire season. It was only fitting that he’d finish first in both events to win sections. Johnson placed 13th in the discus and seventh in the shot put at the state meet.

This season brought a lot of great moments by some memorable athletes. Next season is only bound to do the same.

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Top 10 winter high school athletes 2020-21 — Josh Krump (left) was the heavyweight winner for the North Dakota state championship. He comes in as the top ranked high school winter athlete of the 2020-21 season.

Daily News File Photo

The 2020-21 winter sports season was an exciting one. The Daily News has reported on some tremendous athletes since the winter sports season started. From record breaking nights to state championships, here are the Daily News’s top 10 high school varsity athletes:

10. Matt Noll: Noll was a dominant wrestler throughout the regular season for the Breckenridge Cowboys. He finished with a regular season record of 17-6 and made the super sections this past season. Noll was one of the best wrestlers for his weight class and he had impressive wins this season. Noll won his first 12 matches, and could be in line for a state tournament appearance down the road.

9. Grace Conzemius: She broke the Breckenridge Cowgirls’ school record for career rebounds with 664. She also set the single-season rebounding record for the Cowgirls. The Cowgirls were much better with Conzemius on the floor. Held and Conzemius will be deeply missed next season as they are both on the hunt for college teams next season.

8. Anthony Conzemius: The 6’7″ forward was a lethal paint presence this season for the Cowboys basketball team. Conzemius and teammate Jonah Christensen were a strong front-court presence. Conzemius was one of 10 returning seniors for this past season. He will be playing basketball at the University of Jamestown next season. He and the rest of the senior class will be missed.

7. Jude Held: Held averaged over 15 points per game this season and was one of the most important on-court leaders for the Cowgirls basketball team. She led them to the Section 8AA quarterfinals as a No. 6 seed and ran the backcourt for the most part this season. Held is one player with major potential to play in college next season as she is a graduating senior in May 2021.

6. Jonah Christensen: Christensen had multiple games with at least 10 points or 10 rebounds for the Cowboys basketball team. Christensen and Conzemius were arguably one of the best front court pieces in the conference. Christensen’s development was crucial as he was of the best at getting offensive rebounds this season. Christensen, along with the rest of the senior class will be missed next season.

5. Cooper Yaggie: Yaggie surpassed 1000 career points, becoming the seventh Cowboy to do so in program history. He, just like Conzemius and Christensen, was a Heart O’Lakes All-conference honorable mention. Yaggie averaged over 19 points per game this season and was one of the most dynamic guards on the Cowboys this season. Yaggie will be missed next season as a graduating senior as he will be looking to play football in college in the fall.

4. Dez Munezero: I don’t think there was a more dynamic player on the both ends of the floor like there was with the Wahpeton Huskies’ guard. Munezero was the only player in the conference to average three steals per game. He also ranked in the top 10 for scoring, rebounding, assists and steals. He shot 41.9 percent from three-point range and developed great on-court chemistry with his teammates.

3. Tyler Tollefson: This was one of the best seasons by a Wahpeton basketball player in recent memory. Tollefson had a career year averaging 22.9 points and earning an all-conference and second team all-state selection. Tollefson broke the Huskies’ single-game three-point record (10) and the single season three-point record (84). Tollefson will be one of five starters for the Huskies who will be missed next season as a graduating senior.

2. Daniel Erlandson: He was definitely an all-around talent to the wrestling program for the Cowboys. Erlandson showed out with a 27-2 record and a Minnesota state championship appearance. Erlandson had three state championship tournament appearances in his three years at the varsity level. Erlandson set the standard for the program in the future and will be a big loss for the program next season.

1. Josh Krump: There’s no question that he should be on the top of this list. His state championship and undefeated record are two things that stand out from this season. The Huskies’ Krump has been the only state champion out of both Wahpeton and Breckenridge high schools this year. He finished the regular season 11-0 and went into the North Dakota state tournament for the Huskies as the No. 1 overall seed for his weight class.

This was a very deep list to go through for athletes in the winter for both Wahpeton and Breckenridge high schools. Some honorable mentions worth noting are Carcie Materi and Jared Aamold. Materi broke the Cowgirls’ single-game three-point record and tied the single-game points record. Aamold kept the BW Blades in many games this season with multiple games with at least 50 saves.

Spring sports season should be entertaining with all spring sports starting this month. Look for our spring preview section for previews on each sports team coming out this month.

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Ryan Brandt, left, is in his first season at the helm of the Wahpeton wrestling team.

DN: What did you do before ending up in Wahpeton?

RB: I was a gymnastics coach up in Fargo. I coached TNT Fitness and Gymnastics.

DN: What was your involvement in wrestling prior to coming here?

RB: I wrestled since I was in Mat Rats, which is what we called it in Minnesota, so since about fourth grade. I coached last year along with gymnastics. I coached at Discovery Middle School up in Fargo.

DN: Where are you originally from?

RB: Frazee, Minnesota.

DN: How nice has it been having so many coaches who were on the team last year on your staff?

RB: I really enjoy everybody that I’ve gotten the opportunity to coach with. I think all of us have a different aspect that we bring to the table and I think we all mesh very well together. Having me, Hunter (McCall) and Jake (Thiel), we’re kind of the three younger guys and then Coach (Wayne) Hample, Coach (Dan) Frame and Coach (Rich) Mostoller are kind of the older guys that have a lot more experience than us. We (the younger coaches) bring in a lot of the fresher moves and ideas. We kind of mesh really well together when we come up with ideas as a team.

DN: Were you excited to be joining a team with a runner-up at state (Josh Krump) returning?

RB: I’m very excited that I’ve had the opportunity to coach Josh Krump and to have the opportunity to help him achieve his goal of becoming a state champion. Just showing him different ideas that maybe he hasn’t seen in the past and different ways of doing technique and stuff like that.

DN: Was it also exciting knowing that everybody was back from last year’s roster?

RB: It was very exciting to be able to coach a team that’s been together for so long. Even this year there’s only two seniors, so going into next year we’ll still have pretty much the same team we have this year. It makes having chemistry a lot easier and it takes away a lot of the little things that I don’t have to really deal with as a coach.

DN: What are some of the challenges you’ve faced in your first year coaching the varsity squad?

RB: Just making sure I get all my paperwork done has been one of the biggest things. Understanding the different terminology from Minnesota to North Dakota, certain moves are called certain things. So what I call something, the kids might not understand what I’m talking about. I show it to them and they say, “Oh, we just call it this.” Something like that has been a little bit of a challenge so when I’m yelling out at them I need to make sure I call it what they know it as, not what I know it as.

DN: It looks like the team’s having fun out there. Was that a priority coming into the season?

RB: We’re trying to make it fun this year. I know a lot of the kids have said they’ve enjoyed it this year more than they have in years past. I just try to keep it a little bit more like a mild mood set I guess. Coach Mostoller likes to say, “I’m the one that likes to yell, then we have Coach Brandt who likes to sits back and is the more laid back coach that doesn’t yell unless he has to.” I try to keep everybody smiling in the room and I always tell them, “If you’re smiling when you go out to the mat you’re going to wrestle better and won’t be as nervous.” I try to keep it really high energy and try to keep them motivated that way.

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The other two Wahp wins in the dual were a Tanner Thiel win by forfeit and Josh Krump pinning his heavyweight opponent in less than 15 seconds.

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Josh Krump squared off with the top-seeded wrestler in his division for a state championship on Saturday, Feb. 16. Bismarck Legacy’s Matthew Kaylor, who entered the tournament with an undefeated record, pinned every opponent in his bracket in the opening period and Krump was no different in a 38-second match.

The Wahpeton sophomore kept his head high, left the mat to go talk with his coaches and then thanked his family in the stands.

“Krump is such an amazing kid. He came off the mat, had a smile on his face and he’s like, ‘That was fun. I’m going to make sure I get there again next year,’’ Wahpeton coach Scott Tischer said. “He’s already got it in his head that he’s got to get to work. That was an amazing thing for him to be part of.”

Krump was likely the only opponent in the tournament to score any offensive points on Kaylor. The champion got the first takedown, let Krump up and then the Huskie caught him off-guard with a double-leg takedown. The University of Mary-commit looked surprised his foe even shot on him.

“That night and that whole day we talked about, ‘Hey, we’re going to surprise Kaylor. We’re going to go out there firing.’ Everyone that he’s faced never shot on him,” Tischer said. “We talked about it and said, ‘Hey, you’ve got to be ready. Because it’s going to surprise him and then it’s going to tick him off. You’ve got to be ready to weather the storm if that happens.”

Tischer’s prediction came true and Kaylor put all his rage into flipping Krump to his back.

The experience of getting to a state championship match will surely help Krump get better next year, but Tischer said it’s going to rub off on his teammates as well.

“To see a kid that didn’t place the year before in the state tournament make it to the state finals shows you don’t have to wait. You don’t have to take sixth place, then third place then get to the finals,” Tischer said. “If you work harder than everyone else and put in the effort, you can be there now. It’s just a matter of if you want it enough and how much work you’re going to put into it. I hope the kids on our team realize that he got there by work. Everything in the sport of wrestling is earned.”

Prior to Krump’s title bout, two Wahpeton legends joined the North Dakota Wrestling Hall of Fame. Coach Kelly McNary, who helped WHS to their lone team championship in the Individual State Tournament, was joined by his family and the coaches he worked with during his coaching tenure. Tischer, who was one of McNary’s athletes on the state championship team, handed over the award.

Justin Solberg, a four-time state champion for the Huskies, was also honored with his family and former coaches in attendance.

“Those are two more people that earned that. The time, the effort, the work that they put into their careers with Coach McNary being a coach and Justin being a wrestler, they got it. They earned that spot into the Hall of Fame,” Tischer said. “Coming back and having the social for them, seeing all the people come and show their appreciation was just an amazing thing. It was good for them and all of us were honored to be part of that situation.”

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Josh Krump wrestled in the heavyweight division all weekend and never lost a match.

Next up for Wahpeton is a home triangular at 5 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 19 against West Fargo Sheyenne and Twin Town rival Breckenridge.

“Breckenridge is obviously right across the road so it’s kind of a rivalry. There’s a lot of matchups there that I know our kids want to wrestle,” Brandt said. “I know Josh wants to wrestle (Daniel) Erlandson this week which is another big matchup that we want to make happen. We’re looking forward to it.”

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Taking on an opponent that he’d lost to twice earlier in the year, Josh Krump knew he’d need his best match of the season to punch his ticket to the state championship round. The Huskie grappler came up huge in a back-and-forth match, clinching a 6-5 victory on Friday, Feb. 15.

Wahpeton’s standout 195-pounder has been excelling all season and his latest achievement is no surprise to the members of his team that have seen the work he puts in.

“(Krump’s) kind of been our fire in the room. He gets the kids going and the kids have to match his work ethic,” Wahpeton coach Scott Tischer said. “His motor never stops. His fuel tank is endless. He’s earned it and we couldn’t be more proud of him.”

With the score tied 4-4, Krump caught his foe off guard with a cradle and picked up the near-fall to go up by two to seal the win. The WHS sophomore has come a long way from not placing at state last year.

“You can see it. That says something about the work ethic (Krump) has and the time he’s put in,” Tischer said. “He had 30 wins last year, but he just had a tough weight class. He kept his composure, wrestled hard and came out with the win to make it to the state finals.”

Of the eight Huskies in the consolation bracket, half of them picked up a win. Hunter Owens got his first state tournament victory with a pin in 113-pound division. He was eliminated by fall in his next match.

“(Owens) came back. He was down 5-0 after the first period and that’s tough,” Tischer said. “He kept his composure, did really well and kept on waiting until the kid made a mistake and Hunter capitalized.”

Jackson Burchill was another wrestler nabbing his first win at the competitive tournament. The 145-pounder was in control of his entire match to start off the day, winning by a 6-2 decision. Taking on the No. 5 wrestler in his bracket in the follow-up match, Burchill was pinned.

“Jackson and Hunter are only freshmen and they have good work ethic. Time will only tell,” Tischer said. “When you have a kid like Krump who goes from not placing to the state finals, it kind of gives those kids a little motivation that, ‘I need to hunker down, take things serious and I can be here.’”

Shea Truesdell bounced back from his Day 1 loss with a pin in the third period. The 132-pound weight class member put up a good fight in his next match, but was edged by a score of 5-3.

“That was good for (Truesdell). He ran into a tough kid in his last match, but it was a close one,” Tischer said. “He took him down with about 15 seconds left and almost got a near-fall out of it. Sometimes it doesn’t always work in our favor.”

Garrett Lathrop came up with a clutch takedown in the last 15 seconds of his 160-pound consolation match, clinching a 4-3 victory against a West Fargo opponent. His next match, which was a battle against the No. 5 seed, saw Lathrop eliminated in a 7-4 battle.

“(Lathrop’s) tough to score on. He just stays in such good position that even yesterday when he wrestled the three seed it was a 3-1 match. Once he starts lighting the fire and getting his offense going he’s going to be really hard to beat.”

Saturday, Feb. 16 is the final day of the tournament. Krump will take on top-seeded Matthew Kaylor. The Bismarck Legacy grappler enters the title round with an undefeated record.

There will also be a Hall of Fame induction ceremony that will include former Wahpeton Head Coach Kelly McNary and former Huskie wrestler Justin Solberg. Later that night at 8 p.m. there will be a get-together at City Brew Hall in honor of the inductees.

“It’s nice because we’re going to have a kid in the finals and we have two Wahpeton guys getting into the hall of fame tomorrow,” Tischer said. “It’s going to be a fun afternoon no matter what happens tomorrow.”

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Sister Vicky,Josh ,brother Andy

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