This story is sponsored by Dental Clinic of Marshfield
By Paul Lecker
MarshfieldAreaSports.com
MADISON – Stratford senior Luke Radke didn’t end his career quite as he would have hoped, but it wasn’t all bad either.
Radke was pinned by Weyauwega-Fremont’s Casey Haase in 3:53, losing his bid at the Division 3 189-pound title Saturday night at the WIAA State Individual Wrestling Tournament at the Kohl Center.
Haase beat Radke 7-3 at last week’s sectional final and hoped things would turn out differently Saturday. However, Haase took control early with a takedown and a nearfall in the first period, building a 4-0 lead.
Haase led 7-0 before securing the pin with 7 seconds left in the second period.
“I went out there kind of out of control and just got caught,” Radke said. “That’s about it. I made it to the biggest stage I could, it’s something to be proud of.”
Stratford co-coach Joe Schwabe said they had a different game-plan, but Haase was just too good in this match.
“Haase is a tough, big kid,” Schwabe said. “He’s just a little bit bigger than us, a little bit stronger than us. Last week we tried to stay away from him and his double legs got us twice. This week we thought we’d go after him, let’s lock and load and see what happens. At least we went out flying and trying. He’s tough.
Stratford’s other wrestler at the state meet, Mark Marquardt, ended up setting for fourth place at 152 pounds. He was making his second state trip three years after qualifying as a freshman and taking sixth place.
On Saturday, the Stratford senior beat Cadyn McKeeth of Arcadia 9-5 in a consolation bracket match before losing to Mike Mergener of Coleman (41-6) 3-1 in overtime of the third-place match to finish the season with a 33-9 record.
Schwabe said he couldn’t be more proud of his two seniors.
“They both ended their careers with a loss, but for Luke’s first trip to Madison and to get in the state finals … once things settle down, he’s got to be pretty happy with himself,” Schwabe said. “Marquardt’s been battling some shoulder injuries all year and for him to get back down and medal – and 152 was a loaded bracket – so for him to take fourth, he feels good about himself.
“Both guys had nine matches between the two of them. We had a wonderful fan showing, about 150 people, and they got to see a lot of Stratford matches for two kids.”