ST. PAUL — Austin Kiecker is in a unique position. He’s the top-seeded wrestler at 152 pounds in the Class A state wrestling individual tournament despite not being ranked in the top 10.
Suffering a concussion midway through the season, the BOLD junior had to wait three weeks before getting back on the mat.
“That was a tough time for him,” said BOLD head coach Matt Zupke. “He could be in the room but he couldn’t practice. It was three weeks there where the only physical training he could do was the step protocol he had to take at Big Stone (Therapies in Olivia).”
He got one regular-season match in before the Section 5A tournament, where he went on to take first place.
“It got me out of shape a lot,” Kiecker said. “I had to work extra hard to get back in shape. Working out, lifting weights.”
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On Day 1 of the state individual tournament, Kiecker says he is 100 percent. And he is eliminating any doubt about being that top seed.
He opened state with a fall in 4 minutes, 41 seconds on No. 3-ranked Isaac Blocker of Caledonia/Houston. Kiecker followed that with a 6-5 decision over Medford’s Garron Hoffman.
After trailing 2-1 to Hoffman in the first period, Kiecker got an escape and two takedowns in the second period to build a 5-4 lead. Kiecker avoided the late shots by Hoffman and secured at least a spot on the podium. His record now sits at 33-1.
“I finished my shots a little better and got a little closer,” Kiecker said of his second-period adjustments.
Zupke added, “We knew (Hoffman) was a physical beast, so we were kind of prepared for it.”
In the semifinals Saturday, Kiecker opens with Crosby-Ironton’s John Paul Fitzpatrick. Fitzpatrick (46-2) is the four seed and is ranked fourth in state. On the other side of the bracket are top-ranked Brodie Kellen of Dover-Eyota (45-3) and second-ranked Zack Fier of Minneota (40-2). Kiecker beat Fier in the section championship via a 4-3 decision.
“It’s a tough bracket,” Zupke said. “We knew this one in the quarters would be tough. I know Fitzpatrick’s a tough dude. On the opposite side, we wrestled Kellen a few years ago. And there’s Zack, who we had to battle in the sections. When we get to the semis, those last four wrestlers are going to be tough, tough, tough. But it’ll be fun.”
Kiecker admitted to being surprised about the top seed due to being out of the top 10. Prior to the concussion, he was a regular in the top three at 152.
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Regardless, the soft-spoken Kiecker came into the tournament with something to prove. He’s a four-time state qualifier and two-time state medalist, placing third last season at 138.
“He doesn’t care if he’s ranked or not; he’s always had that chip on his shoulder, which I love that about him,” Zupke said of Kiecker. “It’s the difference between confidence and cockiness and he walks that fine line. You ask him, ‘What are you going to do in your next match,’ and he’ll tell you, ‘Win.’”
“And,” Zupke added. “It’s worked for him.”
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