The Mounds View wrestling team reached amazing heights this season. The team broke multiple school records — including more wrestlers placing at state than ever before and a new career win leader — and produced a state champion. For the athletes and coaches, there were many factors including determination and teamwork that played into their stellar season.

Feeding off the 2023-24 season’s success, many athletes felt overconfident in their abilities this year. “We were so good last year, but we couldn’t worry about that anymore. We just had to be our own team this year,” said Senior Captain Joey Muhlstein. “We had [thought] we were just going to beat everybody because of last year, but it was hard to get that back in people’s heads [that] this year we’re still a team that was hungry or wanted to do good.” 

Though this mindset may have held them back at the start, the current seniors primed the team for their record breaking season. “We had a lot of guys that weren’t on varsity last year that came in and then produced and did what they were supposed to do… last year’s team gave them the blueprint and then they followed it,” said Head Coach Dan Engebretson. The new senior captains stepped up to fill the gap the past captains left. 

Between Feb. 27 and March 1, the wrestling team broke the Mounds View record for most people placing at state, with seven wrestlers total. The original record was held by the 2023-2024 team with six athletes. These placements allowed the team to place second in state this season. However, the team was not pressured to succeed even after their successful previous season. “I don’t think [they felt] pressured… They came in with the same expectations we had last year,” said Engebretson.  

There were major individual wins this season as well. Senior Captain Brett Swenson defended his title as a 127-pound state champion for the second year in a row. “It felt good to end my career on a good note and see my hard work had paid off in a way. If I were to give advice to [future] kids who wrestle, it would be [aim] to get better rather than just focusing on winning and losing,” said Brett Swenson. 

The school record for the highest career wins, originally 184, was also broken this season by Senior Captain Colton Loween, with 193 wins. “It’s a huge accomplishment. I’ve been wrestling in that wrestling room for 15 years. When you’re young, you see the state championship banners, you see the 100 win banners… you’re like that’s a lot,” said Loween. “Then you hit 100, and that’s really cool. [It is] a big milestone, and then to keep on going and finish with 193 and break the school record, it’s really cool.”

Many of the athletes can attribute their success this season to their coaches as well. With multiple staff with a background in wrestling, they have laid the foundation for the team to grow since athletes were young. “Our coaches have been coaching us since we started 15 years ago. They’ve been with us all the way. They have a good balance and good teamwork, all to make us the best we can be,” said Senior Captain Ethan Swenson. 

Looking towards the future of the program, many wrestlers on the JV team will have to step up and fill in the gap the senior captains are leaving. “Probably four or five kids are going to have to step up, and fill the spots,” said Engebretson. “But there’s some good kids that are ready to do it too.” Despite this, the captains hope the team will continue to grow and develop into their own team next season rather than dwindling in the glory of the past. “I just hope they’re happy with what they are able to do. We were worried about last year’s accomplishments bleeding over into this one, so we wrestled a little bit differently. I just hope [the future teams] are satisfied with what they want to do,” said Muhlstein.