Wauwatosa's Folley, Reagan, Morrow heading to state

Justin Folley, Ben Reagan and Marcus Morrow will represent Wauwatosa East/West at the 72nd annual WIAA Individual Wrestling Championship Tournament, Feb. 26-28, at the Kohl Center in Madison.

Tosa, which finished fourth as a team, won two championships — Folley (42-1) at 126, scoring 21.50 points and Reagan (39-2) at 138, scoring 21 points. The third state qualifier was Morrow, who was second at 138, scoring 21 points.

Folley won by a technical fall over Dustin Greipentrog of Hamilton in the first round and then pinned Mason Wheeler of Germantown (1:23) in the semifinals. In the championship match, he beat Aidan Yde of Arrowhead with a 5-3 decision. Yde took fourth at state last year.

Folley, whose family moved to Tosa, was fifth in state last year at Milwaukee Riverside. He was ranked third in state going into the tournament and rallied for a win in the final. He is now ranked No. 1 in the state. Earlier this season, he vaulted his ranking by beating the then No. 1 wrestler from Manitowoc.

"It was a little hard getting used to a new school and team," Folley said, "but the work ethic here is just amazing. It just doesn't compare (to where I came from).

"Right now, I'm just working on keeping it on an even level. I'm trying not to get too excited. I know what I can do. The big thing is to try to get to the final because I think I can win it. Right now, we're just trying to make everyone else better."

Coach Kent Morin added, "The addition of Folley to the team has been nothing but a positive. He fits in great and is super quiet. We still have some things to work on before the state tournament, but Justin is definitely in the position to challenge for a state championship."

Reagan won his first two matches by tech falls over Will Genthe of Menomonee Falls in the first round and Jack Plale of Whitefish Bay in the semifinals. In the title match he defeated Rudy Otters of Arrowhead, a returning state qualifier, with an 8-2 decision in a very physical match.

"It feels like I finally accomplished something that I've been working for since sixth grade," said Reagan, who was third at sectional last year. "I feel really confident right now because this is such a great opportunity.

"To have worked on things all season long and then have them all work like this (in a big match) is just great."

Sporting a bloody mouth from the final, he just laughed it off and said he didn't even feel it because of all the adrenaline.

"Ben wrestled a terrific match," Morin said. "Ben is wrestling very aggressive and very confident. He also is in a position to get on the medal stand at the state tournament.

"This was very satisfying for Ben because last year's sectional was a big disappointment, so he was determined to not let that happen again. I really like his chances at state."

Marcus Morrow (42-3) placed second at 152 and scored 20 points.

Morrow pinned his first two opponents, beating Connor Scholtus of Homestead (1:47) and Tommy Nelson of Germantown (0:43).

In the first-place match, he lost a heartbreaking 1-0 decision to Cedarburg's unbeaten Jason Ipsarides (47-0), but he pinned Zack Pogorzelski of Menomonee Falls (1:22) in the second-place match.

"It was a great match between two great wrestlers," Morin said. "The difference was an escape earned by Isparides in the third period. Marcus had some good take-down shots but just wasn't able to finish them off.

"He is really wrestling tough right now. I can tell you I would not want to draw him in the state tournament."

When he qualified for state as a sophomore, Morrow had to go through the wrestleback as well. He said to clear his head before this wrestleback, he took a walk outside.

"But something like this (the wrestleback) is a little nerve-wracking, especially in my senior year," he said. "At this point, I have nothing to lose, and it's become about enjoying the journey.

"I went to state as a sophomore, but last year I had something of a confidence issue and took third (at sectional). I decided to come back strong this year. Last year, I had a good first half of the year, but I stopped trusting myself. This time around I'm a whole new person."

Also scoring for Tosa were Lorry Venturi (26-10), who placed third at 285, and Jordan Boettcher (33-12), who placed fourth at 160.

"Jordan Boettcher and Lorry Venturi were also able to win their first matches at sectionals," Morin said. "They both wrestled hard and gained valuable experience that will help them next year as they strive to get to the state tournament."

Wrestlers who didn't score were Jacob Collison at 106, Sean McDuffie at 113, Colin Bertz at 120, Nathan Linden at 145, Ryan Sattler at 170, Darnell Granberry at 182 and Marvin Britt at 195.

— Steven L. Tietz

also contributed to this story

FALLS SECTIONAL

Team Scores

1. Cedarburg (162), 2. Menomonee Falls (117.5), 3. Arrowhead (95), 4. Wauwatosa (82.5), 5. Germantown (78.5), 6. Hamilton (77), 7. Whitefish Bay (57), 8. Homestead (49), 9. Pius XI (32), 10. Marquette (28), 11. Nicolet (23), 12. Milwaukee Madison/Languages/Samuel Morse-Marshall (12), 13. Milwaukee King (0), 13. Milwaukee Riverside University/Shorewood (0).