Land goes 2-2 at state wrestling meet

ST. PAUL, Minn. – When heading down to St. Paul last week for the Minnesota Class AA State Wrestling Meet, Cloquet junior Jordan Land wanted to make sure that he improved on his performance from a year ago.

With the community rooting for him every step of the way, he did just that.

In a weekend that brought an eye-popping 53,000 fans to the Xcel Energy Center, Land brought his best, as he represented the Cloquet community against the best wrestlers in the state at the 103-pound weight class.

In Land’s first appearance at the state meet last year, he was defeated in the first round. So this year, wanting to better his showing, Land posted a solid 2-2 record and fell just short of placing within the top six wrestlers.

Land, who was ranked fourth in the state coming into the 16-competitor tournament with a record of 35-2, opened last Wednesday by posting a huge 13-1 victory over Delano’s Trenton Seck.

Land then faced the state’s No. 2-ranked wrestler in Jacoby Bergeron from Thief River Falls-Goodridge on Thursday. Land unfortunately lost a hard-fought bout 7-5 and fell to the consolation round. Bergeron later went on the win the championship.

Friday saw Land clash with Elissa Reinsma of Fulda-Murray County Central – the first girl to participate in the state meet, who was impressively ranked No. 8 in the state at one point – in which Land won easily 10-1.

It was later Friday that Land had a chance to guarantee himself a place – no spot lower than sixth at the meet – when he collided with Foley’s Mitch Dunlap. In a back-and-forth match, Land – who dismantled Dunlap 10-1 back in early December – found himself on the losing side of a 5-3 decision. Dunlap went on to place third and Land was finished.

Though Land didn’t place, Cloquet-Esko wrestling coach Al Denman knows his standout gave it his best.

“Jordan has great athletic abilities and work ethic,” said Denman. “You have to have a deep passion and love for the sport and Jordan sure has that.”

Land, who was the Section 7AA champion, the Great River Conference champion and winner of three of his four tournaments this season, finished the year as one of the top wrestlers in the state with a final jaw-dropping record of 37-4.

This April, Land will travel to Las Vegas to compete in the USA wrestling national championships. This spring and summer he is invited to wrestle for the Minnesota Storm, which challenges some of the best wrestlers in the country.

Tags: sports, wrestling, cloquet