The 2025-26 wrestling season will get underway this weekend with the boys and girls teams going to different locations as the girls will travel to Watertown while the boys will be in Mandan, North Dakota.
Starting with the Governor boys, they will not only be in Mandan but also in Clark as the JV is participating in the Clark tournament. However, there weight classes are not the same in North Dakota as in South Dakota, so Shawn Lewis, head coach of the Governors will not have the normal 14 guys competing in Mandan, but instead will only have 13 with different weight numbers for the classes. So it’s a balance of some in Mandan and then some varsity guys in Clark. The Mandan tournament will be over two days with plenty of teams from North Dakota which has already started its season. The Clark tournament will be just one day. Of the Governors who were in place matches last year, Gable Uhrig, Bode Minder, Alex Oedekoven and Porter Hunsley return for another year. Only Elijah Boutchee has graduated who was in a place match in the state tournament last season.
The girls team will be in Watertown for a one day tournament to start the season today. They remain as the defending team state champion as the Govs have taken the title in all five years with Canton being the runner-up every year. Pierre also would have won the team title if it had officially been given out 2021, the first year of girls wrestling. Ben Caven takes over as the new head coach with Matt Thorson departing to West Central. The Governors had Dani Ringstmeyer and Abbi Lewis win individual state titles last year as Ringstmeyer graduated, but Lewis returns as well as does Lexie Hillmer, Kezrey Benning, Jayda Steinke and Brylee Pelle, who all were place finishers in the state tournament last year. Ireland Templeton was the other place finisher to graduate with Ringstmeyer. The Governors will get a quick early look at some of the state with the Watertown tournament to open the season.
The Governor boys begin wrestling at 3:00 in Mandan today and then at 9:00 AM on Saturday with the girls starting at 4:00 in Watertown.
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