File photo by Travis Rosenau New Ulm Area wrestling coach Kevin Briggs, center, talks to his team following its Class AA state quarterfinals win on Feb. 25 at Grand Casino Arena in St. Paul.

NEW ULM — The New Ulm Area Eagles wrestling team did a lot more this season than make the state wrestling tournament for the first time since 1999.

While winning a lot of matches this season and going on to make state was a crowning achievement, the Eagles also won the interest of several communities and the hearts of aspiring young wrestlers watching on.

That attention and interest garnered is what put the wheels in motion for a program like NUA to get to the point they reached this season, a second-place finish at state in just the program’s second state appearance.

At the youth level, Rolling Thunder Wrestling dominates New Ulm, with young wrestlers looking to learn from the best and it’s where many of this year’s team started. And this year, the young wrestlers got to see the best team the program has had to offer.

“It started in the youth group and works its way up to the high school,” coach Briggs said. “The amount of support that we received from the community during this run, it’s just an awesome memory the kids will have for the rest of their lives.”

NUA put together its winningest season in program history with a 26-1 record, going undefeated until falling to Simley in the Class A State Wrestling Tournament finals to end the season.

Coach Briggs said getting to that point had a lot to do with the wrestlers’ attitudes.

“It was just a bunch of kids wanting it and everybody that took the mat really represented the program to its finest,” coach Briggs said. “I always tell the kids, ‘I don’t care about winning or losing, I care about staying connected and giving your best,’ and that’s what they did.”

Not only did the Eagles give their best, they dominated this season. The Eagles won the Don Hall Invitational for the first time in the program’s 15 years competing in it, and they also won the Tom Keating Invitational, the Big South Conference Tournament and the Highwater Ethanol Invite.

After winning the Big South Conference championship for the first time in program history with a win over Jackson County Central, it was a sign of things to come for the Eagles, who ended up taking down Marshall in the section finals to punch their state ticket.

After making state, the Eagles defeated Totino-Grace 53-17 in the quarterfinals and Pierz 42-12 in the semifinals. The 26-0 season ended with a 38-13 loss to Simley in the finals, but the Eagles’ success had many people talking.

Coach Briggs said many wrestlers stepped up or stood up for the team this season, especially in the state tournament.

“In the first [state] dual, I think of Alex [Portner] and Kane [Johnson] taking on two of the better wrestlers,” coach Briggs said. “Dirk [Haynes] was tasked with, every dual, he just had a meat grinder of a tournament and he did his job. Emerson [Johnson] finished his career wrestling some of his best. I would definitely say that about Braxton [Kiecker], he wrestled three of his best matches in his high school career [at state].”

Coach Briggs said he didn’t want to leave any wrestler out because he truly believed every wrestler brought their best to the mat.

“I felt like every kid, honestly, that took the mat, just wrestled very well,” he said. “Chase Wilson, his job is always to get us momentum and he did that three times, made the All-Tournament Team. In a huge match against Pierz, Candon [Briggs] came through with a big pin. Tegan [Kral] wrestled his butt off against Pierz. Elijah [Rieser] bumped up [a weight class] against Pierz and I probably cost him a spot on the all-tourney team because of that.

“Lane [Ruch] went 3-0. All year long, they just wrestled for each other. Truthfully of all the winter seasons, it’s a lot of weekends, lot of time indoors and you’re just ready for it to be done, but this season is different and I was sad to see it come to an end.”

Coach Briggs got some extra recognition also when he was voted the MSHSL Class AA Wrestling Coach of the Year.

“Everybody roots for a good story,” coach Briggs said. “I feel like New Ulm wrestling is just one of those good stories that people could see coming. Even three, four years ago we weren’t at the state tournament, but the schools we were wrestling would acknowledge and say, ‘We’re impressed with how you guys are wrestling,’ and ‘We don’t want to wrestle you in two or three years,’ because they could see the development, they could see it coming, and so I’m just so proud of that. It all stuck together.

“We didn’t have injuries, we didn’t have anyone quit the sport and that’s probably what I’m most proud of because if that doesn’t happen, you don’t get the accolades, the Coaches of the Year, but it means a lot to me that I have a good rapport with coaches around the state. I enjoy talking to coaches and picking their brain about, ‘What do you do at practice?’ ‘What’s some advice you’d give?’ Things like that. Coaches are so willing, especially in the wrestling world, so willing to just talk and give back and give advice, and I’m just so thankful for that.”

For a program that was almost on the chopping block 15 years year ago, the turnaround for the Eagles has been a dramatic one worth talking about.

“I noted in our send-off, 2011, the program was up for consideration to be cut because there wasn’t much participation,” coach Briggs said. “[You] just see how far it’s come and the importance of community support and a good youth program.”