Glen Lake wrestling had five wrestlers advance to the state championship held at Ford Field in Detroit Feb. 28 through March 1 after competing at regionals last weekend.
“It brightens the future for the whole entire program. Many of these kids are in for a lot of the excitement at Ford Field. It’s an experience; you can’t even explain it, just the venue, the size, the magnitude of the event, it’s breathtaking for any athlete,” Glen Lake coach Luke Moeggenberg said.
Glen Lake wrestlers who advanced to the state championships include Caden Sheehan, who placed third (138), Jacob Peplinski, who placed third (215), Isaac Schinella, who placed fourth (106), and Abraham Feeney, who placed fourth (144).
For the girls, Laker senior Emily Alaimo finished third overall to advance to states at the 105-pound division.
“I just put my name out there. Just gotta go wrestle (at states),” Alaimo said.
Alaimo (31-2) won her first match before dropping her second against returning state champion Natalie Gibson of Chippewa Hills. Both of Alaimo’s losses have come against Gibson. She won the third match against Jaden Reagan to go into the thirdplace match and clinch her spot in the state championship.
Alaimo will focus on technique and ensuring her movements are clean and tight ahead of the state meet.
“A lot of defense, and knowing what we will hit (offensively). Make sure my body’s ready to take on the two days of wrestling,” Alaimo said. “I’m just doing it for myself and showing that I am a good wrestler. I feel like I’m very underestimated by a lot of people... I wrestle state champs every day. Nobody’s on my level.”
For Glen Lake sophomore, Caden Sheehan, one of his goals at the beginning of the season was to make it to the states. He recognizes the importance of the second-year program.
“I think its good for the program to have people notice it more because it’s here and not going anywhere,”Sheehand said.
Sheehan finished third overall and overcame a slow start that resulted in a first-match loss. In the third-place match, Sheehan had a rematch of his first and got his revenge to finish third overall and advance to the state championships.
“I was like, alright, I gotta go and fight for my life because I didn’t want to be done at all,” he said. “At first, I didn’t realize that was the match that decided it for me. I was so excited. I was almost happier for my other teammates who made it.”
Another sophomore, Abraham Feeney, admits he wasn’t expecting to go to states, but his sole focus was focusing on one match at a time and not worrying about what was to come or what happened.
“It was a really big deal for everyone, especially since this is only our second year of the wrestling program ... We had a lot of people who came and supported us,” Feeney said.
Feeney fought to the thirdplace match, where he lost but still advanced to the state championships.
Glen Lake junior Jacob Peplinski lost his first match against the No. 1 seed but won a pivotal second match.
“It was a crazy experience to be able to overcome that match. I thought it was done. I ended up turning him, and I just felt so happy to get the win,” Peplinski said.
Peplinski knows he has a tall task at states ahead. Over the next week, he will focus on conditioning, looking to take some rounds and have long matches.
Glen Lake freshman Isaac Schinellar (17-16) won his first match before losing his second to Benzie’s David Wenkel (4011). He would win a critical third match before losing in the third-place game.
“I was going to try my best. The first match didn’t turn out the way I wanted, but I won the next one and qualified,” Schinellar said. “I’m just going to practice hard. Give it all my best (at states).”
Coach Moeggenberg is proud of the entire team for the incredible season, which included the first state qualifiers at Glen Lake in two decades. The program was restarted in 2024.
“The big picture is improving. I think that’s where we’re at now is these kids have improved mentally, physically, in and honestly, most of them have improved emotionally. It’s a very real aspect of the sport, and you can see it in many of our kids. Their passion for the sport has completely grown throughout the season,” he said.
