2008 Tribune Wrestler of the Year: Andrew puts successful cap on Dahl dynasty

By TODD SOMMERFELDT / La Crosse Tribune

As you make a left turn onto Omaha Avenue on the east side of Cashton, Wis, you see that you are heading down a dead end.

You pass a netless basketball hoop on the right side of the street and approach a driveway on your left, where you see a sign that announces your entrance into the “Valley of the Dahls.”

This is where a memorable Cashton High School wrestling dynasty both originated and concluded. It’s where Andrew Dahl (49-2), this season’s Tribune Wrestler of the Year, calls home.

The Cashton program will continue, but it will continue next season without a boy from the Dahl family on its roster for the first time in many years.

Andrew was the last one to complete his career, and it could be argued that the best, in terms of wrestling, was saved for last.

It all started when he was a freshman and just one of three family members — brothers Austen and Alex joined him — at the WIAA Division 3 state meet.

Andrew won the Division 3

103-pound title that year and announced plans to hang his winning bracket in the entryway of his family’s home.

“It’s been there since he got it,” Andrew’s father, Scott, said as the framed memory was removed to be used in a photograph. “This is probably the first time it’s been taken down.”

The dynasty continued when Andrew and Alex won state titles together during Andrew’s sophomore season.

Those framed brackets, along with the one Alex won the next year, are positioned on the living room wall.

Andrew still shakes his head in disbelief when his junior season is mentioned. Two one-point losses in the state tournament left him in fourth place.

“I don’t even think about last year,” Dahl said after winning his fourth regional championship in February. “I knew I had my senior year to go back.”

He made the most of that opportunity by closing out one of the most successful careers in Coulee Region wrestling history.

Dahl’s 13-1 major decision over Kenosha St. Joseph’s Austin Lemens for the 119-pound title was the 182nd victory of his career, which included just 13 losses.

His brother, Alex, previously held that record at 176, but Andrew blew by that number the day he won a regional championship.

Among area wrestlers, only Caledonia/Houston/Spring Grove’s Kasey Meiners (186-45) has ever won more, and athletes are eligible to compete on the varsity level as seventh-graders in Minnesota.

As a result of that success, Dahl expects to get a chance to wrestle in college, where he’ll take hs first steps in pursuing a career as a pilot. St. Cloud State, a Division II program, is the front-runner for his services.

“Andrew Dahl is one of the most complete wrestlers that I have seen in a long time,” Caledonia/Houston/Spring Grove coach Jay Tolleson submitted in his nomination form. “He is a complete wrestler (who is) strong in all areas of the sport, on his feet and on the mat.”

The latest championship victory marked a definite moment of pride for Dahl and those around him.

It ended a two-year wait for his third title and sparked a long celebration afterward.

After jumping into the arms of coach Chad Powell, Dahl ran toward the Kohl Center crowd, where he was bear-hugged and lifted over the rail by someone in the first row.

“That was one of my buddies from Kickapoo/La Farge, Ethan Nelson,” Dahl said that night. “He said he was really proud of me.”

Nelson was just one of many.

Todd Sommerfeldt can be reached at (608) 791-8208 or todd.sommerfeldt@lee.net

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS

SEASON RECORD: 49-2. He won at least 39 matches in each of his four varsity seasons.

CAREER RECORD: 182-13. He’s won more matches than any other Wisconsin wrestler from the Coulee Region.

WIAA CHAMPIONSHIPS: 3. He won at 103 pounds in 2005, at 112 in 2006 and at 119 in 2008.

WIAA REGIONAL/SECTIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS: 4/3

CHEESEHEAD INVITATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS: 2. He won at 112 in 2006 and at 119 in 2008.

TEAM SUCCESS: With Dahl in the lineup, Cashton qualified for and placed second in the WIAA Division 3 state team tournament in 2006.

CAREER VARSITY LETTERS: 11. Dahl has lettered four times in wrestling, three times in cross country and baseball and once in football. He’ll likely get his 12th as a baseball player this spring.

ALL-TRIBUNE: Dahl becomes a four-time member of the first team this year.

OFF THE MAT WITH ANDREW DAHL

NICKNAME (and how did you get it?): Bear. I got it from my parents. Not really sure why though.

FAVORITE ATHLETE: I don’t have one.

FAVORITE TV SHOW: Home Improvement

FAVORITE TYPE OF MUSIC/FAVORITE ARTIST: Country, My artist would be Carrie Underwood

FAVORITE CAR: 2008 Lotus Supercharged Elise SC

CAR YOU DRIVE NOW: 1994 Chevrolet 1500

CELL PHONE RING: I keep my phone on vibrate all the time.

CRAZIEST AMBITION: Not really sure

THE PERFECT DAY WOULD BE: Winning the lottery

FAVORITE OPPONENT: Don’t have one. Ha Ha.

MOST IMPORTANT LIFE LESSON LEARNED THROUGH WRESTLING: It's tough but if you push yourself to the max and work hard at everything else you do you will end up getting the gold that you have been working so hard to get.