EDITOR'S NOTE: The Swnews4u.com Athlete of the Week is a web-only feature that will publish each Thursday or Friday throughout the calendar year.

By Jason Nihles, The Platteville Journal, Fennimore Times, Boscobel Dial

Tristan Steldt, Sr., 165 pounds, Fennimore wrestling
MADISON — Fennimore senior Tristan Steldt won his third individual state title in record-setting fashion Saturday night at the WIAA State Individual Wrestling Tournament at the Kohl Center.

Steldt won the 165-pound Division 2 championship with a dominating 10–0 major decision over Denmark junior Steven Kielpikowski (49–3) in front of a sell out crowd.

Steldt (39–3), a Division 1 Pittsburgh recruit, became the first three-time state champion in school history after winning the 157-pound D3 title last year as a junior and the 160-pound D3 title two years ago as a sophomore. He also qualified for D3 state as a freshman at 138 pounds. 

Steldt’s title was the 14th in Fennimore history, and the first under first-year head coach Riley Lull, who took over for Tristan’s father Chad Steldt this year.

“I don’t want to say it was expected, but I am not surprised,” said Lull. “Between the amount of time he puts into the sport and his work ethic, we had high expectations and didn’t think anyone in the state would touch him this year.”

Steldt, who was one of five Fennimore wrestlers competing at state over the weekend, advanced to the finals with a pair of dominating technical falls. 

After a first-round bye, he blanked Martin Luther senior Hunter Burr (32–12) 15–0 in Thursday night’s quarterfinals.  Steldt then dominated Saint Croix Falls senior and No. 4 seed Drake Peterson, 18–3 in Saturday night’s semifinals. Peterson (44–7) went on to finish third a 165 with a second-period pin Saturday afternoon.

Steldt won his three combined state matches — against the No. 2, No. 4 and No. 8 seed by a combined total of 43–3, proving he is truly one of the best prep wrestlers in the state of Wisconsin this year.

“We had talked before the tournament about Tristan just having fun and enjoying the moment,” added Lull. “That state was just another opportunity to showcase his skills, have fun and take care of business, and that’s exactly what happened.” 

Kalie Davis, Sr., 235 pounds, Belmont/Platteville girls wrestling
MADISON —Belmont/Platteville’s Kalie Davis (46–1) made history becoming the first girls’ state champion in program history by rallying from a 3–0 deficit to start the third period en rout to a dramatic 7–4 overtime victory over No. 5 seed  Reghan Ziegler (35–8), a senior from Fond du Lac.

Davis tied the match at 3–3 midway through the third period, but Ziegler quickly escaped to go up 4–3 with 1:05 left. With time running out Davis went for one final takedown and with four seconds left Ziegler backed out the circle and was calling for stalling a second time, awarding Davis a penalty point to send the match to OT. Nineteen seconds into the extra session, Davis recorded a take down to win 7–4.

Ziegler previously beat top-ranked Madison Burns (37–1), an undefeated senior from Ashland, in Friday’s semifinals, 5–1. Davis had pinned Ziegler earlier this season at Waunakee.

Davis, who finished second at state at 175 pounds a year ago, advanced to Saturday night’s final with three straight second-period pins in her 16-girl one-division bracket.

“Kalie wrestled like a true champion — focused, determined, and relentless. To cap off her high school career with an overtime victory in the state championship is a storybook ending, and she earned every bit of it,” said BP girls’ head coach Travis Droessler. “Being down 3–0 in the third period and fighting back for the win shows just how much heart and determination she has. She has secured her place in state wrestling history, and we couldn’t be more proud.”

HONORABLE MENTION (in alphabetical order):
Morgan Freeman, Sr., F, Belmont girls basketball
Freeman scored 20 points and grabbed 15 rebound and four steals in a dominating 72–47 victory over No. 13 seed Boscobel in a WIAA Division 5 regional quarterfinal game last Tuesday night. In the process, Freeman went over the 1,000-point mark for her career. Three nights later, Freeman posted 12 points, 10 rebounds and 7 assists in a 48–42 regional semifinal victory over No. 5 Black Hawk's. Freeman's career and the Six Rivers West champion Braves' season ended Saturday night with a 43–35 loss at No. 1 Barneveld. Freeman scored a team-high 15 points in the game and finished with 1,034 in 102 games over her career.

Macie Galle, Sr., Platteville/Belmont/Lancaster gymnastics
Platteville/Belmont/Lancaster senior Macie Galle earned her third trip to individual state with sectional title on the vault (9.225), and fifth-place finishes on the beam (8.85) and the bars (8.3). She just missed out on qualifying in the all-around, placing sixth at 34.80.

Maddy Klein, So., Dodgeville/Highland/Iowa–Grant/Mineral Point gymnastics
The Dodgeville co-op posted a combined score of 139.225 to win Saturday’s WIAA Division 2 Dodgeville Sectional in its own gym to qualify for Team State for a second straight season and the seventh time since 2016, when the co-op was only Dodgeville/Mineral Point. Klein, an Iowa–Grant sophomore who missed last year's state meet with a torn ACL, won the uneven bars with a career-high score of 9.5 Saturday, and finished second in the all-around (36.175), third on the vault (9.0) to qualify for individual state in the bars, vault and all-around. Klein also tied junior teammate Faith Hoffman for sixth on the balance beam (8.80) .

Taylor Russell, Sr., G, Shullsburg girls basketball
Russell had 15 points, eight rebounds and three steals to lead Six Rivers West runner-up Shullsburg (20–7) to a 42–34 victory over SRW rival River Ridge in a WIAA Division 5 regional final last Saturday night. Russell and the No. 2 seed Miners will face No. 1 seed Barneveld (19–7) Thursday at Richland Center in a D5 sectional semifinal. Russell also had 14 points and 10 rebounds in last Friday's 55–31 regional semifinal win over Ithaca.

Ella Vosberg, Sr., F, Cuba City girls basketball
Vosberg scored a game-high 24 points on 11 of 15 shooting, and grabbed a game-high 15 rebounds as the #2-ranked Cubans (21–5, 13–1 SWAL) dismantled fellow SWAL-champion Mineral Point 82–50 in a WIAA Division 4 regional final last Saturday night. Vosberg also scored 14 points and had three steals in limited action during Friday's 90–33 regional semifinal blowout of Orfordville Parkview. Vosberg and the Cubans will face No. 3 Belleville (21–5) in a D4 sectional semifinal Thursday night at Lancaster.