With the start of February, we are getting into the nitty gritty part of wrestling. Just one month from now, the NAIA championships will be underway, and we will figure out who stands at the top of each weight class.
Until then, the Northwestern wrestling team has been putting their noses to the grindstone so that they enter the post season with high hopes to stand on the podium at the end of the year and become NAIA All Americans.
One wrestler who has stood out both in practice and on the mat is sophomore Kaleb Lind. Lind wrestles at the 197-pound weight class and has a current record of 20 wins and 10 losses. He currently leads the team in wins by fall, with 9 out of his 20 wins coming by pins.
In his weight class, Lind is currently ranked third in the GPAC, and he can only hope to go up from here. Throughout this year, his explosive and quick style has helped him gain 38 takedowns, falling third in the lead for takedowns on team right behind first-year Noah Parmelee who wrestles at 149 and senior Luke Jenness who wrestles at 184, both are tied at 40 takedowns on the year.
Lind has been essential in the dual team success of this season picking up a fall in one minute and thirty-six seconds in the dual against Buena Vista University, and several wins in duals against Jamestown University, Midland and Dakota Wesleyan.
As a freshman last season, Lind ended the season with a record of 7 wins and 14 losses. It is easy to see that this record motivated Lind in the offseason to come back this season stronger, faster and with improved wrestling technique. If Lind continues to be as consistent as he has been and improves throughout his remaining college career, it is safe to say the Lind has an excellent and exciting career ahead of him.
If you would like to see Lind and the rest of the NW wrestling team take the mat, you can catch them in their last h ome dual of the season against Waldorf on Friday, Feb. 3 at 7 p.m.
