Minnesota’s Premier Wrestling Association

The Northland Youth Wrestling Association (NYWA) aims to elevate the standard of youth folk style wrestling by organizing a series of tournaments that test the endurance and abilities of competitors. These tournaments, including a State-wrestling event similar to the MN State High School League, provide opportunities for wrestlers to showcase their skills and improve their level of competition. To qualify for the State tournament, a wrestler must earn a top-two finish at a District qualifier, and the top three wrestlers from the Regional Qualifier will move on to the State tournament. In the tournament, wrestlers will compete against opponents in the same grade level, with divisions for pre-school and kindergarten wrestlers, 1st and 2nd grade wrestlers, 3rd and 4th grade wrestlers, and so on up to 8th grade.

Thank you to all who attended the 2025 NYWA tournaments!
  1. Check out our local restaurant partners!
  2. Next year will mark the 30th year of NYWA; we hope to see you all back in 2026.
  3. Make sure to mark your calendars for the 2026 NYWA State Tournaments. The dates are listed below.
2026 NYWA State Tournament Dates (March 26-29 & girls April 3-4)
Get your photos from the tournaments! Click the link below.

WANT PHOTOS FROM THE TOURNAMENT? Check them out here at Shot in the Dark Studio.

The girls team competition is complete!! Congrats to all the following:
Spirit Award K-4: Gold Flames from region 3
Spirit Award 5-8: Lucky Charms from region 2
Sportsmanship Award K-4: Cheetas from region 2
Sportsmanship Award 5-8: Team Chaos from region 5
Coach of the Year K-4: Cassie Emms – region 3
Coach of the Year 5-8: Melissa Smith and co., region 3
OW of K-4 team: Monyka Tweeton
OW of 5-8 team: Brooklyn Binsfield
K-4 Team Champs – Gold Flames

5-8 Team Champs – Rosie Renegades

K-8 Girls Brackets

INDIVIDUAL OW’S FOR GIRLS STATE:
Pk-K (50 lbs) – Clair Rahmen (PEM); 3 pins all in the first period
1/2 (45 lbs) – Sophia Jordan (Simley); had 2 tech falls (15-0 and 18-2) plus 2 pins
3/4 division – 1st time ever for a tie! Lola Barret (St. James) and Charlie Christenson (GMLOS) both had 4 pins in a total of 4:12
5/6 (160 lbs) – Hailey Goth (STMA); had 4 pins in just over 3 minutes total
7/8 (130 lbs) – Payton Helmin (Milaca); had 3 pins in 1:30 total and a tech fall in the finals

CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR 7-8 TEAM CHAMPS – CENTENNIAL
Coach of the year for 7-8 team: Minneota coaches
Outstanding 7-8 team wrestler: Joey Cady from Chatfield
Paul Wolf Sportsmanship award: Worthington

CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR K-6 TEAM CHAMPS – KASSON/MANTORVILLE
Coach of the year for K-6 team: Cole Cooreman (Wabasso)
Outstanding K-6 team wrestler: Cal Statterstrom from ROCORI
Paul Wolf Sportsmanship award: LeSueur-Henderson

CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR CLASS B TEAM CHAMPS – MAHACA
Coach of the year for K-6 team: Jacob Bryce (Alexandria)
Outstanding K-6 team wrestler: Keen Dahlheimer from Brainerd
Paul Wolf Sportsmanship award: Pierz

INDIVIDUAL OW’S FOR BOYS STATE:
Individual 7-8 OW: Garrett Bjerga (Staples-Motley), pinned all his opponents in the first period under a minute!
Individual 5-6 OW: Chase VanHill (GMLOS), also pinned all his opponents in the first period under a minute!
Individual 3-4 OW: Grant Robinson (TMBWWG), a tech fall, a pin and 2 wins where his opponents scored zero points!
Individual 1-2 OW: Landen Cooreman (Wabasso), four pins and all under a minute!!
Individual PK-K OW: Coen McDonnough (ANML), 3 tech falls and a :26 pin!!!

 

TEAM BRACKETS FROM STATE:
K-6
7-8 and Championship pools
Class B K-6

INDIVIDUAL BRACKETS FOR STATE
5-8 State Finals
5-8 Invite Finals
5-8 State Finals
PK-4 Invite Finals

Region team results: 7-8 grade team and K-6 grade team

HAVE QUESTIONS REGARDING ADMISSIONS, COACH PASSES, ETC. – read this to find the answers.

NYWA Memberships

Purchase or renew your NYWA membership for the 2024-25 wrestling season (membership fee $25).

2026 Tournament Calendar

MN State High School Wrestling:
February 27 – March 1
NYWA Early Bird: WEM/JWP – Date TBD
Cloquet – Date TBD
NYWA Districts: March 6-8 and March 13-15 (additional dates may be added)
NYWA Regions: March 20-21 (team dates will vary)
NYWA State Tournament: March 26-29
NYWA Girls State: April 3-4 (Friday & Saturday due to Easter, April 5)
Easter Sunday: April 5

Tournament Photos

View or purchase photos throughout the 2025 NYWA State Tournament at Shot in the Dark Studios!

Looking for a Hotel?

Our company has compiled a comprehensive list of hotels for you to choose from for your upcoming tournament. All of the hotels on our list have been carefully selected to provide the best possible experience for our customers.

View our Hotel Information