The 15th Annual Kiffmeyer Duals to showcase some of State's Best
January 12, 2009
On Jan 17th 2009 at 10:15 am St Cloud Tech will play host to the 15th
annual Kiffmeyer Duals. The Duals this year will bring in eight of the
finest programs in the State along with one of the best venues to watch
a Wrestling Tournament. This year the Duals has seven teams ranked in
the State of Mn of which Hastings is #2 AAA. Foley #2 AA Albert Lea #3
AAA, Cambridge #4AAA, STMA #6 AA and Apollo #13 AAA. Wapheton ND is #1
in A in North Dakota. The event also has twenty-eight state-ranked
wrestlers of which 23 are ranked in the top four in state.
The Kiffmeyer Duals began in 1994 when Coach David Schorn developed the
dual fomat to honor former Tech Coach Jim Kiffmeyer.. In 1994, four
teams took the Mat with #1 Wheaton Herman Norcross, # 3 Paynesville, #5
St James and #8 St Cloud Tech battled for the title. The following year
the tournament expanded to eight teams of which Hastings, Cambridge,
and Albert Lea became a fixture in the tournament and are still part of
the duals fourteen years later. The Duals have seen teams such as
Foley, Milaca, Apple Valley, Hutchinson and Brainerd grace the lineups
in years past.
The Kiffmeyer Duals are a unique wrestling event which many label as
"old school" for the event is an A and B squad team tournament and it
is seeded one hour before the event starts by the eight coaches. It
follows the same format as the State Team Tournament. One unique part
of this team duals are the awards for the champion and second place
teams. The Champions receive a 2' by 2' Black Granite Trophy with an
etching of all the teams and a portrait of Coach Kiffmeyer. The second
place team also receives a Black Granite trophy of almost equal the
size. The B teams also wrestle a dual meet format and are graced with
awards at the end. The B squad portion of the event is wrestled in the
main gym in front of the historically large crowds.
The Kiffmeyer Duals in the past fourteen years have hosted 250 state
place winners, forty-eight teams who placed in state, eleven teams
ranked in the Nation, and fifty-four State Individual Champions.
Besides the great competition displayed at The Duals, the Tech
Wrestling Booster Club feeds all the teams at the conclusion of the The
Duals and numerous raffle events take place during the day.
The doors open at 8:30 Am with the B Squad starting at 9:00 sharp. The
introduction of the Varsity teams will begin at 10:15 with the Singing
of God Bless America by Mr. Kevin Kiffmeyer, Jim's son. A full house is
expected so arrive early and enjoy this mini-state tournament at St
Cloud Tech.
