Owen Lindstrom
FARGO — Owen Lindstrom had his opponent on the ground.
He rose from the mat. He clapped his hands twice and raised both his arms towards his family, who were sitting up high in the Fargodome bleachers.
“Without my parents, I wouldn’t be here,” Lindstrom said. “They’re the ones who want me to do this. They fund for this all happening.”
Lindstrom shared a hug with head coach Brendon Flynn, who’s been coaching the senior since he was just a young kid. Lindstrom could smile — he was victorious.
It was one of three moments like this for Flynn and the Devils Lake boys’ wrestling team on a special Thursday night. Lindstrom, Rylan Samuelson and Braxton Rance all won their semifinal matches, advancing to the finals of their respective weight classes. It was the first time since 1996 that Devils Lake has had three wrestlers in the finals.
“My emotions are answered prayers,” Flynn said. “So I talk a lot about controlling your environment. And the thing you’ve gotta do is control your emotions, stay in the moment and then believe in yourself. And that starts with faith. I know I have some kids on the team that have a deep belief in Christ. And all we did was lay everything at His feet this week, and we just trusted in Him and believed in Him. And we’re celebrating now because of it.”
Samuelson, a sophomore in the 114 weight class, was up first. Originally seeded No. 2 in the bracket, he was up and ready for a battle with No. 3-seeded Grady Olafson from West Fargo Sheyenne.
“Don’t listen to what the rankings say, or the polls or anything,” Samuelson said. “Just wrestle how I know I can wrestle, to my potential.”
Samuelson and Olafson found themselves in an early stalemate. It was scoreless for the entire first period, with both wrestlers going back and forth at each other but neither coming up with points.
At the end of the second period, Samuelson squeaked ahead 1-0 with an escape. But all it would take is a single takedown for Olafson to win.
Samuelson had none of that. With less than 30 seconds left in the second period, he achieved the match’s first takedown. His lead was now 4-0.
The clock continued to tick. Samuelson took control, jumping on Olafson. He didn’t score any more points, but his dominance prevented Olafson from making anything happen on his end, either.
Samuelson held Olafson until time was out. Then he stood, shouted “Gimme that!” and pumped his fists.
“That was crazy,” Samuelson said. “It was a great moment. I’ve been working for it all year, and I just wanted to be in it.”
Flynn came over for a celebratory hand-slap. This was already the third trip to state for the underclassman, and he only continues to get better.
“Rylan works his butt off,” Flynn said. “He plays chess. He’s definitely a guy that watches film, studies his opponents, is always trying to get better. And it’s just awesome for him to see all that hard work pay off.”
Lindstrom’s match came immediately afterward, in the 121 weight class. He was no stranger to the semifinals, having been there three times previously.
But he hadn’t made it to the finals since his freshman year. He was determined to flip the script this time around.
“It felt amazing,” Lindstrom said. “I missed out on the finals two years in a row, and it felt amazing to get back.”
Seeding-wise, Lindstrom was in a similar position as Samuelson. He came into the bracket as the No. 2 seed, and his opponent was the No. 3 seed, Bismarck Century’s Grady Iverson.
The crowds were roaring in progressively more animated fashion as the day wore on and the wrestlers got deeper into their brackets.
“It’s louder. But you’ve gotta try to block it out,” Lindstrom said. “When you first get here, like yeah, take it in because you’re not gonna get away from it. But you’ve gotta control it. You can’t let it get the best of you.”
Lindstrom secured an early takedown. His lead was as large as 5-0 in the second period. But Iverson got on the board with a two-point reversal, then briefly took a 6-5 lead after a four-point near-fall.
“Score points. Stay focused. Stay in the moment. You’re gonna win,” Lindstrom said. “Because all these guys, you get a guy in the third period and they’re tired, they’re not thinking about it. Everyone’s banged up this time of year. It shows there. He had me down front-head, and I was just listening to my coach in the corner. Put my hands down… Staying mentally focused.”
Lindstrom fought back with his own reversal to go back in front, 7-6. Flynn encouraged him from the sideline, reminding Lindstrom that he was still winning. Lindstrom held Iverson upside-down over his right shoulder at one point. He gave himself some breathing room with a four-point near-fall to make it 11-6.
Lindstrom got Iverson back on the ground one last time. He achieved a takedown before pinning Iverson at 4:48.
Victory was his.
“I just have confidence in myself that I’m the most dangerous wrestler here,” Lindstrom said. “Flynn preaches every day, ‘Stay in the moment. Stay in the moment. Every period starts 0-0. Just go out and score points, and good things happen.’”
Lindstrom jumped into Flynn’s arms after his triumph. He stayed there for several seconds before going back to the circle to shake hands with Iverson and be officially designated a state finalist.
“That’s an emotional one for me because it’s been, what, seven years we’ve been together, wrestling and coaching,” Flynn said. “And you develop a bond with these kids, and it’s just a special thing when you get to share that with them. Because it’s been a couple years since he’s made it back to the finals, and that was a big thing for him. And I’m just glad he gets to celebrate that with him and his family today. It’s awesome for them. They’re great people, and I’m super excited for him.”
As Lindstrom walked off the mat, he raised both arms and looked up one more time.
“My mindset is I’m the best in the state, the best in the country,” he said. “Go out; you could beat anybody. Whether it says I’m No. 10 on the paper or whether it says I’m No. 1 on the paper, it doesn’t matter. I’ve gotta believe I’m the best. Because if I don’t believe in myself, none of this happens.”
Samuelson and Lindstrom could both walk off the mat smiling. Back-to-back matches, and back-to-back victories for Firebird red.
But the evening wasn’t over yet. Rance was still waiting for his semifinal in the 285 weight class, which would be the last match of the day no matter what.
Rance competed in the 215 category throughout the season. In the postseason, though, he moved up to the 285 as he believed it would be his best chance at victory. In the EDC tournament, he was seeded No. 1, but he took a loss to the No. 5 seed in the semifinals.
“After I lost in EDC, I really just went to the gym, did extra conditioning, and I wanted to be sure that I was gonna win this thing,” Rance said.
Rance knew he had to rise to the moment. He was the No. 3 seed in the state bracket, going up against No. 2-seeded Landon Riely from Williston.
Samuelson, Lindstrom and the rest of the Firebirds were waiting around and watching at this point. They were eagerly anticipating to see if Rance would complete the hat trick, sending the last of Devils Lake’s three semifinalists to the championships.
Rance was dialed in. Preparing. Thinking. Pumping himself up. Nobody bothered him while he was in that zone.
“Every match, I always get heavy nerves,” Rance said. “And I just keep pacing. I know I’ve worked hard for this. I know I deserve it. I lock in. And I also say stuff to encourage me while I’m pacing. Worry about what I’m gonna do rather than what they’re gonna do.”
Rance came out strong. He made the first move, getting on top of Riely with a takedown. Riely was briefly shaken up, and he had to have people attend to him for a few minutes while he recovered. But he stayed in the match and got right back going again.
Riely made an escape in the second period to make it 3-1.
Rance largely controlled the match from there, though he initially struggled to add any more points. With less than 30 seconds left in the second period, Rance was wrestling his opponent on the outer edge of the mat and secured a big takedown to extend his lead to 6-1.
Rance opened the third period with a reversal. He stayed in the dominant position for most of the third period, and although he never quite nailed down a pin, he did more than enough to secure a victory. It was a win by decision, 8-1.
“I saw him in pain at first, and I was like, ‘This guy, I know he’s faking it. I think he’s just tired. He needs a break.’ And I just laid it on him, bro,” Rance said. “And I just rolled him out. Got to what I was good at, and that’s how I won.”
Rance’s celebration consisted of bringing his fists together while leaning his body downward — twice. He could finally unleash the stress and anticipation that had been building before this match.
“In the moment, bro, I don’t even know. I feel so happy right now,” Rance said. “So happy. I feel ready for tomorrow, so I’m gonna win this whole thing tomorrow.”
Flynn finally had a chance to let loose a little, too, after a nine-hour day of wrestling. He raised his arms and pumped his fist emphatically as the final seconds of Rance’s match ticked down.
He got the satisfaction of seeing Rance take some sweet revenge after falling short in the EDC semifinals.
“Definitely a lot of confidence in Braxton. That’s another kid that has just worked his butt off,” Flynn said. “When you want to talk about a kid that, when the weight room is the definition of whether or not you’re gonna be successful — that’s it. And Braxton has put in a lot of work. He’s put in a lot of time. He’s taken his beatings. He’s paid his dues. And now he’s reaping the harvest of his fruits.”
The end of Devils Lake’s matches also happened to bring an end to all of Thursday’s matches. But through the ups and downs, the wins and the losses, the Firebirds got to go back to their hotel as happy campers. Regardless of whatever was in store for them on Friday, they’d already achieved some program history and accomplished some monumental goals that were set at the start of the season.
“It’s a lot of emotions. It’s a big deal for us,” Flynn said. “The kids are wrestling great, and I’m just super excited for them because of all the work they put in, and it’s paying off. And they get to see that. It’s a dark road in the beginning, but now that light is finally there.”
