Dropped after the 1981-1982 season, The Warriors of Winona State were a very competitive team from the late 1950's through the mid 1970's. During that 17 year period, Winona State won four Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference championships and finished in the top ten eleven times at the NAIA championships. The Warriors started a club team in 2007 & have been competitive in the NCWA ever since.
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| Dave Moracco |
During Moracco's time of wrestling, the State of New York did not hold a State tournament. So after winning the Section V tournament twice, his season was over. Also a member of the Warriors' Football and Lacrosse teams, Moracco won three conference titles & three NAIA All American honors for Winona State. He placed fourth as a freshman in 1960, third as a sophomore in 1961 and fifth as a senior in 1963. He missed out on a fourth All American award his junior season when he broke his nose in the conference championship match & the athletic trainer would not let him continue.
Post his collegiate career Moracco went on to coach both football and wrestling at the high school level.
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| Bruce Moe |
From Red River High School in North Dakota, Moe didn't start wrestling until his sophomore year of high school. Nevertheless two years later he finished third at the state championships and earned himself a scholarship to wrestle for Winona State. His senior season, he earned a third place finish at the NCAA Division II championships & was invited to participate in the NCAA Division I tournament.
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| Pete Sandberg |
A Standout wrestler for the Warriors, Sandberg finished in sixth place at the 1969 NAIA championships. In the same season, he also placed third at the Midlands championships.
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| Merle Sovereign |
From Cresco, Iowa, Merle Sovereign took runner-up honors at the conference championships as a freshman and junior, finishing in third place as a senior in 1967. Post graduation, Sovereign operated a Grain Elevator in Cresco.
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| Jim Tanniehill |
Born in Alabama, Jim Tanniehill could make a case for the greatest wrestler ever born in the state. While competing for the Warriors, he was a six time All American. As a freshman in 1966, he placed third at the NAIA championships. As a sophomore in 1967 he took third at the NAIA's and fifth at the NCAA Division I tournament. After a redshirt year in 1968, he placed third at the NAIA's & third at the NCAA Division I tournament in 1969. In his final year of collegiate competition he placed second at the NAIA tournament.
Also a competitor at the Midlands, he took runner-up honors twice while in college. Post college he finished third once before coming back to win three titles.
Today he runs a wrestling academy in Indianapolis.
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| Jerry Wedemeier |
One of the greatest wrestlers in Warrior history, Jerry Wedemeier narrowly missed out on being a four time NAIA champion. Winning titles in 1959, 1961 & 1962, Wedemeier took runner-up honors in 1960. When asked about his wrestling success, Wedemeier attributed it to all of the hardwork he did on the farm growing up. After a short stint with the Minnesota Vikings, Wedemeier went on to teach Industrial Arts at the high school level.
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| Ray Wicks |
A three time All American for the Warriors, Ray Wicks placed fifth his sophomore and senior seasons of 1966 & 1968, taking third as a junior in 1967 at the NAIA championships. A career record of 72-18, Wicks found his calling as a real estate agent post college.
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| Bill Hitesman |
Bill Hitesman captured two NAIA All American awards for the Warriors placing fifth in 1969 as a freshman & then coming back as a senior in 1972 to place third. Post college Hitesman coached at Zumbrota high school for a while before taking over as the Director of Student Activities at Southwest Community College in Creston, Iowa.
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