Athlete of the Week - Jackson Duellman, Dover-Eyota Wrestling

EYOTA, Minn. (KTTC) – Jackson Duellman was nervous.

“I was scared to lose and I don’t like being scared of losing because you got to fail to succeed,” Duellman said.

Tied at 30 in the Section 1A Championship match with Chatfield, Dover-Eyota was one win away from a team state berth.

“We got a pin at 220 just like we wanted. We wanted to put it all in Duellman’s hands,” Dover-Eyota Head Coach Brian Lehnertz said.

A true 220 pounder as Lehnertz calls him he gave up 65 pounds, wrestling at 285.

In his match, he was down 6-0 at one point, but then the tide turned.

“I looked at my teammates and I couldn’t let them down. I looked at the crowd they looked very disappointed I’m like I’m not about to let this happen,” Duellman said.

So Duellman found his legs and made it to an 11-7 win and took in a moment every athlete dreams of.

“It felt like the world man. That was one of the greatest feelings of my life. I felt like everyone was proud of me, I felt like I finally just hit the top.”

There with him were his teammates who never doubted him for a second.

“He’s been putting in the most effort this year out of almost anyone in the room. When it comes to tough times he always knows how to find a little more gas in the tank,” Grady Eaton, a senior D-E wrestler said.

Its because of the bond with his teammates that this win means so much.

“I’ve wrestled with these guys my whole life. I’ve been a wrestler since Kindergarten. I’ve had these teammates since I was just a young’n. It just feels great to win with your family,” Duellman said.

On the biggest stage, Duellman made his mark and although he was scared, he followed his motto, moved past the failure and succeeded.

“I’ve been the guy they’ve relied on I’ve failed multiple times over and over and over and this time I didn’t give up and we’re going to state.”

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