The South Dakota Wrestling Hall of Fame will be inducting 10 new members at the end of next month, and three of those esteemed future members come from right here in Pierre/Ft. Pierre. The 10 newest members of the Hall of Fame are Toby Bryant, Craig Heller, Paul Schreiner, Rick Michels, Jim Whiting, Doug Rinken, Brian Skaff, Pat Timm, Kirss Klapprodt and Mark Neises.
Toby Bryant was a 3x State Champion for the Pierre Govs in the late 90’s, a 4x State Place Winner and a part of the 1997 Runner-Up Team. Toby would go on to wrestle at the collegiate level from 1997-2000 for the SDSU Jackrabbits where he lettered all three years. He would go 16-11 on the mat and would earn Academic All-American status twice. He was also a SAAC Representative from 1999-2000. Following his career as a student-athlete, Bryant immediately involved himself in coaching taking a role as a Student Assistant in 2001 with his former club. Bryants services were quickly sought after as he made the jump to Northern State in 2002 where he became a GA. In his time at Northern State, he would coach two National Qualifiers and one NCAA All-American. He would also pursue his second Masters in Secondary School Leadership & Administration. In 2003, Bryant accepted the role as the head coach for Aberdeen Central where he would coach until 2010. While with the Golden Eagles, Bryant was named Region 3A Wrestling Coach of the Year in 2009 & 2010. He would also lead them to back-to-back ESD Conference Team titles. In his pursuit to continue to give back to the sport, Bryant became an official in 2011 and officiated five State Wrestling Tournaments and Region Qualifiers while also officiating at the NCAA level until 2018. Bryant and his family moved to the Sioux Falls area back in 2010 where his passion for wrestling led him to become the owner and director of Metro Wrestling Academy in 2015. Metro Wrestling Academy works with boys and girls K-12 while aiming to elevate young athletes through hard work, fundamental skill advancement, character growth and leadership development.
Craig Heller started wrestling at the young age of 10 under the direction of Hall of Fame coach Dick Bleth. When he got to high school, he became a four year letterman and a four year State Qualifier for Faulkton. In that time, he was on the first of three State B titles in 1971, ’72 & ’73, and runner-up in ’74. Heller was the only wrestler for Faulkton to wrestle in the State Tournament on all four teams. In those years, he took 3rd his junior season and 2nd the following. Following high school, Heller attended USD Vermillion where he would wrestle for three years and win letters each season until they dropped the program in 1977. Still wanting to wrestle, Heller transferred to Huron college where he would be coached by another Hall of Famer in Vern Tate. Heller would qualify for the NAIA Nationals that season. Once he finished his collegiate career, Heller was ready to get into coaching. After a one-year stint in Selby, he would move to Harrisburg and coach their youth program for the next 20 years where many of his young wrestlers would enjoy successful high school and college careers. Heller was asked to head up the Stanley County wrestling program when he moved to Fort Pierre, and he did so happily taking them to the State Dual Tournament three times. In 2002 they placed 6th, in ’03 they placed 7th and in ’08 they placed 8th. In 2006, the Buffs placed 3rd in the Individual Tournament under Heller. Craig was awarded Coach of the Year honors in 2006 and 2011 for his stellar work and would finish his career at Stanley County with a record of 129-69. Heller continues to assist with Stanley County’s junior and youth programs, and says, “My goal is to help these young men reach their goals on the mat as well as off the mat.”
Paul Schreiner served as a high school football and wrestling official from 1980-2016 while maintaining a full schedule of wrestling and football games all around the state of South Dakota. Originally from Mobridge, Schreiner moved to Pierre/Ft. Pierre after graduating from Northern State University in 1972, where would become the assistant wrestling coach at Stanley County. Schreiner taught and coached the Buffs for four years before he started working for the state. But he would grow to miss the sport and the kids, so he would begin his officiating career in 1980. Paul officiated for 353 years, working three football State Championship games and 12 State Wrestling Championships. He also served as the Secretary-Treasurer for the South Dakota Wrestling Officials Association, the Central Region Officials Coordinator for wrestling and the Region 9 Football Officials Coordinator. Paul would go on to receive many awards for officiating wrestling including the NFIOA Active Official Award and SDHSAA’s Distinguished Service Award. Sadly, Paul passed away unexpectedly on July 25th, 2017, just a year after retiring. Those who knew Paul well said he was an incredibly generous man who gave his time and effort to the wrestling community for so many dedicated years, he is truly missed.
Congratulations to all of those who will be inducted into the South Dakota Wrestling Hall of Fame, it is very well deserved. The induction is set to take place in the last week of February.
Comments