Trett Joles D-SC “Wrestler of the Year” again
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THREE-TIME STATE WRESTLING champion Trett Joles (center), flanked by his mother Kathy (left) and father Harry, held up his bracket poster after winning the WIAA Division 3, 195-pound state title at Wausau East February 13. Joles became the first wrestler to win the coveted Dunn-St. Croix “Wrestler of the Year” award in back-to-back seasons. —photo by Shawn DeWitt
BOYCEVILLE — For a second consecutive year, Boyceville’s Trett Joles has been named as the Dunn-St. Croix Conference’s “Wrestler of the Year.”
The competition for the award was not even close as the Bulldog’s senior grappler was once again the conference coaches unanimous choice for the 2020-21 honor, adding the accolade to a lengthy list of accomplishments including a third straight state individual wrestling championship he won back in mid-February.
“I am humbled to receive this award for a second year in a row,” said Joles on winning the award again. “The Dunn-Saint Croix conference has always been loaded with great wrestlers so I am honored to receive the wrestler of the year award.”
In earning this year’s designation as the D-SC “Wrestler of the Year”, Joles became the first person to receive the honor twice in the award’s eight-year history.
Trett is among six Boyceville Bulldogs to have been honored with the award in that span, which include Brock Schlough (2018-19), older brother Garrett Joles (2017-18), James Palmer (2016-17), Austin Wolfe (2014-15), and Micha Johnson (2013-14). Spring Valley/Elmwood’s Ethan Hofacker was the 2015-16 honoree.
“Trett will go down as one of the best to ever wrestle in the state,” stated his head coach Jamie Olson.
Olson noted that Trett Joles would have broken several of the storied program’s records such as most wins, career takedowns, and career team points had the team been able to wrestle a full season. But despite the limited schedule due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the ensuing precautions and health guidelines, Joles was able to break the career pin record – finishing his four-year varsity career with 102 pin falls.
Although his senior campaign was abbreviated, Trett’s final statistics tally is still mind-boggling. He registered 362 takedowns, 334 near falls, and finished with 1,113 career team points.
All those tantalizing pieces of the craft Joles honed beginning in pre-school combined to equal a memorable and unforgettable 162-3 prep wrestling record.
Joles capped his final season with a 19-0 mark that culminated with a WIAA Division 3, 195-pound state title on Saturday, February 13 at Wausau East High School. He added this third straight state gold medal to the other two he had won the previous two seasons at 182 pounds.
“Going into this season, my goal was to win my third state title in dominant fashion,” stated Joles. “When I found out there was going to be a state tournament, I set the goal of pinning or teaching everyone in my state bracket. In the end, I was really happy with how I performed over the span of this season.”
And Joles delivered on that state-tournament goal as he pinned his quarter- and semifinal opponents before earning a 21-5 technical fall over Stratford junior Raife Smart midway through the third and final period of the state title match.
“Wrestling has had a huge impact on my life and I am glad that I joined when I was young,” noted Joles. “The sport has taught me several life lessons that I’ll continue to use in the future.”
“Throughout the last four years of wrestling, I’ve learned that there is more to the sport than just the individual part,” he continued. “It is nice to have recognition as an individual wrestler, but when your goals are about the team succeeding then it makes it so much more enjoyable.”
It’s a philosophy that has not only made Trett Joles, who along with four-time state champ Brock Schlough are the only Bulldogs to win three states titles, not only an outstanding wrestler but an unparalleled teammate according to his coach.
“Trett will be greatly missed, you can’t replace his leadership on and off the mat,” Olson stated. “He leads by example in so many areas of the sport.”
“His training, diet, and mental approach were so important to him on a daily basis,” added Olson. “He simply made everyone around him better, didn’t matter if it was a 106 pounder or a heavyweight, he impacted everyone in a positive way.”
Joles also applied that laser focus and commitment to the classroom and was recently named one of four valedictorians for Boyceville’s Class of 2021.
Over the past four seasons, Trett was a part of 59 dual meet victories, three conference championships, three regional championships, and a sectional runner-up. Individually, he won a national title, three state titles, and placed third as a freshman, and claimed four regional and sectional crowns. He was also the Eau Claire Leader-Telegram wrestler of the year and, of course, a two-time Dunn-St. Croix wrestler of the year.
With his acumen both on the wrestling mat and in the classroom, one might expect Joles to take his talents to the next level and he is, but not in the sport of wrestling.
As it turns out, Trett also excels at baseball and has accepted a full scholarship at Indiana State to pursue his love of the that game at the Division 1 collegiate level.
But, it was not an easy decision to make.
“It will definitely be difficult to hang up the shoes for sure,” noted Joles. “But, I’m really excited to see how far I can get in baseball once I put all of my time into one sport.”
“Wrestling has always been a way for me to stay in great shape, so I may continue to wrestle in the future to keep my weight under control,” concluded Joles.
With his determination, focus and commitment, rest assured that Trett Joles will succeed if not excel on his next mission in life.