Bemidji wrestlers compete at National Duals, Schwinghammer takes seventh

Three Bemidji wrestlers tested themselves against a national field in Milwaukee, and Nehemiah Schwinghammer turned that trip into a seventh-place finish after going 6-1 at the 2026 Junior National Duals. The Bemidji contingent also included current Bemidji High School wrestlers Brenalen Fredriksen-Holm and Chastity Skerik, with Kristin Weidemann coaching and accompanying the group.

The Junior National Duals ran June 16-20 at the Baird Center in Milwaukee, with the Greco-Roman portion held June 17-18. USA Wrestling bills the event as a dual-meet championship for state association teams in freestyle and Greco-Roman, and eligibility is limited to athletes born Sept. 1, 2006 and after who are enrolled in grades 9-12.

Schwinghammer’s seventh-place finish stood out in a deep bracket that drew 38 teams of elite wrestlers 18 and under, according to The Guillotine. Minnesota Blue placed eighth in the Greco-Roman competition, underscoring how difficult it was just to break into the top tier of the field, much less string together six wins.

For Bemidji, the results pointed to a program that has sent athletes beyond local and regional tournaments and into a national setting where the pace, size and style of opponents are different from what wrestlers see in Minnesota every week. Fredriksen-Holm and Skerik’s presence gave the trip added weight for the current Bemidji High School roster, while Weidemann’s role reflected the coaching support behind the program’s development.

Schwinghammer also appeared in other 2026 Minnesota wrestling results before the Junior National Duals, showing that his run in Milwaukee came during an active spring schedule rather than as a one-off appearance. That kind of repeated exposure matters in wrestling, where state-level duals and summer competition often shape how quickly athletes adapt to unfamiliar opponents and pressure.

The Bemidji group’s trip to Baird Center South at 405 W. Kilbourn Avenue put three local wrestlers on one of the sport’s biggest youth stages and gave Beltrami County a direct connection to a tournament built around state pride and national comparison.