What an amazing night of Mixed Martial Arts competition last Sat night at Mystic Lake Casino in PRIOR LAKE MN! S.E.G. (Sterling Entertainment Group) brought the show for the first time to Mystic Lake Casino and they did it well! The sound and lighting is was really set the stage for the event in the perfect venue, where there wasn't a bad seat to be found. I can’t say enough good things about the show overall!
The first representative of Spartan Martial Arts was Darrien Mackiel fighting Ed Albrecht. It was a great battle back and forth between both men. Darrien’s striking looked crisp and creative. The fight went all three rounds and Albrecht ended with the decision win. “Darrien has made huge strides forward,” says Spartan head coach, Tom Schmitz. “He has a ton of heart and constantly get’s better and better. It’s was a hard fought battle on both parts and had the crowd on it’s feet. The fight was very close and could have gone either way.”
Next up was Karter Holthusen vs. Dale Walters. This was Karter’s first time fighting in the Twin Cities and the first time fighting under the Spartan Martial Arts flag. Karter is an interesting fighter, being only 18 years of age, still a high school student at Rosemount High. He has been training martial arts and wrestling for a very long time, training with Tom Schmitz at Spartan for about a year. Karter showed no lack of confidence in the fight, which only lasted 1:13 of the very first round! Karter came out strong looking to strike, then changed his mind and landed a huge takedown that put Walters back on the mat. From there the fight turned into small transitions on the ground to full mount, where Karter ended the fight with a very tight head and arm choke. Congrats to Karter for the win and all the hard work he put in at the gym! Coach Tom Schmitz says, “Karter is very young and talented with a very bright future!”
The third fight for the Spartan team was Blake Bilder, who is another recent addition to the Spartan team! Blake is an extremely driven young man. He has been training martial arts for a long time in both Minnesota and Georgia. He has competed in both MMA, boxing and grappling competitions, holding a purple belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Blake fought for the first time in Minnesota against a very tough opponent, Doug Deback, a Red Schafer student from Milwaukee, WI. The fight started out as a striking match but turned into a grappling contest for most of the three rounds. Bilder was the better grappler, attempting many submissions and staying in control for the majority of the fight. Bilder did get hit with a big shot seconds into the last round but was able to regain his composure and get the unanimous decision win for the event! “This is another guy with a ton of talent and a very promising future ahead of him!” said coach, Tom Schmitz.
Finally, the last Spartan competitor fighting was the co-main event of the night, Kyle “The Spartan” Todd, versus Josh Treseler, from Coon Rapids, MN. This was for the Driller Promotions 170lbs ammeter title. Kyle won the Driller 170lbs title back in August of 2013 and this was his first title defense. The fight started out with both guys “feeling out” the other with measuring jabs and footwork. Treseler then got aggressive, throwing a 1-2 combo and Todd firing a counter-cross that made contact, making Treseler shoot for a takedown. Todd defended the takedown and was put into an awkward standing headlock position, staying composed and working Treseler to the ground. From there, Todd stayed in control on the ground delivering a bit of ground and pound. The fight then went back to the feet after Todd tried a transition; this was the final seconds of the contest! After Todd threw a glancing kick that stopped the fight for a quick second, Todd quickly went on the offensive, throwing a 1-2 combo that landed clean, on-the-button, knocking Treseler down to the fence. Seeing that the referee didn't’ step in to end the fight, Todd then stepped in with another big right hand knocking Treseler to the mat again! Treseler, again, stood up only to eat more big punches from Todd. The referee finally stepped in to end the contest at 1:47 of the very first round, giving the KO victory to Kyle Todd! Coach Tom Schmitz credits Kyle Todd with a “much improved striking game that will continue to become sharper in the future.” Kyle’s work ethic and commitment are respected and looked up to in the gym by all of his teammates.
Spartan Martial Arts wants to thank S.E.G., Driller Promotions and Mystic Lake for letting us compete in this great event. We also want to thank all the fans, friends and family for their constant support of the Spartan competitors. The gym and team is only two years old. We are dedicated to more growth and improvement as a team and we are very excited to see what the future holds!!
.jpg)
