Longtime wrestling official Gregg Roach of Brookings will be inducted into the South Dakota Wrestling Coaches Hall of Fame this weekend.
Roach, who will work his 36th consecutive state tournament this weekend in Sioux Falls, will be inducted along with 10 others. The induction ceremony takes places about 30 minutes before the championship matches Saturday at the South Dakota Class A and B State Tournament at the PREMIER Center in Sioux Falls.
Others to be inducted Saturday include fellow officials Rick Fink of Sioux Falls and Steve Rounds of Pierre; longtime youth coach and mentor Rollie Fink from Harrisburg; Alan Webster, who coached at Harding County and Custer; Cordie Schlomer, former Lyman County coach; legendary Gregory coach John Hansen; former Parkston coach John Gilman; Tyler Bryant, former Pierre High School standout who went on to star at South Dakota State University; and Haley Morgan, former standout wrestler and coach at Eagle Butte.
Following a wrestling career at Brookings High School where he was a three-year letterwinner and qualified for the state tournament one time, Roach began officiating in 1981 and was awarded his first state tournament assignment in 1984.
He was selected National Federation of Officials Association (NFOA) Official of the Year in 1994-95. He received the South Dakota High School Activities Association’s Distinguished Service Award in 2011-12.
A former president of the Brookings Wrestling Club, Roach was selected as the first group of officials to do the inaugural Disney Duals in 1997.
Roach also officiated college wrestling for 25 years and was picked to officiate the National DII Tourney in 1990. One of the highlights of his career was officiating a triangular between Augustana, SDSU and the Iowa Hawkeyes, who were coached by the legendary Dan Gabel.
Roach is married to Tammy and has three adult children – Corey, Carter and Carley – and two grandchildren, Camden and Kendall.
