Dale Schmacht knew only one way to compete and that was hard. He was constantly in motion and he brought an energy to the wrestling mat that made him a tough competitor, whether it be in practice or competition. He came out of Cambridge High School in Cambridge, Illinois in 1979 as a state champion in Class A. When he left Augustana in the spring of 1983 he was a three time NCAA Division III All-American, a four time College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin champion and left a legacy as one of the best to ever don a Viking singlet.
He was a 150 pounder for his entire career, testimony to the fact that he kept himself in tremendous shape. He was the cornerstone to head coach Dennis Riccio’s successful effort to take the Vikings to the elite of NCAA Division III wrestling. Schmacht was one of Riccio’s first recruits and he immediately made his mark by going 22-9-2 in his freshman season and winning the first of four consecutive CCIW titles. He went 30-9 as a sophomore in 1980-81 and won the all-Lutheran Invitational before claiming his second league crown. In the national tournament that year he placed fourth to earn the first of three All-American certificates. He also recorded 17 pins, which is still the fourth highest single season mark in Augustana history.
After his sophomore season, Schmacht would lose a total of just five matches for the rest of his career, going a combined 73-5-1 in his junior and senior campaigns. He finished each of those with third place finishes in the NCAA Division III national tournament. In 1981-82, his junior year, he was 29-3-1 and won both the Olivet and all-Lutheran tournaments before again winning the CCIW championship. As a senior he had a sterling 44-2 record, losing a close match in the semi-finals of the national tournament in Wheaton, Illinois that cost him a shot at an individual title. The 44 wins he recorded in 1982-83 is the eighth highest single season total in Augustana history. He won the Warhawk Open, Wartburg Invitational, Olivet Invitational, Cornell Invitational, all-Lutheran Invitational and Wheaton Invitational as a senior.
He finished his career with a record of 125-23-3, a mark that still has him in the top 10 on Augustana’s all-time victory list. He had 39 career pins and that ranks him fourth in that career category. During his career the Vikings compiled a dual meet record of 28-24-1 against some of the toughest competition that Riccio could find. He helped lead his team to three CCIW team titles (1980, 1982 & 1983) and one second place finish (1981). In his junior and senior seasons Augustana was fifth in the NCAA Division III national tournament.
Schmacht was a competitor in the truest sense of the word. What he lacked in style and technique, he made up for on sheer will and determination. He was a member of the football team as a freshman and while he didn’t play much, he did turn some heads by running sprints during practice instead of standing around watching. He also competed in track & field as a decathlete.
The same attitude that made him such a tremendous athlete also carried over into life. He graduated from Augustana with degrees in biology and secondary education but he was not through with his schooling. He eventually earned a Ph.D. in physiology from the University of South Alabama in 1990 and in 1992 he received his M.D. He was given a fellowship in vascular surgery from the University of South Florid in 2002. He is currently a board certified vascular surgeon and also has certification in general surgery and trauma critical care specializing in burns.
A resident of Evans, Georgia, Dale and his wife Natalie have two sons, Colin and Alexander.
