In anticipation of the second annual Summer Slam, a wrestling event put on by Edison graduates in Northeast Minneapolis, Nari Miller, one of the event’s organizers, had a burning question.
Ro Adeduntan poses with the Summer Slam traveling trophy. (Jeremy Niyonkuru)
“I knew people would show up,” said Miller. “The bigger question was: How many chairs and how much food can we provide?”
Northeast’s affinity for wrestling runs deep, and you don’t have to look at the black-and-white photos decorating Mayslack’s for proof. Shaw’s Bar hosted professional wrestling as recently as June 8, and in April the Columbia Heights Lions drew a large crowd at Murzyn Hall.
The Summer Slam, hosted at Edison High School’s athletic plaza on June 20, provided an answer to Miller’s question: not enough chairs, not enough food. That didn’t sour the mood for the 200-plus spectators, though. They came for the wrestling.
Summer Slam 2025 drew collegiate wrestlers from across the Midwest and beyond, with some coming as far as California and South Carolina. Twin Cities middle and high school matchups were also interwoven. “Anything to promote and give a platform to the sport of wrestling,” said organizer Randry Mugisha.
Chanya Tipmanee is a member of the Thailand National Team and Texas Women’s University. She just began her internship with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, but had to stop off in Minnesota — her first visit to the state — to wrestle at Summer Slam.
“Nari is my teammate — I had to come!” said Tipmanee.
The wrestling meet was joined with a block party. Matches normally held in a gymnasium were held outside. Wrestler Nari Miller, Edison High graduate, taking down Poorna Babu. (Jeremy Niyonkuru)
Nari Miller is a 2022 Edison graduate and former Minnesota State High School League State Wrestling champion. Summer Slam is the brainchild of her and former high school teammate Eddy Ndayikengurukiye, a 2021 Edison grad and current wrestler at St. Andrews University in North Carolina.
“I wanted to showcase Minneapolis wrestling talent and Nari wanted to host a block party,” said Ndayikengurukiye. The decision to hold it outside handled both. “You can’t walk or drive by without having your attention drawn,” Ndayikengurukiye said. “Being outside ensured this was community-based.”
Ndayikengurukiye’s older brother Randry Mugisha, a 2019 Edison graduate, a 2024 graduate of Waldorf University and a wrestler at both, was looped in to help organize.
“We started with the matchups. We wanted to showcase the premiere athletes in attendance and to do so on two fair teams,” said Mugisha.
Miller handled food and promotions. She went to the Edison Community and Sports Foundation (ECSF) with an itemized budget and requested $1,300. With the financial support of the ECSF, the menu went from hot dogs and jugs of water to an all-out community feast. Black cherry smoked chicken, barbeque beef ribs, burgers, hot dogs, watermelon, freezes, pop, Gatorade and a DJ all contributed to a welcoming and joyous block-party vibe.
The cost of the wrestling officials would normally gobble up the $1,300 budget. However, the ECSF connected Miller and Ndayikengurukiye with Edison athletic Hall of Famer and 1978 graduate Dan Roff. Roff, who is a member of the Skyline Wrestling Association — which operates refereeing services — gathered a crew of four officials who donated their services as a favor to the Twin Cities wrestling community. “It is fun for us,” Roff said. “It is such a positive thing and there is some really tough and hard wrestling on display.”
Skyline predominately referees high school and collegiate folkstyle wrestling (a style based around pinning one’s opponent to the mat), but with eight of the 20 matches being between women, the Skyline refs got to expand their skills and officiate freestyle, which is the ruleset used in women’s college wrestling. (Freestyle wrestling allows wrestlers to use their whole body, unlike Greco-Roman wrestling, which restricts holds to above the waist.)
Mugisha, who helps coach girls’ wrestling at Eagan High School, coordinated safety plans, arranging an athletic trainer, sanitation plans, shoe covers and an emergency ice bath. “We doubled the number of female matches this year,” he said. “I am so glad the middle and high school girls participated.”
Miller’s match, her first in nearly a year after tearing her UCL, was a resounding success.
“It was hot, but you don’t feel it while you’re wrestling because of the adrenaline. As soon as you stepped off the mat the heat was felt,” Miller said.
Fellow organizers Mugisha and Ndayikengurukiye squared off in the final match of the afternoon, with big brother Randry getting the win. However, Ndayikengurukiye’s team ultimately took home the traveling trophy with a team score of 52-48.
All three organizers hope to grow Summer Slam in the future — both the block-party component and by turning it into a draw for elite wrestlers.
Tyrell Davison suplexing Colton O’Hern to the mat. (Jeremy Niyonkuru)