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FlyNavy

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    FlyNavy reacted to Y2CJ41 for a article, Military Academy Indiana Collegiate Preview   
    By: Blaze Lowery
     
    Admittance into a military academy is something that every wrestler should be considering. These institutions are adding structure and grit to some of Indiana’s finest talents on and off the mat. Combining passion with real change, these athletes are up from sunup to sundown with zero complaints. To put it in simpler terms, these gentlemen are taking the road less traveled.
     
    West Point
    Out on the east coast, Christian Hunt of Yorktown is representing Indiana for his 5th season as a mule rider. West Point has been a place for Hunt to really figure it all out. He states how he enjoys the leadership opportunities and military obligations that come with attending the academy. Hunt also forfeits his summers to training and getting out into the field.
     
    Wrestling-wise, Hunt states how he came in ready to go, paying homage to his home state being so tough. The transition from high school to college for him was working on his top and bottom. West Point is not a place for the weak, as Hunt highlights how since he got put on a 6 A.M. to 9 P.M. schedule since arriving at the academy.
     
    Some advice he has for young Indiana athletes thinking about attending a military academy is to expose yourself to national talent as much as you possibly can. Going to large tournaments like Super 32, Fargo, etc. will only increase your chances to compete and compete hard at the next level. “Be ready to serve something bigger than yourself,” states Hunt. Wrestling can only take you so far, but why not do so and make a difference as well.
     
    Recent commitment: Reid Schroeder of Southrdige
     
    The Citadel
    Where structure rules all, The Citadel is where a few Indiana finalists now reside. State Champion Hayden Watson of Center Grove talks commitment and what it takes to really be a bulldog. “They break you down to build you up,” Watson says. Upon his arrival, he has come to realize how tough it is to manage wrestling, school, and duties. He likes the idea of taking advantage of opportunity and how structure has really taken him to that next level.
     
    Watson finds himself thriving in the wrestling environment down in Charleston. The training is consistent, and the drilling is much more explosive. His focal point in his shift in wrestling style since coming to the Citadel was having to be a bit more conservative. He advises anyone that is interested in coming to the Citadel to look forward to practicing every day like himself and follow the schedule to succeed.
     
    Others on the roster: Brodie Porter from Eastern
     
    Coast Guard
    As a top 15 DIII university in the country, the U.S. Coast Guard Academy is making their mark as a place for opportunity. Three-time state qualifier, Brendan Mattingly of Carmel is taking advantage of those opportunities and has already been around the world since arriving at Coast Guard. In addition to the benefits of being an officer, Mattingly gets to pursue his passion for wrestling. With the pandemic throwing a kink in his journey, Mattingly is looking to continue to embrace the grind and becoming the best wrestler he can be.
     
     
    The wrestling room over at Coast Guard is always packed. The team is forced to have split practices because of how many guys are on the roster. Some would gripe and groan, but Mattingly looks at it as another opportunity to refine his craft with numerous different looks. His coaches push him to hand fight harder and be a selective shot taker. He compares collegiate wrestling with chess in how calculated one must be in every situation. A single mistake could make or break one’s chances to win the dance. Mattingly continues to put in the work, but also puts his career first.
     
    Air Force
    Air Force is home to a few of Indiana state champions and place winners. Two-time state champion, Alec Viduya of Roncalli, advises anyone who is thinking about attending Air Force to never lose sight of their passion. Viduya states, “Just remember what made you come here because you can get lost in the little things.” The transition from high school to a military academy can be treacherous, but well worth the squeeze. Everyone Viduya wrestles is no off-go, which was one of the big eye-openers for him. Even in his practice room, he finds it harder to hand fight, setting up his shots, and finishing those shots with scrambling being much more common.
     
    Grades are important when trying to get into the academy. There is no time for procrastination says state champion Drake Buchanan of Center Grove. Time management is something that is stressed more so than anything. Keeping his head down and grinding each day, Buchanan sheds light on how he had to adjust a bit now that practices are harder, and schedules are more packed. Some tweaks he has made on the mat are mostly from top and bottom with college rules being a bit different, it’s a “different ballgame.”
     
    Three-time state place winner, Aiden Warren of Perry Meridian, also speaks on how tough the transition from high school to military academy can truly be. Fresh off shoulder surgery, Warren looks to get back into the groove and potentially crack the lineup at 184-pound weight class. “Don’t get discouraged, it’s a long process,” states Warren when referring to recruitment. He also advises that there is nothing wrong with reaching out to a coach if you’re interested in a program, even at the collegiate level. The courage to reach out to a coach is one thing but doing what needs to be done in the classroom will solidify one’s case to wrestle at the next level.
     
     
  2. Like
    FlyNavy reacted to Y2CJ41 for a article, #MondayMatness: From deaf slave to Warsaw wrestler, Linky has taken quite a journey   
    By STEVE KRAH
    stvkrh905@gmail.com
     
    Real adversity meets opportunity.
     
    That’s the story of Jacob Linky.
     
    The wrestling room at Warsaw Community High School is filled with pulsing music and coaches barking instructions as more than three dozen Tigers get after it.
     
    One wrestler — junior Linky — goes through the workout, rehearsing his moves with his workout partner, cranking out pull-ups and running laps around the room.
     
    But without the sounds heard by the others.
     
    Linky lives in a world that is mostly silent.
     
    Without his cochlear implants, Linky can’t hear much of anything.
     
    There was one incident where smoke alarms went off all over the house where Jacob now resides with Nrian and Brenda Linky. It was 3 a.m.
     
    “Jacob slept through the alarm,” says Brian Linky, Jacob’s legal guardian. “I woke him in the morning.”
     
    The young man was not born deaf.
     
    Now 18, Jacob was about 5 and in native Africa — Lake Volta, Ghana, to be exact — when he lost his hearing at the hands of his father.
     
    “We were slaves,” says Jacob, speaking of his early childhood through interpreter Rebecca Black. “We helped my dad in his fishing business.
     
    “I didn’t used to be deaf. My dad hit by head a whole bunch. That’s how I became the way I am.”
     
    His father demanded that young Jacob dive into very deep waters full of dangerous creatures.
     
    “I felt a pop in my ears,” says Jacob. “I was a kid.”
     
    His native language was Twi, but he didn’t hear much that after his hearing was gone.
     
    Growing up the second oldest of seven children, Jacob has a brother who was born to another family, rejected and traded to his father.
     
    It was a life that is difficult to imagine for those in the U.S.
     
    “My mom didn’t do anything wrong,” says Jacob. “She fed me.”
     
    Wanting the best for Jacob, his mother placed him in an orphanage. He eventually came to live in Warsaw when he was adopted by Andy and Dawn Marie Bass and began attending the fifth grade at Jefferson Elementary in Warsaw. He received hearing aids and then implants.
     
    “I’m thankful the Basses adopted me and brought me here,” says Jacob.
     
    “I now live with the Linky family.”
     
    Following grade school, Jacob went on to Edgewood Middle School in Warsaw and was introduced to wrestling.
     
    “I knew nothing (about the sport),” says Jacob. “I played around.”
     
    Drive and athletic prowess allow Jacob to excel on the high school mat.
     
    “At times his feisty side comes out because of that past,” says Warsaw head coach Kris Hueber. “He’s channeled it well and we’ve been able to harness well most of the time.
     
    “He has days where he is cranky and fired up, You know that he’s drawing from stuff that no one else has.”
     
    After missing his freshmen season, Jacob made an impact with the Tigers as a 145-pound sophomore, advancing to the East Chicago Semistate.
     
    “This year, I’d like to go all the way to State,” says Jacob, who spent the summer pumping iron and continues to eat a healthy diet of fruits, vegetables and protein while packing more muscle on a  5-foot-7, 160-pound frame.
     
    “(Jacob) fell in love with the weight room,” says Hueber. “There is not much on him that is not muscular. He’s one of those guys with his energy level he needs to be active. As an athlete, he is a remarkably gifted human being. He’s able to do things no one else in the room can do. Between strength, balance and agility, he is uniquely gifted.”
     
    Ask Jacob what his best quality is as a wrestler and says speed. His quickness and and strength come into play in the practice room with larger practice partners — 170-pound Brandon Estepp, 182-pound junior Mario Cortes and 195-pound senior Brock Hueber.
     
    “I don’t like to wrestle light persons,” says Jacob. “It makes me work hard to wrestle the big guys.”
     
    Warsaw opened the 2019-20 season Saturday with the Warsaw Invitational and Jacob went 5-0 with four pins.
     
    Sign language and lip-reading help him navigate life as a teenager and athlete. When Jacob wrestles, Black circles the mat to maintain eye contact and relay information to him.
     
    “She always looks where my head is,” says Jacob. “She always gets sweaty.”
     
    Who gets sweatier during a match? “Me,” says Jacob, thrusting a thumb at his chest. “I’m a harder worker.”
     
    Black has been around Jacob since he was in eighth grade.
     
    “I feel privileged to be involved in his life,” says Black. “He’s an amazing person. He just is.”
     
    Hueber has come to appreciate that Jacob has the ability to be both competitive and light-hearted.
     
    “He’s ornery still, but in a good way,” says Hueber. “He has not been able to out-grow being a kid. I love that.”
     
    While Jacob’s background and circumstance are different than his Tiger mates, Hueber says he’s “just one of the guys.”
     
    “(They) don’t treat him differently in any way,” says Hueber. “They love being around him because of his charisma and personality. He’s a really great teammate.”
     
    Hueber says working with Jacob has helped others recognize their influence.
     
    “They might be able to goof off for two minutes and snap right back,” says Hueber. “If (Jacob) misses one line of communication, there’s a lot that he’s got to recover from.”
     
    This means that workout partners need to be focused and attentive as well — not just for themselves but to also help Jacob. Hueber notes that Jacob has to concentrate and keep focused on his interpreter in class (his current favorite class in English and he is looking forward to Building Trades in the future) and practice.
     
    “There are probably times when he’s looking for a break,” says Hueber.
     
    “He’s on and he’s full-wired all day. That’s taxing mentally for sure.”
     
    Brian Linky works in payment processing at PayProTec in Warsaw and Brenda Linky is the special needs coordinator for Warsaw Community Schools. The Linkys have two sons who played basketball at Warsaw — Zack (now 28 and living in Calfiornia) and Ben (now 22 and attending Indiana University).
     
    Taking in Jacob means they have a teenager in the house again.
     
    “He’s been nothing but polite,” says Brian Linky. “He’s hard-working around the house (mowing the lawn, making his bed, walking the dog and cooking his own meals). He has friends over. He’s very happy.”
     
    As for the future, Jacob is considering joining the football team next year (he has never played the sport). He turns 19 in May.
     
    A brother, Christian, lives in Virginia and communicates with Jacob and family in Africa through text.
     
    “We’re going to save up so we can visit our parents in Africa,” says Jacob.
     
    Right now, he is doing life as an Indiana teenager and wrestling is a big part of it.
     
    Real adversity meets opportunity.
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