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      2900 3

      #WrestlingWednesday Feature: Eldred Just Trying to be the Best for Six Minutes

      Brought to you by EI Sports
       

       
      By JEREMY HINES
      Thehines7@gmail.com
       
      Evan Eldred’s dad taught him a valuable lesson when it comes to wrestling. He taught him that Evan doesn’t have to be the best wrestler in the state.
       
      Ironically, that advice has molded Edred into a semistate champ and the No. 3-ranked 138 pounder this season.
       
      “The best advice I’ve been given in wrestling is when my dad tells me that I don’t have to be the best,” Evan said. “I just have to be better than my opponent for six minutes. It doesn’t matter who I’m wrestling or what they’ve done. I took that to heart. If I go out there and do my best, it doesn’t matter if the guy across from me is the best in the state or whatever, you can’t let that make you nervous.”
       
      Eldred has been nearly flawless this year on the mat. He’s 39-1, with his lone loss coming at the hands of No. 1-ranked Brayton Lee in a close 5-3 match.
       
      “Last year I started my season off with a close loss to Brayton Lee,” Eldred said. “This year I ran into him at conference and had a close match with him. It was probably the best thing for me because it made me realize I’m close, but I wasn’t to where I needed to be.”
       
      Eldred is a superb student. He has a 3.78 GPA, was Academic All-State honorable mention, and will wrestle next season for the Indiana Hoosiers.
       
      Eldred’s older brother, Dillon, attends IU and Evan always dreamed of going there as well.
       
      Westfield coach Terry O’Neil knew about Eldred’s desire to go to IU, so when he had a chance meeting with Hoosier coach Duane Goldman, he couldn’t pass up the opportunity to talk about his talented senior.
       
      “I crossed paths with Coach Goldman at the Indiana wrestling coaches clinic,” O’Neil said. “I told him we had a kid whose brother goes to IU and that is where he really wants to go as well. I told him that Evan has flown under the radar and told him about Evan’s wrestling and academic resume. He called Evan that night.”
       
      O’Neil has the highest praise for Eldred.
       
      “I’m pretty biased,” he said. “But if I had only one 138 pounder in the state to pick to be on my team, he would be my choice. I know he can compete with anyone.”
       
      O’Neil says he has never coached a kid with the ability to learn and utilize technique as well as Eldred.
       
      “Several factors go into making Evan special,” O’Neil said. “You can show him a technique on a Tuesday and he will use it in a match on Wednesday. His ability to recognize technique is like nothing I’ve ever seen in a high school athlete.
       
      “Another factor is that he never lets the moment get to him, no matter how important the match is or how big the stage is. He is even tempered and able to maintain an incredible focus.”
       
      Eldred had goals to be Westfield’s first four-time state qualifier. He qualified as a freshman at 120 pounds, but then fell short his sophomore season, losing in the ticket round of semistate. He bounced back last year and placed sixth at 132 pounds.
       
      Not making it to state his sophomore year was heartbreaking for Eldred, but it showed Coach O’Neil just how good of a kid Evan was.
       
      “Evan’s older brother Dillon wrestled for us,” O’Neil said. “He was two years older than Evan. When Evan did not make it to state as a sophomore he was very upset. But when his brother qualified for the first time for state as a senior, the same year, Evan was so proud and so happy for him. His joy for his brother superseded any of his disappointment about not making it himself.”
       
      Evan has worked extremely hard to improve every season. The best semistate finish he had up until this year was fourth. This year he broke through by winning the New Castle semistate. He’s hoping this is also the year he gets to wrestle under the lights in the championship match.
       
      “My dad has been taking me to the wrestling finals since I was about five years old,” Eldred said. “He would always tell me that someday I could be there. Every single year I went I just dreamed about what that day would be like.
       
      “My best wins in high school would be a tie between last year winning on Friday night and knowing I was going to be a state placer – and when I placed at Fargo Nationals two years ago. But getting under the lights would blow both of those two wins away.”

      2895

      #WrestlingWednesday: Tell City ready for Team State

      By JEREMY HINES
      Thehines7@gmail.com
       
      Things are quiet in Tell City, the town named after Swiss hero William Tell. Everyone knows everyone else by name. High school sports are one of the main attractions. This year, the town is abuzz about the wrestling team – and for good reason.
       
      The Marksmen will enter team state as the No. 1-seed in the Class A standings. They are currently the No. 2 ranked team in the class behind only their archrival, North Posey. Coach Neal Stahly can’t wait for the tournament to begin.
       
      “Our number one goal is to win team state,” Stahly said. “That has been our goal every since the coaches association came up with team state. We know there will be 12 fantastic teams that will be there with the same goal as we have.”
       
      Outside of team state, Stahly has high hopes for his squad. He wants everyone to make it to regional or semistate in the individual tournament.
       
      “I want the kids to wrestle to the best of their ability,” he said.
       
      The Marksmen are a senior heavy team this season. There are eight seniors on the 18-man roster. Seniors include Tavor DuPont, Shane Braunecker, Corey Braunecker, Nigel Kaiser, Ross Wilgus, Will Kirtley, Chance Bolin and coach Stahly’s son, Alec.
       
      “We are definitely a senior-heavy team this year,” coach Stahly said. “We have a good group of underclassmen as well and our sophomores are really strong. We have quite a few that are wrestling year around now.
       
      “The seniors are really close to my heart, with it being my son’s age group. They are a fun group of kids. They are tight knit. They do Christmas gift exchanges every year, with gag gifts. They just really enjoy each other’s company and they love to get out and wrestle.”
       
      The team has just one junior this season in Gage Meunier. There are six sophomores: Coy Hammack, Kelby Glenn, Brayden Lain, Collin Kessens, Tyce DuPont, Jack Skeen and J.C. Buckendahl.
       
      Currently none of the Marksmen wrestlers are ranked in the state, but coach Stahly believes that will change soon.
       
      “Coy Hammack is a returning state qualifier,” Stahly said. “He wrestles year around and it really shows. He is really becoming a leader on this team. We have been on lock down for a lot of this season so hopefully once he starts getting some matches he’ll climb into those rankings.”
       
      Hammack qualified for state at 106 pounds last season. He will wrestle 113 this year.
       
      Two Marksmen wrestlers are ranked in the always tough Evansville semistate. Shane Braunecker is ranked eighth in the semistate at 145 pounds and Kaiser is ranked sixth at 170.
       
      Shane and Corey Braunecker are twins. Corey is the class President.
       
      “They are both funky wrestlers,” Stahly said. “They’ve had a lot of success with twisting their bodies in ways they shouldn’t be able to do. Off the mat you wouldn’t be able to meet a more modest pair of twins. They are soft spoken, polite and very intelligent.”
       
      Nigel is one of the team’s best all-around athletes.
       
      “He was a cross country runner until his sophomore year when he switched to play football,” Stahly said. “He plays football, wrestles and plays baseball. He runs like a gazelle. Last year he finally started using his length in wrestling and it’s really improved him.”
       
      Stahly considers Kirtley to be the team’s vocal leader this season, but said his squad really handles leadership by majority.
       
      “Not one of them look for any individual accolades,” Stahly said. “They truly are a team. They hold each other accountable, too.  They look out for each other and make sure everyone is doing their best on and off the mat.”
       
      This is the 50th year for Tell City High School. The wrestling team has never had a state champion, which is something they would love to change.
       
      “We have actually never had a state champion in any sport,” Stahly said. “We have had medalists in various sports. In wrestling we have had six or seven medalists.”
       
      Tell city has had just two wrestling coaches over the last 20 years – which coach Stahly believes gives the team a sense of consistency.
       
      Stahly is from Michigan. When he came to Tell City he fell in love with the place.
       
      “This place is perfect. We have the Ohio River at our doorstep. We are close to Evansville, Nashville, Louisville and Indianapolis. Our county is about 75 percent National Forest – so we have a lot of hunting, fishing and camping we can do. People come to our town and they get that old-time feeling. We have a main street that is lit up at Christmas time. It’s like a throwback. It’s just a great place to live.”
       
      As for team state, Stahly looks forward to a possible matchup with North Posey.
       
      “They are the No. 2 seed and the No. 1 ranked team in class A,” Stahly said. “They are our biggest rival. They have done a tremendous job of getting their team to be a premier 1A team in the state. They are tough, hard-nosed kids that are hard as hell to pin and they don’t quit. We really look forward to that battle.”

      2893

      #WrestlingWednesday Feature: Kieffers Overcome Opponents On and Off the Mat

      Brought to you by EI Sports

       
      By JEREMY HINES
      jerhines@cinergymetro.net
       
      Wrestlers live for the sensation of having their hands raised in victory. It’s the ultimate expression of success. It signifies that on that day, in that moment, they were better than the opponent standing across from them.
       
      Joe Kieffer raised his hand in victory a final time on October 29th. It wasn’t on the mat, it was in a hospital. Joe raised his hand high, clinched his fist and rang a bell on the wall at Riley Hospital that signified Joe had completed his fight against cancer. It was a moment that took three years to achieve. Ringing that bell gave Joe his life back.
       
      To understand how significant ringing the bell that October day was, you have to know what Joe went through to get to that point.
       
      Kieffer is the youngest son of parents Kevin and Jenny. His twin brothers, Josh and Justin are both collegiate wrestlers. Joe was following in their footsteps. All of the Kieffer brothers were exceptional wrestlers for Roncalli high school.
       
      “Joe, before leukemia, was a great wrestler with the same potential both of his brothers had,” Roncalli coach Lance Ellis said. “He lost his freshman year in semistate. He got caught with a headlock his sophomore year. In his junior season he was involved in the most controversial match I’ve ever seen in my life. He was winning and the clock went off and he stopped and a guy jumped on him. I’ve never seen anything like it. We were hoping for a possible state title that year.”
       
      But soon Joe’s wrestling career wouldn’t matter much anymore.
      After his junior year he was competing at freestyle state and he kept feeling winded and very tired. That was not typical for an athlete of Joe’s caliber. He didn’t think too much of it though, and went on to wrestle at central regionals.
      “I got beat up and I looked terrible out there,” Joe said. “I could hardly practice. I was very weak. We just thought I had mono.”
       
      Things got even worse at Disney Duals. Joe’s body simply would not allow him to compete at the level he was accustomed to.
       
      The Kieffer family took a small break from wrestling and went on a fishing trip to Minnesota. Joe’s condition continued to get worse.
      “I came home and went to the doctor,” Joe said. “The doctor wanted to put me on anti-stress relievers. Stress can sometimes cause some of the same symptoms. But when they checked my blood, a few hours later they told me I had leukemia.”
       
      At first Joe didn’t comprehend the severity of his diagnosis.
       
      “My first thought was that this wasn’t happening,” he said. “It was unreal. It didn’t even hit me that it was cancer at the moment. Then, the whole thought of dying started to set in. I didn’t realize how serious it really was.”
       
      The diagnosis immediately ended Joe’s wrestling dreams.
       
      Justin and Josh were told the news that day.
       
      “I had just left for college,” Justin said. “It was my first period of time away from the house in my life. I was close to home, but I had moved out. Wrestling and college had picked up, and when I learned it was so hard to wrap my head around everything that was going on in my life. I was trying to balance that horrible news as well as all these new challenges in my own life. It was almost impossible for me to think about anything but Joe.”
       
      After the initial shock of his diagnosis, Joe approached his battle with cancer just like he did with his opponents on the mat. He went on the attack and refused to be defeated.
       
      Joe started chemotherapy treatments almost immediately. But because of his extensive battle with leukemia, he was forced to drop out of school at Roncalli.
       
      “Physically the hardest part was the very beginning,” Joe said. “I pretty much lost all mobility from the waist down. I had no strength in my legs. I couldn’t stand up or walk. I felt crippled and I was in a wheelchair for about a month.
      “But by far the most difficult part was the mental aspect. I felt secluded from the whole world. My immune system was so weak, I could not go to school. I couldn’t have visitors. If I talked to my friends, it had to be over the phone or through texts. I was extremely lonely.”
       
      Although he was lonely, Joe was far from being alone. The entire wrestling community rallied around the Kieffer family. They participated in charity golf outings and other fund raising events to help pay for Joe’s treatments. Messages poured in from coaches and wrestlers from around the state.
       
      “The whole wrestling community really stepped up,” Ellis said. “So many people who had no real ties to Joe stepped in to help. I remember New Castle coach Rex Peckinpaugh bringing me a museum of stuff to raffle off to raise money for Joe. It was like a whole collection that would take someone 30 years to collect. He handed over stuff I didn’t want to give up. But he did it to help Joe. So many people stepped up like that.”
       
      After nine months of treatment Joe surprised everyone and returned to school, and to wrestling. He was still going to chemotherapy once a month, and his body was nowhere near at the strength level it once was, but he didn’t care.
       
      “I only wrestled four matches the whole year,” Joe said. “But that didn’t matter. My best moment in my wrestling career came on my first match back. For me it was an extremely tough match, and I ended up winning. All the emotion of where I had came from to get back to that point really overwhelmed me. Our team was cheering and even the other team knew what that win meant for me.”
       
      Justin was happy for the win, but it was hard for him to watch.
       
      “When he won, I had this weird feeling,” Justin said. “I was very happy for him. It was a long time coming. But it was weird seeing him out there looking the way he did. It was hard to see kids give Joe a good match when I knew Joe would dominate those same kids before cancer.”
       
      Joe would not win another match in his high school career. That didn’t matter — because he was still battling the one opponent he wanted to beat more than anyone. His fight with cancer was not done.
       
      Joe and cancer went toe-to-toe for three long, grueling years. There were periods of time when cancer seemed to have the advantage. But Joe never quit. He never gave in.
       
      “This has opened my eyes to so many things outside of wrestling,” Joe said. “Before leukemia, wrestling was my priority. Now I want to do things for others. My whole lifestyle is different now. My priorities are different.
      “But I know wrestling helped me in this journey. In wrestling you don’t quit. You have to be a fighter. Wrestling toughened me up and helped me be mentally tough enough to fight this disease.”
       
      As Joe battled cancer, he would see others ring the bell on the wall at Riley Hospital. He couldn’t wait until he got his turn.
       
      On October 29th, he did just that. Surrounded by friends, family and the doctors he had grown to love at Riley — Joe rang the bell. His treatments were officially over. Joe had won the most important battle of his young life.
       
      Joe is now 21 years old. He will go to the University of Indianapolis, where his brothers wrestle, and study supply chain management. He wants to get into a logistics firm. He also has applied to be on a fire department, because he knows he will always have a strong desire to help others.
       
      He is healthy now. He’s not as strong as he wants to be yet, but he’s getting there.
       
      Joe’s journey has changed many around him, including his brother and his high school coach.
       
      “Joe’s battle has taught me a lot,” Justin said. “I take every day as it comes and thank God I’m here on this world. It has helped me get closer to God and my family. I want to cherish every moment I have with them.”
       
      Ellis, who won four state championships in his Indiana high school career before taking the coaching helm at Roncalli, says watching Joe go through what he did was one of the toughest things he’s ever endured.
       
      “Honestly, this was the hardest thing I ever went through,” Ellis said. “But you learn you can’t take anything for granted. Love your family. Love your kids. Live your life the best you can.”
       
       
      If you have a feature story idea about Indiana wrestling, please email jerhines@cinergymetro.net.

      2885 1

      #MondayMatness: Leo’s Heath embraces the brotherhood, grind of wrestling

      By STEVE KRAH
      stvkrh905@gmail.com
       
      Bolstered by the bond of teammates and the backing of family and coaches, Ian Heath continues to give it his all on the high school wrestling mat.
       
      The 132-pound junior at Leo enjoys workouts and meets with about a dozen other Lions, appreciates all the support from his parents and sister and gets guidance from a staff led by a seasoned head coach.
       
      “Everything you do is for your team and for your family,” says Heath.
       
      “We’ve got a small team. We’re super close and would do anything for each other. It makes you want to wrestle harder when you do it for guys you’ve bonded with. I really enjoy how close we are.
       
      “It’s like a big group of brothers.”
       
      Ian is the son of Shane and Kelli Heath and the older brother of Anna. Shane is Fort Wayne Police Department detective and former Norwell High School wrestler, Kelli a DeKalb County probation officer and Anna a Leo eighth grader.
       
      “They’ve supported me through everything,” says Ian. “Me and my dad have been on so many road trips. My mom has stayed up so many late nights washing clothes. My little sister helps clean mats at the high school.
       
      “It’s a family effort for sure.”
       
      Rod Williams is in his 30th season of coaching high school wrestling in Indiana. It’s his fifth in charge at Leo. He was head coach at East Noble and Norwell and before that an assistant at his alma mater — DeKalb (Class of 1986).
       
      Among his East Noble grapplers was Taylor March, who won 163 matches with a state titles, two runners-up and a third-place finish. Danny Irwin, who is now head coach at West Liberty (W.Va.) University, wrestled for Williams at Norwell.
       
      Danny’s brother, Matt Irwin, was in junior high when Williams led the Knights program and went on to win a state title.
       
      Williams wrestled for Logansport and head coach Joe Patacsil then moved to DeKalb as a senior and worked with head coach Russ Smith. He grappled at Manchester College for head coach Tom Jarman.
       
      “I was blessed with outstanding coaches,” says Williams, who is assisted this season at Leo by Chad Lothamer, Tad Davis and son Logan Williams.
       
      Heath says Rod Williams trains wrestlers to defeat the best.
       
      “You work to beat the top 1 percent and you’ll beat everybody else anyways,” says Heath. “We focus at Leo on proper technique that’s going to beat the best guys.”
       
      Heath and his mat brothers take that message of being relentless to heart.
       
      “(Williams) preaches that to the team,” says Heath. “That’s what we try to live by at Leo.
       
      “It comes back to wrestling hard the whole time."
       
      “It’s not about doing just enough to win. That’s not what Coach Williams wants.”
       
      What Williams appreciates about Heath is his willingness to always give his best effort.
       
      “Everybody wants to be a champion,” says Williams. “Very few people are willing to pay the price. (Heath’s) motor never stops."
       
      “We always say we want to be extremely stubborn on our feet, relentless on top and explosive on bottom. He never stops wrestling.”
       
      As for Heath’s place on the team, his head coach sees him as a leader with his work ethic.
       
      “He leads by example,” says Williams. “He’s very encouraging of the other guys."
       
      “A lot of the other wrestlers feed off his intensity.”
       
      Heath had his first mat experiences in first grade, but really began to take the sport seriously in middle school. He has traveled extensively since then and competed with coach Bryan Bailey the Indiana Outlaws Wrestling Club and trained with coach Kevin English and Elite Athletic Club among others.
       
      “In the off-season, we travel everywhere,” says Heath. “It’s a different practice every night."
       
      “(English) told me to get comfortable with being uncomfortable and embrace the whole grind of the sport.”
       
      Spending so much time in so many different wrestling environments has taught Heath many ways to attack and defend.
       
      “I really enjoy new technique,” says Heath. “When it comes down to it,
       
      I have my fundamentals I stick to.
       
      “But I have a couple of tricks up my sleeve.”
       
      Heath went 41-6 as a Leo freshman and was a qualifier for the IHSAA State Finals at 120. As a sophomore, he went 44-3 and placed fifth at 126. He is off to a 5-0 start as a junior.
       
      At 90-9, Heath is No. 2 on the all-time victory list at Leo. With nearly two seasons left in his prep career, he seems sure to go well past 2007 graduate Chad Friend (112-13) for No. 1.
       
      “It’s not as important to me as getting as good as I can,” says Heath.
       
      “I’m not chasing records."
       
      “I have a passion and love for the sport. Everyday I go to practice I get to do what I love."
       
      “It makes it easier to get through the tough times.”
       
      His regular workout partners are senior Clayton Jackson (138) and junior Jacob Veatch (126) as well as Logan Williams.
       
      Jackson and Veatch present contrasting styles.
       
      “Clay is very fundamental,” says Heath. “He has very good defense. He stays in good position all the time.
       
      “If I’m going to score on him, it has to be perfect technique.”
       
      Jackson and senior Tom Busch (285) serve as team captains. Heath describes Veatch as “super funky” and flexible.
       
      “I have to be even more fundamental (against Veatch),” says Heath. “I have to finish quick and start if I’m going to finish the takedown on Jake."
       
      “I’ve got great partners.”
       
      The Leo schedule includes the New Haven Super 10 on Dec. 21, the North Montgomery Holiday Tournament Dec. 27-28 (duals on Friday and individual format on Saturday) and the Class 2A Indiana High School Wrestling Coaches Association State Duals. Four of eight Northeast Eight Conference schools — Leo, Bellmont, Columbia City and Norwell— will compete.
       
      “Everything you do is working toward the middle of February,” says Heath. “I take every match one match at a time. But State’s always on my mind."
       
      “There’s nothing compares to being on the floor at Bankers Life.”
       
      Heath has already experienced what it’s like on Friday night of the State Finals with the Parade of Champions leading up to first-round matches.
       
      “We’re all in the (Indiana) Pacers practice gym and it’s quiet,” says Heath. “You know in about 20 minutes it’s ‘go time.’ (Wrestlers are) getting their mind right before they step out there."
       
      “One of the coolest things I’ve got to experience is that walk.”
       
      He has the chance to make the walk a couple more times before heading off to college where he hopes to continue as a wrestler.
       
      While their time together at Leo has not been that long, the coach and the athlete actually met several years ago.
       
      A Herff Jones salesman, Williams was introduced to Heath when he was a toddler and around the Norwell program where Ian’s aunt was then a manager.
       
      One day when Williams had the Heisman Trophy with him, he and Ian posed with it for a photo.
       
      The youngster told the coach he was going to be a wrestler.
       
      “I’d like to coach him some day,” says the coach’s reply.
       
      All these years later, it is happening.
       
      “Ian is a great young man,” says Williams. “It’s an honor to coach him.”

      2878 2 2

      #MondayMatness: O’Neill returns to Wabash, helps Apaches thrive

      By STEVE KRAH
      stvkrh905@gmail.com
      The second time around has been extra sweet for Jake O’Neill and the Wabash High School wrestling program.
      O’Neil spent six seasons as Apaches head coach then four as an assistant at his alma mater — Ben Davis in Indianapolis — and is now in his second six as head coach at Wabash.
      With the help of several folks, O’Neill and the Apaches have enjoyed a resurgence since he was drawn back to the northern part of Indiana.
      “I like where this little school’s going,” says O’Neill. “I’m excited about it.”
      “I love this community.”
      Wabash has a population of about 10,000 and around 400 attend the high school.
      This season, the Apaches will participate in the Indiana High School Wrestling Coaches Association State Duals for the first time. Wabash will be in Class 1A for the Jan. 5 meet in Fort Wayne.
      The Apaches’ varsity schedule also includes the Wabash County Invitational, Western Invitational, Whitko Invitational and duals with Maconaquah, Rochester, Lewis Cass, Eastbrook, Peru and Western.
      “When you have rivalries and communities meet up it only only helps the sport grow,” says O’Neill. “We had a nice gym going against Maconaquah. It was a fun atmosphere.”
      There are 27 wrestlers on the Wabash team.
      “We have a really big sophomore group,” says O’Neill. “Quantity helps. Quality is what we’re looking for.”
      In the mix are freshman Jared Brooks and sophomore R.J. Steg at 106 and 113, sophomore Ethan Higgins at 120, junior Braden Brooks at 126, junior Jaxon Barnett at 132, sophomore Anthony Long at 138, freshman Brayden Sickafus at 152, junior Traydon Goodwin at 152, sophomore Grant Carandante at 160, sophomore Justin Heckman and sophomore Bryson
      Zapata at 170, senior Blake Wiser at 182, senior Luke Voirol at 195, sophomore Grant Warmuth at 220 and senior Justin Samons and junior Blake Price at 285.
      Higgins and Braden Books competed in the off-season at the Freestyle and Greco-Roman Nationals in Fargo, N.D.
      “They got to see guys who will be on the (IHSAA State Finals) podium at the end of the year,” says O’Neill. “Training with them all summer was definitely good for them.”
      Carandante is O’Neill’s stepson. His other two children are freshman wrestler Kiersten O’Neill and sophomore basketball player Keegan O’Neill.
      Upon his return to Wabash, O’Neill established the Apache Wrestling Club. It now has about 30 grapplers in grades K-6.
      There are also about 20 sixth, seventh and eighth graders in the junior high program.
      A wall was knocked down in the weight room to double the size of the Wabash wrestling room.
      “We’re changing the culture here with the sport,” says O’Neill, who notes that the Apaches scored four points and were down to six wrestlers the season before his return. “The community is starting to see the hard work these young men and women are putting in.
      “We want to continue to get kids up on that podium at Bankers Life and get kids up on our little wall of fame at school. We’ve got to aim big. That’s how I want my wrestlers thinking.”
      Ross Haughn and Jimmy Olinger are coaching the elementary wrestlers and are part of a high school coaching staff which also includes Tyler Niccum, Jeremy Haupert and Isaac Ray. Ray wrestled at Hamilton Heights High School and at Manchester University in North Manchester, Ind., about 15 miles from Wabash.
      “I have a solid relationship with Coach (Kevin) Lake (at Manchester U.),” says O’Neill. “I use my resources wisely with that.”
      Chad Ulmer, who wrestled at Triton High School and Manchester U., has departed Wabash for Hendricks County, where he will serve as a probation officer and likely help coach wrestling at one of the area schools.
      At Ben Davis, where O’Neill had graduated in 1995, he joined with then-Giants head coach Aaron Moss to have plenty of mat coaching success.
      “We produced some pretty good wrestlers together,” says O’Neill.
      O’Neill was dating a Wabash girl — Aimee — and decided to look for a job that would bring him back north. He took an interview at nearby Manchester High School.
      By then, principal Jason Callahan had become superintendent of Wabash City Schools.
      “(Callahan) made it happen,” says O’Neill of the former Daleville High School wrestling coach. “A job created (at Wabash) within a couple of weeks."
      “He believed in me a bunch.”
      Jake and Aimee O’Neill have been married for five years.
      In his first tenure in town, O’Neill formed some key relationships like those with Peru coach Andy Hobbs and Northfield coach Bill Campbell (now retired).
      “They put their arms around me and helped me,” says O’Neill. “I’m proud to call them mentors and friends.”
      He’s also grateful to Pat Culp for her role in running tournaments at all levels around Indiana.
      “She’s a blessing for everybody,” says O’Neill, who is an Indiana State Wrestling Association director for Cadets. “She encouraged us to host tournaments. She played a big rule in helping us grow this program.”
      O’Neill admits that during his first tenure he was looking to go elsewhere. This time, he’s in it for the long haul.
      “My first year back at Wabash, I started approaching it looking at the big picture and setting long-term goals with the program,” says O’Neill.
      About that time, O’Neill discovered a move-in from North Carolina in his eighth grade physical education class.
      Noah Cressell qualified for the IHSAA State Finals twice and placed third at 182 pounds in 2018 — Wabash’s first state placer since heavyweight Tim LaMar won a state title in 1999.
      “That kid did a lot with helping this program grow,” says O’Neill of Cressell. “It was not just his wrestling, but his personality. He was a humble kid and everybody loved him. He was the poster boy for our program.”
      Cressell is now on the team at North Dakota State University.
      And the Wabash Apaches are back on the state wrestling map.
       

      2871

      #MondayMatness with Steve Krah: Football’s his future, but Jellison giving his all to wrestling as Elkhart senior

      By STEVE KRAH
      stvkrh905@gmail.com
       
      Brayden Jellison is a two-time Elkhart Sectional champion at heavyweight.
       
      His 42-second pin in the finals Saturday, Jan. 28 helped the Elkhart Lions to a second straight IHSAA Elkhart Sectional team title.
       
      The 6-foot-5, 285-pound Jellison heads to the Goshen Regional on Feb. 4 at 24-4 for the 2022-23 season after he went 35-10 and placed fourth at the Fort Wayne Semistate and sixth at the State Finals at 285 as a junior.
       
      “I’ve definitely come a long way,” says Jellison, who went to wrestling camps at Elkhart Central as a youngster. “I struggled freshman year and sophomore year.”
       
      Brayden was an Elkhart Central Blue Blazer as a freshman. As a sophomore, Elkhart Central and Elkhart Memorial combined athletic teams in preparation for the full unification of the two schools which took place 2021-22.
       
      How did Jellison raise his mat level?
       
      “Just the hard work in the (practice) room,” says Jellison. “I just wanted to come out here and finish off this year on top (of the podium at State Finals).”
       
      His go-to move?
       
      “An undertook to a single-leg,” says Jellison.
       
      An offensive lineman in football, where he has earned all-state and all-Northern Indiana Conference honors, Jellison is committed to play that sport at Illinois State University in the fall.
       
      Jellison says it’s his agility that has the Redbirds considering him at guard or center.
       
      “Wrestling helps me get the footwork and more stamina built up,” says Jellison.
       
      Elkhart head coach Zach Whickcar admires Jellison’s worth ethic and dedication to wrestling.
       
      “It says a lot about him,” says Whickcar, a former Elkhart Central wrestler. “Football is his first love and wrestling is not easy. He comes out here and pushes himself.”
       
      Jellison is one of the Lions’ leaders.
       
      “He does a great job of making sure everyone is doing the right thing, everyone’s focused and that people are representing us the right way,” says Whickcar. “Obviously, he’s a great representation of what we want to be on the mat.”
       
      Jellison will get to lead a large group at the Goshen Regional. Eleven teammates also qualified, including senior Genesis Ramirez (106), senior Josh Corona (113), sophomore Blake Mock (126), junior Cam Dews (132), sophomore Brennon Whickcar (138), sophomore Cohen Lundy (145), junior Cam Freedline (160), junior Ethan Freedline (170), sophomore Kaullin Price (182), senior Nash Shupert (195) and senior Preston Stimac (220).
       
      Whickcar also sees Jellison leading in the class room, where he carries a 3.7 grade-point average on a 4.0 scale. He is involved in student government and is a National Honor Society member.
       
      “That’s a game changer,” says Whickcar. “Being a great athlete is one thing, but being a student-athlete is big.”
       
      Jellison plans to major in Sport Management at Illinois State.
       
      “I just want to be involved in sports after college,” says Jellison.
       
      Brayden is the son of Elkhart Central graduates Zach and Courtni Jellison and has two younger siblings at Elkhart High — junior Logan and freshman Brynlee.
       
      Zach Jellison played basketball and wrestled his senior year of high school. Courtni was a softball player. Logan Jellison is in football and wrestling. Brynlee Jellison is in volleyball, basketball and track.

      2864 3

      #MondayMatness Woods Excelling on the Mat and Gridiron

      By STEVE KRAH
      stvkrh905@gmail.com
      Pressure.
      It makes some athletes wilt and others rise to the occasion.
      Put Kobe Woods in the latter category.
      Coming off an IHSAA championship season (he went 44-0 as a junior, beating Warren Central senior Courvoisier Morrow 7-2 in the 220-pound state title match while helping the Kingsmen to a first-ever team state championship), Woods continues to crave challenges inside the wrestling circle and on the football field.
      “What makes Kobe tick?,” says Penn wrestling coach Brad Harper. “He loves competition. He thrives off of that.”
      Penn football coach Cory Yeoman, who counts Woods among his inside linebackers on a squad bound for the IHSAA Class 6A championship game against Center Grove on Saturday, Nov. 28, sees the same kind of attributes in the 5-foot-11 athlete.
      “He competes at the highest level no matter what he’s doing and that’s a great trait of champions,” says Yeoman of the three-year football starter. “He does have great balance, leverage and strength. He is explosive. But by far, his best attribute is how he competes. There’s a lot of great athletes in the world, but they don’t all compete.”
      Woods has committed to compete at the next level. He recently signed to wrestle at Purdue University, where he expects to be a prospect at 197, and may also get a chance to walk on to the Boilermakers football team.
      If Woods plays Big Ten football, he will join roommate-to-be and athletic Merrillville High School senior heavyweight Shawn Streck in competing in both sports.
      Woods credits his atmosphere as well as his natural drive for his multi-sport success in high school.
      “Being in the atmosphere of Penn High School it’s really kind of motivating everyday,” says Woods. “You’re not really the big shot. The stakes are so high and the talent is so good at Penn, it’s awesome to know that if you stop working hard, if you start slacking, there’s someone there to take your spot.”
      It boils down to effort for the future Boiler.
      “It really comes down to how hard you want to work,” says Woods. “As an athlete, everyday I want to get a little bit better. That’s really my goal.
      “If you get a little bit better everyday, pretty soon you’re going to be pretty good.”
      Harper says it is rare to find an athlete who likes pressure situations.
      Woods excels in these tense scenarios because he is not overwhelmed by the chaos.
      “That’s why he’s been so successful,” says Harper, who first saw Woods crack the Penn varsity lineup at 220 as a 190-pound freshman. “He knows how to control his emotions.
      “He’s very calm,” says Harper. “He’s very focused. He’s very relaxed. He doesn’t get overhyped. Sometimes kids get a little too hyped or angry and let their emotions take over.”
      Penn’s wrestling title run included plenty of mental exercises as well as practice room moves.
      Woods prospered on the visualization drills.
      His refusal to give up in a wrestling match or on a given football play also makes Woods exceptional.
      “You can’t have plays off (in football),” says Yeoman. “Every now and then you’re in a bad position. You’ve got a choice to quit or keep going and do something special. Some guys give in, but Kobe never does. He just makes plays.”
      Woods says it does not make sense to stop on a play since that just might be the play where the opponent coughs up and a defender needs to be ready to seize that opportunity.
      Yeoman says one way to grade a player’s worth is his ability to handle adversity.
      Like his solid B classroom average, Woods grades high on persistence.
      “He never backs down,” says Yeoman his defensive signal caller. “There’s no moping on the sideline (after a are bad sequence). There’s not time for that. You can do something about it. That’s what he wants to do.”
      Woods is also not afraid of leaving the comfort zone. In fact, he likes to do that during wrestling practice to extend his knowledge of the sport.
      “That way I can push my levels when I’m actually competing,” says Woods.
      Woods has come along way since his days of giving up 30 pounds and sometimes three years to his opponent while making it all the way to the IHSAA State Finals as a freshman.
      “That was really fun,” says Woods of the challenging experience. “That is really what did it for me. At some point I said, ‘I don’t care if you’re older, I don’t care if you’re stronger, I’m just going to go out and wrestle.’
      “Looking back, it was a benefit for me. I’ve really grown from that.”

      2864 4

      #WrestlingWednesday: Cathedral ascends to the top once again

      By JEREMY HINES
      thehines7@gmail.com
      It was the moment Cathedral’s Jordan Slivka had dreamed about his whole life. He was about to wrestle under the lights at Banker’s Life Fieldhouse with a weight-class and the team state championship on the line.
      “Earlier in the day I had told my coaches that I knew it was going to come down to me,” Slivka said. “I just had that feeling. That’s not a dig on my teammates, but I just knew it was going to come down to me. That’s what I wanted. If there was anyone in the state that I would want in that position, I’d choose me.”
      Slivka battled for six minutes with Yorktown’s undefeated senior Christian Hunt. In the end, Slivka emerged victorious in the narrowest of margins - a 1-0 victory. That win gave Slivka his first state title and also clinched the championship for Cathedral.
      The Irish outscored the field with a total of 108 points. Brownsburg finished with 100.5 followed by Columbus East with 98.5.
      “We knew the score and we knew Brownsburg had two big guns left,” Cathedral coach Sean McGinley said. “Slivka told me not to worry about it, he was going to take care of it. He said he’s going to get it done. He’s one of the most mentally tough kids I know, and at the end he pulled it out.”
      The Irish sent 10 wrestlers to the state meet. On Friday night, seven of those 10 won their match to guarantee a top eight finish.
      “I said at the beginning that our goal was to win a state championship,” McGinley said. “The only way we were going to win was by committee. We did. We brought 10 to the finals and then had a great Friday night. We had seven place winners. We battled and we won the close ones. We pulled a lot out in the last seconds and ended up on top.”
      In the tournament Cathedral won seven matches by two points or less.
      Perhaps the most pivotal match of the tournament came at 138 pounds when Cathedral’s Zach Melloh took on Brownsburg’s Blake Mulkey.
      The match went to the ultimate tie breaker, after a controversial stalling call on Mulkey. Melloh eventually won the match 3-2.
      “That was two teams going at it right there,” McGinley said. “The thing about Zach Melloh, he’s always going to give us six minutes no matter what. He pushes the pace. Sometimes you are going to get a call, and sometimes you don’t. We got the call in this one and took advantage of it and scored when we needed to.”
      Cathedral had four wrestlers reach the final. Alex Mosconi (132 pounds), Mellow (138) and Elliott Rodgers (152) all earned runner-up finishes. Slivka was the Irish’s lone champ.
      Cathedral also got a third-place finish out of 106-pounder Logan Bailey and a fourth by Lukasz Walendzak (120). Jacob Obst (285) finished seventh. Caleb Oliver (113), Andrew Wilson (126) and Anthony Mosconi (160) lost in their respective Friday night matches.
      “All year we knew we had a group of kids that are really tough to beat,” McGinley said. “We knew we would have our hands full in the finals. The guys we were taking on were all very quality guys and great wrestlers. We were able to pull one out, but for us, it was all about committee. Everyone scored points for us when we needed them.”
      Another key to Cathedral’s success, according to Slivka, was the team’s swagger.
      “My motto is ‘Learn to love it’,” Slivka said. “You have to have fun in this sport or you’ll start to hate it. That was really the main key. We went out there and had fun all day. We were confident and we had swagger. I’m not sure coach cared for it too much, but it kept us relaxed and ready to get the job done.”
      The title was Cathedral’s second in wrestling. The Irish also won the team title in 2014. Next season seven of the 10 state qualifiers will return. Only Melloh, Anthony Mosconi and Obst are seniors.

      2809 4

      #WrestlingWednesday with Jeremy Hines: Purdue Polytechnic ready for their first full season

      By JEREMY HINES
      Thehines7@gmail.com
       
      After five years of watching others compete in Indiana’s wrestling state tournament, Purdue Polytechnic will finally get its chance to participate.
       
      Polytechnic started six years ago but this is the first year the school is fully sanctioned to compete in the Indiana High School Athletic Association tournaments.
       
      The Techies are hoping to find quick success on the mat this season.
       
      “This year we have some kids that we think will do pretty well in the state tourney,” Polytechnic coach Cory Graham said. “We want to get into team state and eventually work toward a team state title.”
       
      The school has just over 500 students. The wrestling team has 42 grapplers and fills every weight class.
       
      “If you look at most high schools, the kids come from the same location,” Graham said. “Here we have kids traveling from all over the Indianapolis area. We have kids from Greenwood, the west side and all over the city. We are a very diverse school, but we come together and work toward a common goal.”
       
      Although there are a good number of wrestlers on the team, the Techies are very inexperienced on the mats compared to other schools they will compete with.
       
      “We started with 16 kids when we started the program,” Graham said. “We’ve grown every year. I only have a couple of kids that come with some decent experience. We started a middle school program, but we only have six kids that have come up from that.”
       
      Currently the Techies have 22 freshmen and 12 sophomores on the team. They have just four seniors, two male and two female.
       
      “I’m excited about that,” Graham said. “This is a great opportunity for these kids to get experience and learn.”
       
      The only ranked wrestler in the program currently is sophomore Silas Foster. Foster is ranked No. 18 at 138 pounds.
       
      “My personal goal is to get a state title,” Foster said. “I want to wrap up our schools first state championship and then I want to go out and get two more in my junior and senior seasons.”
       
      Foster has gone to the New Castle semistate as a spectator several times. He has witnessed the emotion of the ticket-round matches and the thrill of the champions being crowned.
       
      There are seven female wrestlers on the Techie squad. Seniors Katelynn Hernandez is ranked No. 3 in the girls’ polls at 132 pounds. Her senior classmate, Carmen Castillo, is ranked No. 10 at 182.
       
      “I’ve had three girls that have been runners-up in the girls state tournament,” Graham said. “I’ve had six placers at girls state. We have four kids wrestling in college right now.”
       
      On the boys side, senior 152-pounder Canaan Miller is the team’s leader.
       
      “In the room he’s really vocal and he works well with the young guys,” Graham said. “He has wrestled all four years for us. He’s pretty tough. We bumped him up against Daleville to wrestle the NO. 9-ranked kid at 160 and he wrestled him pretty well. He’ll scrap with anyone in the state.”
       
      Although the wrestlers on the team come from all different parts of the Indy area, they have been able to bond.
       
      “We’re a very positive, upbeat team,” Graham said. “All the kids are super funny. They cool part of this team is that a lot of them played football together and they have like a brotherhood mentality. We are really close. It’s like a family but we can flip the switch when it comes time to practice and compete.”
       
      The Techies are hoping to build on whatever success they have this year, and in the near future they are hoping to become a strong wrestling program with multiple accolades.
       
      “It has been a long process to go through to become sanctioned by the IHSAA,” Graham said. “After fighting the battle for five years, we finally got in. A lot of our kids didn’t understand how the tournament even worked, especially my new kids. They are excited to be a part of this and to learn from it.”

      2784

      #WrestlingWednesday Feature: Kadin Poe Back on the Mat

      Brought to you by EI Sports
       

      By JEREMY HINES
      Thehines7@gmail.com
       
      In an instance Kadin Poe went from a wrestling standout, to someone broken so badly he wasn’t sure he’d be able to wrestle again.
       
      It happened on a Monday evening in May, near Murray St., in Indianapolis. Poe and his friend Kyle Dicecco were just walking home. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, a dark colored Chrysler 300 came barreling down the street, right into Poe. He hit the windshield and landed on the side of the road. The car never stopped. To this day, the driver’s identity is not known.
       
      But what is known is that Poe, who had qualified for the IHSAA state championships as a wrestler earlier in the year, was now in a battle for his life. He had a broken neck, a concussion, his eyes were swollen, his hands and back were scraped badly.
       
      “I was just walking to get my book bag from my buddy’s house,” Poe said. “He lived two streets over at the time. I was walking back with him. I stopped at the stop sign and then a car came and hit me.”
       
      At first Kyle tried to chase the car down to get more information. But he quickly returned to his friend, picked him up and walked him home. Poe was quickly transported to the hospital, where he spent several days.
       
      Doctors initially weren’t sure if Poe would be able to wrestle again, because of the severity of the neck injury. But soon he was told that he would have no permanent damage. That’s when the recovery began. Poe was going to wrestle again – and nothing was standing in his way.
       
      “My mom really helped me more than anything,” Poe said. “She and my coaches pushed me, even when I didn’t want to be pushed.”
       
      Poe had gained a lot of weight due to the recovery process. At first he wasn’t allowed to exercise, so he sit at home on medication. He quickly got up to over 150 pounds.
       
      “The hardest part of battling back was getting back into shape and getting my weight back down,” Poe said. “A lot of people were doubting me. Everything at that point was just tough.”
       
      But Poe did make it back. This season he opened the year wrestling a match at 138 pound. He pinned his opponent. But in his next match he injured his shoulder and is expected to miss two to three more weeks because of the injury.
       
      He is hoping he can be back sooner, and be trimmed down to 126 pounds in the process.
       
      “I want to win a state title within the next two years,” Poe, a junior at Decatur Central, said. “Then I want to go on and win nationals in college. I will bounce back from this.”
       
      Poe’s coach, Angelo Roble, believes in his wrestler.
       
      “I remember him sitting in the hospital with tubes running all through him,” Roble said. “But I never doubted that he would be back because he’s a tough kid. What makes him a great wrestler isn’t as much his technique, as it is his fight. He hates to lose more than he loves to win.”
       
      Poe believes going through this adversity has just fueled his desire to get stronger, and better on the mat.
       
      “It’s been a real struggle,” he said. “At first I was starting to think my career was over. And now I’m back to wrestling. It hasn’t been easy, but I’m back.”
       
      Roble credits Poe’s mentality for his rapid progression.
       
      “Anything this kid puts his mind to, he does well,” Roble said. “We do a lot of things to have fun in practice, like playing football. He always wants to be the quarterback. He wants to have the ball if he is playing basketball and in the wrestling room he wants center circle so everyone knows it’s his room. I hope that attitude carries over to everything in life. All he has to do is put in the effort and he will be successful.”

      2779 2

      #WrestlingWednesday: Hunt ready for one last title run

      BY JEREMY HINES
      thehines7@gmail.com
      If it were all about heart, Bloomington South’s Noah Hunt would likely be a multiple time state champion. But, in life and on the wrestling mat, sometimes heart isn’t enough.
      Hunt grew up around wrestling. He was naturally gifted in the sport and he spent many nights fine tuning his craft. But, in sixth grade, he decided he had enough. The love just wasn’t there like it used to be.
      “I was burned out,” Hunt said. “I quit.”
      Soon Hunt realized that quitting wasn’t part of his character. Being away from the sport showed him how much he actually loved it. Midway through the seventh grade season he returned to wrestling.
      “I came back with a new mentality,” Hunt said. “I was ready to go. I was ready to get better than ever.”
      Hunt pushed his body to the limits for the sport. His sophomore year that hard work started to pay dividends. He won sectional and regional and advanced to the Evansville semistate at 120 pounds. That’s when Hunt’s journey of pain, frustration and a quest for redemption began.
      In the first round of the semistate Hunt hurt his knee. He was nine seconds into his match with Eastern’s Robbie Stein. Hunt shot in and grabbed Stein’s leg. As he was lifting it in the air to secure the single, he stepped wrong and twisted his knee. He knew he was in pain, but he continued to compete.
      Hunt ended up winning that match in dominating fashion, 9-1. His knee did not feel right, and he knew it - but he had put too much work in to give up. If he was going to get to state, he had to wrestle through the pain and win the next match.
      Hunt punched his ticket to state the next round, beating Center Grove’s Zak Siddiqui 12-1.
      Hunt ended up finishing fourth at the semistate, winning two matches with a severely injured knee. He couldn’t wait to wrestle at state the next week. It was a dream come true for him - at least that’s what he thought.
      The knee injury ended up being worse than Hunt expected. Doctors did an MRI and determined he had completely torn his ACL in his left knee. As much as he begged and pleaded to be able to wrestle at state, the doctors would not release him.
      “It was a terrible feeling,” Hunt said. “I knew I could wrestle on it, and win. But I wasn’t allowed to.”
      For Hunt, the road to recovery was a long, painful one. It took six months for him to be fully back to wrestling condition. He missed the entire summer of workouts. He knew while his competition was working on improving - he was working on getting back to the level he was previously.
      Still, Hunt had a goal to return better than ever - and he did just that.
      As a junior Hunt had more regular season losses than he did his sophomore year - but by tournament time he was clicking on all cylinders. He won the sectional and regional at 126 pounds. Then, at semistate, he defeated North Posey’s Cameron Fisher, Center Grove’s Peyton Pruett and Evansville Mater Dei’s Matt Lee in succession. He lost the semistate championship to Graham Rooks, 8-3.
      Hunt won his Friday night match at state, guaranteeing him a placement in the top 8. He beat Ft. Wayne Carroll’s Joel Byman in that Friday night round, but then lost back-to-back matches to Michael DeLaPena and Jordan Slivka.
      The only thing left for Hunt to wrestle for was seventh or eighth place. There was only one problem - he had hurt his right knee in the previous match. He recognized the feeling, it was almost the same as he had the year before.
      He decided to wrestle anyway, knowing the pain he was in. This time around, Matt Lee won the match 6-3 - giving Hunt 8th place in the state.
      A few days later he got the news that he had feared - he had torn his ACL. Six more months of recovery. Six more months of watching everyone else get better. Six more months off the mat.
      “I just had to focus on what my ultimate goal was,” Hunt said. “I couldn’t feel sorry for myself. I knew I had to work in order to make the most of my senior year.”
      Hunt’s mom, Melissa, didn’t want him wrestling again. She thought it wasn’t worth it.
      “She was worried about me hurting myself again,” Hunt said. “I told her I’m sorry, but I have to do it. She wasn’t super thrilled, but she knew this was something I just had to do.”
      This season Hunt is ranked No. 18 at 138 pounds. He is 32-3 and coming off a dominating sectional performance where he won the championship by eight points.
      “A state title is pretty much his goal,” Bloomington South coach Mike Runyon said. “We set that goal early on in his career and despite everything he’s went through, that’s still his goal.”
      Hunt has spent a full year of his high school life recovering from knee injuries. He said the hardest part of returning to the sport was getting his mat awareness back. Once he did that, he feels he’s ready to get the job done.
      “I never had the thought that this isn’t worth it,” Hunt said. “All I see is wrestling, wrestling, wrestling. I’ve been pushing it as hard as I can. I’ve lost a few. But, if that’s what it takes to make my goals happen, then so be it. I’m there mentally and physically now. If I beat the kids ranked higher than me, some might think it’s an upset - but I won’t. I think I can wrestle with anyone and win.”
      Bloomington South is a school rich in wrestling tradition. Pictures of past state champions line the wrestling room - a constant reminder of those that have claimed the state’s ultimate prize. Hunt says he looks at those pictures every day, and every day dreams his will be there as well. If so, perhaps no other wrestler in school history has had to overcome as much as he has to get that prize.

      2754 1 1

      #WrestlingWednesday with Jeremy Hines: Amberger breaks Batesville's 31 year qualifier drought

      By JEREMY HINES
      Thehines7@gmail.com
       
      This Valentine’s Day Max Amberger has a lesson for all the fellas out there. Nice guys don’t always finish last.
       
      Amberger, whom coach Matt Linkel says is one of the nicest kids he knows, is getting the royal treatment in Batesville this week. On Saturday he became the first Bulldog wrestler to advance to the state tournament since 1993.
       
      “This has been a pretty awesome week for him,” Linkel said. “The wrestling program has really come to life through this. He got a police escort in town when he returned from semistate. The school has posters of him up. The administration is overly thrilled for him and are trying to get as many people as possible that want to go see him wrestle at state the ability to do so. They also announced him at the basketball game. The whole town seems to be behind him.”
       
      For Amberger, who’s a reserved and quiet person, the sudden popularity has been fun to take in.
       
      “Everyone has been congratulating me,” Amberger said. “A lot of people I don’t normally talk to have been coming up and telling me good job.”
       
      Amberger wasn’t exactly a favorite to reach the state tournament. The junior heavyweight is unranked in the state and was ranked just 8th in the New Castle semistate. He won his sectional, but then lost in the regional championship the next week.
       
      “I like being the underdog,” Amberger said. “But I knew what I was capable of. I knew I could beat some of the kids in the semistate. I was excited for the opportunity to prove what I could do.”
       
      Amberger took on Frankton’s Ty Everson in the opening round of the New Castle semistate. He controlled the match and won 9-1 to set up his ticket round match.
       
      Entering the ticket round there was a lot of pressure on Amberger. Since the beginning of the season coaches had told Amberger that it had been 31 years since a Bulldog wrestler had advanced to state – and they thought he could be the man to end that drought.
       
      “For a high school kid, that’s a lot of pressure,” Linkel said. “He’s handled that well. We kept telling him about how it was 31 years since anyone punched their ticket to state. But Max is always so calm and composed, I don’t think he felt that pressure. He just said he wasn’t doing this for himself, this is for his team, his friends and his family.”
       
      Amberger went up against Greenfield Central senior Brayden Flener in the ticket round. The two battled back and forth, but Amberger emerged with a 5-2 victory to punch his ticket.
       
      “I knew he was a big guy that would try and throw me,” Amberger said. “I was keeping my hips back and trying not to get thrown. I ended up putting him on his back and they called the pin – but the call got reversed because it was an illegal headlock. I was, thankfully, able to still secure the win.
       
      “It was a great feeling winning that match. I had a lot of friends and family there and the best moment was walking up and seeing all of them. That was one of the biggest crowds I have ever wrestled in front of.”
       
      Friday night Amberger is matched up with Center Grove senior Nate Johnson. Johnson is ranked No. 4 in the weight class with a 23-1 record.
       
      “All of my family and friends and some of my teammates are going down to watch me,” Amberger said. “I should have a lot of supporters there. I can’t wait to see how it is and to wrestle in front of that crowd.”
       
      Amberger is on the smaller side for the heavyweight division. He relies on quickness rather than on brute strength. But, he’s also a concrete worker during his free time for his father’s company. He has endurance and can outlast a lot of his opponents.
       
      “Max is a quiet, loyal kid,” Linkel said. “He’s a great team leader by example. A lot of kids look up to him. He has great grades and he works hard in every aspect of his life. He’s one of the hardest workers I know. He works in a concrete business anytime he can. I know a lot of his toughness comes from that.”
       
      Amberger’s favorite sport is football. He helped lead Batesville to a sectional championship as a starting lineman.
       
      “I love football because it’s a team sport,” Amberger said. “I always put the team first. I guess that’s just part of my personality.”
       
      After high school Amberger plans to either go to a trade school or join his father’s business.

      2733 3

      #WrestlingWednesday: Olympians Building with Core Group of Lightweights

      Brought to you by EI Sports
       

       
      By JEREMY HINES
      Thehines7@gmail.com
       
      Columbus East senior Coy Park has wrestled at 182 pounds his entire high school career. But when coach Chris Cooper told Park it would help the team if he dropped to 170, Park did just that.
       
      “Coy said he would cut the weight and get down to 170,” Cooper said. “When I told him it would help the team, there was never any question in his mind. He was going to do whatever he needed to do to help us succeed. Coy is without question our team leader. He leads by example and he can be vocal. He’s 100 percent about the team all the time.”
       
      That mindset has driven the Olympians to success this season. Every wrestler on the team will do whatever it takes to make the team better. Cooper feels that his squad can be a legitimate contender to win the team state title as long as they keep getting better.
       
      Leading the way for the Olympians is a core of young ranked wrestlers at the lower weights. Freshman Cayden Rooks is the No. 1-ranked 106-pounder in the state. Freshman Jake Schoenegge is ranked No. 14 at 113. Graham Rooks, who finished third last season at 106 pounds, is now ranked No. 4 at 120. Sophomore Dawson Combest is the 14th ranked 126 pounder in the state.
       
      “Those guys kind of give you some hammers in your lineup,” Cooper said. “They are the kind of guys that live and breathe wrestling. They are the kind of kids that have been in big meets before, and big situations. That experience, even at a young age, helps everyone on the team.”
       
      The only other ranked wrestler on the Columbus East squad is senior heavyweight Sean Galliger. Galliger is ranked No. 5.
       
      Rounding out the lineup is sophomore Corbin Pollitt at 132, senior Jake Martindale at 138, freshman Hunter Dickmeyer at 145, senior Ben Wilkerson at 152, junior Austin Wilson at 160, sophomore Lane Goode at 182, junior Seth Turner at 195 and junior Austin Sheckles at 220.
       
      Senior Quade Greiwe was a semistate qualifier last season for the Olympians, but had a season-ending ACL injury earlier this year.
       
      The Olympians started the season out with a loss to sectional rival Jennings County, 37-28. Cooper is hoping the team has improved significantly since that time.
       
      “We are fired up for the state tournament to begin,” Cooper said. “We are not the best team in the state today. We didn’t start out as the best team in the state. But we hope to be one of, if not the best team in the state come tournament time.
       
      “Jennings County is tough. They beat us already. They are returning sectional champions. But we hope we are a different team now and up to the challenge.”
       
      The Olympians last won the Jennings County sectional title in 2013. In 2014 Columbus East finished fifth behind Greensburg, Jennings County, Madison and Columbus North. Twenty points separated the top five teams that season.
       
      Last year Jennings County ran away with the championship – outscoring Columbus East 268-148.
       
      Cooper has stressed the importance of summer wrestling to his team – which has bought in to his philosophy. The kids wrestled over 30 matches during the offseason and also bonded as a team. Now they are also buying into Cooper’s philosophy that they have to improve each and every day.
       
      “I think that’s one of the biggest keys to success,” Cooper said. “You have to use every day to get better. Every day you have to make a conscious effort to improve in something.”
       
      The Olympians have tried to make their schedule very difficult, especially early on.
       
      “We want to find out early what our flaws and our weaknesses are,” Cooper said. “That’s why we start with such a tough schedule. Then we can work on those flaws, and as the season progresses we really show how battle tested we are.”

      2723 2 2

      #WrestlingWednesday: Cornwell looking to finish on top

      By JEREMY HINES
      Thehines7@gmail.com
      Kyle Cornwell was ready to give up wrestling for good. Almost every time he stepped on the mat, he would eventually watch his opponent have his hand raised in victory. The losses piled up, and the frustration mounted along with it.
      “I’ve had some mental blocks in wrestling,” Cornwell said. “In sixth grade I was something like 1-26. I was so frustrated with myself. I didn’t think wrestling was for me. I really wanted to just throw in the towel.”
      That’s when Cornwell got a little encouragement from his family and one of his closest friends.
      “My dad (Jade Cornwell) and friend Jalen Morgan talked me into sticking with wrestling,” Kyle said. “Jalen told me we have to start training. We’re not going to get better without putting in the work. So, we started training. We trained and trained and trained. By my 8th grade year we went to a preseason national tournament in Iowa and Jalen finished third in his weight class and I won mine.”
      That tournament success vaulted Cornwell’s wrestling career. He fell in love with the sport and is now ranked No. 1 in the state at 220 pounds and will wrestle for Indiana University next season. The Elwood senior’s training partner is still that same kid that told him in sixth grade to stick with wrestling. Morgan is ranked fourth at 182 pounds.
      “Jalen and I have been friends since fourth grade,” Kyle said. “We wrestle every day at practice. He has more speed than I do, so that helps me, and I am stronger than him, so that helps him.”
      Last season Cornwell finished fifth at 220 pounds. He was a state qualifier in the same weight class in 2017.  He is happy to be ranked No. 1 this season.
      “It’s really a relief to be ranked No. 1,” Cornwell said. “Yeah, you have a target on your back a little, but I’ve been ranked behind Mason Parris for a while and it’s nice to have that top spot now. You have to be confident to be that No. 1 guy or you are going to lose. You don’t go to a match with your head down. You know who you are and that you can beat anyone.”
      Cornwell wrestled Parris last season in the New Castle semistate championship. That match didn’t work out well for Cornwell, as Parris pinned him in 1:14.
      “It was a really good experience to wrestle Mason,” Cornwell said. “He’s one of the top kids in the nation. It opened my eyes to what I need to be like and what I need to be training for. It really helped me step up to that next level.”
      Cornwell committed to improving in the offseason, with a focus on pushing the pace and scoring. His mission is to score as many takedowns and points as possible. He wrestled over 100 matches during the offseason and feels right now he’s at the best he’s ever been.
      “Kyle has a funk to him that he’s been getting into for the last few years,” Elwood coach Fred Short said. “He likes to do the scrambling like they do in college. In high school it’s a little weird to see when you’re not used to it. He is a lot slicker now than he was last year. I think a lot of that is because of wrestling with Jalen and really having to be quick against him.”
      Cornwell’s goals this season were to go undefeated and win a state championship.
      Elwood, as a team, is down this season. The team had 10 wrestlers early on but are down a few since that time. Coach Short, who has been a wrestling coach in some capacity since the early 1980s, is retiring after this season.

      2718

      #MondayMatness: Eli Working on Another Podium Finish

      By STEVE KRAH
      stvkrh905@gmail.com
      David Eli got an up-close look at the big stage as a sophomore.
      The Elkhart Memorial High School wrestler placed seventh at 182 pounds at the 2014-15 IHSAA State Finals.
      A year wiser and stronger, Eli has his sights set on loftier heights in 2015-16.
      Working with a Brian Weaver-led coaching staff that includes former successful Memorial wrestlers, Eli is honing his skills for a tournament run.
      Eli spent the time between high school season attending Indiana State Wrestling Association Regional Training Center workouts at Penn and going to freestyle and folkstyle tournaments.
      Just before the start of the current Crimson Charger slate, he went to Las Vegas and went 8-2 in two divisions of the “Freak Show.” Competing at 200 pounds, he won the varsity division and placed fourth in the elite.
      That experience combined with plenty of time in the weight room led the a season filled with grueling training sessions and more victories on the mat.
      “We’ve been working real hard,” Eli said after a recent win at 182. “I feel like I’ve got conditioning on some guys.”
      Weight workouts — especially with his legs — have added the muscle to help put away opponents.
      His regular workout partner at Memorial has been senior 170-pounder Nick Ritchie and both have benefitted from pushing one another.
      “For David to get down to the State Finals again this year, he needs opponents that can push him to his limitations,” Weaver said. “Nick Corpe, Shane Hendrickson and Tieshawn Johnson can push David to his limitations, get him where he needs to get.”
      Corpe and Hendrickson are EMHS assistant coaches and Johnson is a 2014 Memorial graduate.
      Corpe was a state champion for the Chargers at 171 in 2004-05 and went on to compete at Purdue University.
      Hendrickson, a 2010 Memorial graduate and two-time semistate qualifier and Northern Lakes Conference champion, wrestled for Trine University.
      Johnson, who placed fifth at the 2013-14 State Finals at 195, wrestled at Indiana Tech.
      “It really helps me out, them coming into the room and working with me,” Eli said.
      Corpe has been impressed with Eli’s work ethic and athleticism.
      “He doesn’t miss any practices,” Corpe said of Eli. “He just keeps getting better.
      “He digs for his ties and gets to his positions. When he hits his moves, he’s explosive. He stays in control of the match.”
      While Eli has been successful with blast double, high crotch and headlock combinations, Corpe wants him to add to his arsenal.
      “To win a state title, you need more than one shot,” Corpe said. “You’ve got to be able to scramble and know your positions. On top, he’s good. He’s a strong kid. But it usually comes down to the feet game. You need to compete with everyone on your feet.”
      Eli has taken this to heart.
      “I can be one-dimensional,” Eli said. “I’m working on scoring from more positions.
      “No matter who I’m wrestling, I’ve got to make sure I’m finishing my shots. Everything needs to be crisp.”
      Hendrickson said it is the basics that make Eli so good.
      “He is one of the more fundamentally-sound wrestlers I’ve ever seen in high school,” Hendrickson said of Eli. “That’s what we continue to work on. Fundamentals — David has gone them down. That’s why he’s ranked so high. That’s why he’s going to do damage at the state tournament.”
      Hendrickson sees Eli stay in what he calls “power positions.”
      “He’s always in a good stance,” Hendrickson said. “He doesn’t expose his side or his hip as much as he can help it.”
      Weaver, who placed seventh at the State Finals at 130 in 1996, said Eli and other high school (folkstyle) wrestlers have benefitted from freestyle wrestling.
      “There are more angles to freestyle and you can lock hands,” Weaver said. “(Freestyle) helps with mat awareness. Anytime you expose your back to the mat, it’s two points. A freestyle match can go very quick. You have to keep yourself in very good position the entire match.”
      Some folkstyle matches become a contest of playing near the edge of the mat. That’s not the case in freestyle.
      “Freestyle does not allow you to play the out-of-bounds line,” Weaver said. “(The official) will blow the whistle and take you right back to the center. They don’t want the lag time.
      “I’m hoping that Indiana will go to the college rules where if you have any limb inside the circle, it’s still live wrestling. It will eliminate playing the out-of-bounds line game.”
      Taking his knowledge of freestyle and his work ethic, Eli is aiming high this season.
      Next up for Eli and the Chargers is a dual against Northridge Tuesday, Jan. 19, and the NLC Tournament Saturday, Jan. 23 — both at Memorial.

      2715

      #MondayMatness: Youngest Fiechter William looking to make noise in final season for Southern Wells

      By STEVE KRAH
      stvkrh905@gmail.com
       
      For the better part of the past two decades, high school wrestlers in the Fiechter family have been regularly getting their hands raised in victory while wearing Southern Wells colors.
       
      Five Fiechter brothers — Vince (Class of 2004), Troy (2009), Darin (2010), Benjamin (2013) and William (2020) have accounted for more than 600 mat triumphs.
       
      All have eclipsed the 100-victory mark and rank among the winningest wrestlers in Raider history.
       
      Four have represented Southern Wells at the IHSAA State Finals.
       
      Vince Fiechter (118-18) placed fourth at 125 pounds in 2004.
       
      Darin Fiechter (134-28) was a state qualifier at 130 in 2010.
       
      Benjamin Fiechter (135-20) was state qualifier at both 126 in 2012 and 132 in 2013.
       
      William Fiechter (117-21) was a state qualifier at 138 in 2019, losing an 11-10 overtime match in the first round.
       
      “State was shock for sure,” says Fiechter. “Looking back, it was good for me. I learned to never take anything for granted. If I would have placed last year, there wouldn’t be as much fire or motivation to really push hard this year."
       
      “I’ve definitely got a fire under me and I’m working hard because I want to get over that Friday night match.”
       
      Troy Fiechter (121-28) was a four-time semistate qualifier.
       
      In addition, William set the school record with 92 takedowns in 2018-19 and ranks high in career takedowns as well as season and career wins.
       
      “There’s a 15-year age gap between my oldest brother Vince and me,” says William. “(My brothers) were really good at teaching me. They did not force their techniques on me. I think I’ve picked up something from every single one of them. They’ve always pushed me to be a hard worker."
       
      “They’ve always made me understand that there’s way more in life than wrestling. But wrestling can definitely help me out in life.”
       
      The youngest Fiechter is back for his senior season in 2019-20 and competing at 145. Through the Dec. 7 Wabash County championships, William is 11-0 for the 2019-20 season. He went 5-0 in the county meet at Northfield with four pins and a major decision.
       
      What William appreciates about wrestling is its individuality.
       
      “I can be my own person,” says William Fiechter. “I get what I put in. I enjoy the challenge of it."
       
      “I definitely have a lot of people around me who push me to be a better man and a better wrestler. There’s also a lot of motivation knowing that wrestling will help me later in life. It definitely makes you tougher.”
       
      Fiechter regularly works out in the practice room with friends he grew up with, including Jed Perry, Josh Beeks and Jacob Duncan.
       
      How do they help each other get better?
       
      “Just knowing that we can’t let up every single day,” says Fiechter.
       
      “Even if you don’t feel like wrestling, those are the days you probably become a better wrestler."
       
      “You have a practice partner who’s going to push you no matter what.”
       
      Southern Wells head coach Ryan Landis has been working with the Class of 2020 since they were fifth graders.
       
      “This is a special group of seniors,” says Landis. “They’ve stuck together. They push each other to get better. It’s a real fun group to coach.”
       
      Fiechter, who has competed some with the Adams Central club and as an independent in the high school off-season, offers a scouting report on himself.
       
      “Being around the sport quite a bit has helped my technique,” says Fiechter. “I’m definitely not as aggressive as I should be probably. I’m trying to learn a little more aggression. I’m pretty quick so that helps.”
       
      Pondering his future, William is considering college or perhaps becoming an entrepreneur.
       
      “I’d like to end up on the farm someday,” says Fiechter.
       
      The hands of the Fiechters have also been kept busy farming. The family, which is led by former wrestler and 1981 Adams Central High School graduate Lynn Fiechter (a state runner-up at 112 in 1980) and wife Ronda, works around 5,000 acres — mostly corn and soybeans with some swine.
       
      The closest town to the farm is Keystone. Southern Wells High School is near Poneto.
       
      Summer days might find the Fiechters boating or water skiing. The Fiechters are also a musical family and have recorded CD’s of their favorite gospel songs. William plays the guitar and ukulele.
       
      “Mom and dad are very good singers and passed down to some of us kids,” says Fiechter. “We were blessed with the ability that we should sing. It’s something we enjoy. It brings us closer together.”
       
      Fiechter appreciates Landis for showing him the way both off and on the mat.
       
      “The example he’s set has had a big impact on me,” says Fiechter. “He has this saying: Be brave when you’re scared; Be strong when you’re weak; Be humble when you’re victorious. That’s one that’s stuck with me.”
       
      Landis, a 2000 Southern Wells graduate, was an assistant for his first three years after high school and has been Raiders head coach since 2004.
       
      “I don’t know where that came from,” says Landis of the saying. “But it’s something we’ve adopted these last three or four years.
       
      “It’s awesome. It’s great. It’s what wrestling is about. It’s about finding that last bit of strength in your body when you don’t think you can do it. It’s about being humble when you are victorious, knowing that if you don’t keep working hard somebody’s going to come up and kick your butt.”
       
      Landis has coached all of the Fiechter brothers.
       
      “The personality is all completely different,” says Landis of the Fiechters. “But the No. 1 characteristic is that they’re the hardest-working kids in the room. Growing up on the farm, they just work hard in everything they do."
       
      “William is the most down-to-earth kid you’ll ever talk to. As much success as William has had on the mat, he’s a kid that you still have to pump confidence into him. He’s very humble. He’s very hard-working. He’s fun to be around.”
       
      Landis sees William as a solid mat technician.
       
      “He’s very fundamentally-sound,” says Landis. “He’s not a wild, crazy scrambler. Everything’s cautious and in position. He’s hard to score on. A couple takedowns and an escape and he’s in control of the match.”
       
      There are several key dates on the South Wells calendar. Besides the Wabash County Championships Dec. 7 at Northfield, there’s the Allen County Athletic Conference Duals Dec. 13-14, Connersville Spartan Classic Dec. 27-28, ACAC Championships Jan. 24 at Woodlan, Jay County Sectional Feb. 1, Jay County Regional Feb. 8, Fort Wayne Semistate Feb. 15 and State Finals Feb. 21-22.

      2710 1

      #WrestlingWednesday Feature: Hurford Wraps up Successful NJCAA Career

      Brought to you by EI Sports
       
       

      By JEREMY HINES
      jerhines@cinergymetro.net
       
      Former Culver Community wrestling standout Matt Hurford is making a name for himself in the junior college ranks.
       
      Hurford recently finished as runner-up in the National Junior College Athletic Association championships. The Ellsworth Community College sophomore has placed runner-up in the championships both of his years at the school.
       
      Ellsworth is a two-year college program. So now Hurford is weighing his options and hoping to wrestle Division I for the remainder of his collegiate years.
       
      “I’ve got several Division I coaches talking to me,” Hurford said. “I’ve just got to decide what I’m going to do and what the best fit for me is going to be.”
       
      At Culver Community High School Hurford ended his senior year on a high note. He won state at 182 pounds, beating Perry Meridian’s Jake Massengale 9-4 in the final.
       
      “That was probably the highlight of my wrestling career so far,” Hurford said. “I was so happy after that.”
       
      Ellsworth coach Cole Spree was pleased to have Hurford on his team the past two seasons.
       
      “He’s the hardest worker we have,” Spree said. “That is ultimately the key to his success. His work ethic and what he expects from himself is second to none. There are times in the room where he gets beat by the other guys, but that’s only because he practices so hard, he warms up so hard, he can wear himself out because he only knows one speed.”
       
      Spree said he loves to recruit Indiana wrestlers. Ellsworth is located in Iowa Falls, Iowa.
       
      “I’ve got one other kid from Indiana on my team right now (Merrillville’s Isaac Rentas),” Spree said. “A lot of Indiana kids don’t want to go far away. But the kids from Indiana are usually very grounded and seem to all come from very good programs and they know their wrestling.”
       
      Hurford admits he has work to do in order to be able to compete at the level he would like to in Division I.
       
      “I think my strength and my hard work are my two biggest assets,” he said. “But I still have to improve technique-wise.”
       
      Hurford wasn’t always a good wrestler. He started competing in second grade and struggled quite a bit up until about seventh grade.
       
      “I think seventh grade is when things really started to click for me,” Hurford said.
       
      Wrestling has been an uphill climb for Hurford since the beginning. He didn’t get recruited heavily out of high school, despite winning the state championship. But it didn’t stop him. Instead he went to Ellsworth to improve, and has done so. Spree contributes Hurford’s success to the amount of time he spends working to get better.
       
      “Matt doesn’t have freaky speed,” Spree said. “He doesn’t have anything that would make you say ‘wow.’ But he’s got that attitude that no matter what is put in front of him, he’ll go around it, or through it, or over it. He’ll do whatever it takes. That’s why he will continue to be a success.”
       
      If you have a story idea for #WrestlingWednesday, email jerhines@cinergymetro.net with your suggestion.

      2704 4

      #WrestlingWednesday: Sibling rivalry leads to Wilkerson's success

      By JEREMY HINES
      thehines7@gmail.com
      There are times when things get so heated in the wrestling room at Mt. Vernon High School in Fortville that brothers Chase and Chris Wilkerson have to be seperated. Like most brothers, they hate to lose to each other. When they practice together, things can start to get a little testy.
      Those moments certainly aren’t the norm. Chase, a junior and Chris, a sophomore are each other’s biggest fans. They practice together, condition together and talk strategy together. When one brother is struggling, the other is there to pick him up.
      “They really have a neat dynamic,” Marauder coach Chad Masters said. “Every big match, they are both on the sidelines coaching each other. They are both the first one there to congratulate each other. They console each other after tough losses. They are two of the best kids I’ve ever met. They are the type of people you want in the room and you know they’ll be successful in whatever they do.”
      This year Chase is ranked No. 11 in the state at 120 pounds and is ranked fourth in the New Castle semistate. Chris is not state ranked, but is No. 6 in the New Castle semistate at 132 pounds.
      Before his last middle school season started, Chris weighed 170 pounds. He had always wrestled the bigger guys due to his size. But, when he started really focusing on improving, he started to get in better shape as well. He wrestled at 145 pounds by the end of his eighth grade season. Then, in high school, he got down to 132 pounds and he maintained that weight all summer long. This is his second season at that weight class.
      Last season ended in trying fashion for Chris. He was the No. 2 seed in the Warren Central sectional. He won his first two matches then ran into senior Tim Wright. During that match Wright’s head slammed into Chris’s face. The force from the blow knocked a tooth out of Chris’s mouth, and caused other damage. He had to injury default out of the tournament and go to the hospital immediately. That injury ended his freshman campaign.
      “That was the worst feeling in my life,” Chris said. “Just hearing that I couldn’t continue. It was the first time I had cried in years. It was awful knowing that all the hard work I had put in, and nobody was going to see that pay off.”
      That’s when Chase stepped in.
      “Chase helped me to cope with knowing I was out,” Chris said. “He was telling me to bounce back harder. He told me to work harder. And, he did the same. Seeing him work as hard as he did started pushing me to get better as well.”
      Chase lost to New Castle’s Trevor Ragle in the first round of semistate 4-1. Ragle went on to advance to the state tournament. Before the Ragle match, Chase had fallen short against other ranked guys as well.
      “This year started out the same way,” Masters said. “He wrestled Zane Standridge and lost in the last 20 seconds. He knew he could wrestle the ranked guys, but he wasn’t sure he was able to beat them. It seemed like every time something would go wrong and he’d lost the match at the end.”
      The turning point for Chase came 14 days after the Standridge match. Chase was wrestling a familiar foe, Greenfield’s Gavin Rose. The two were once practice partners at Mt. Vernon, but Rose left for the neighboring Greenfield school. He had defeated Wilkerson in the past, but this time was different.
      Chase scored four points on two reversals to beat Rose 4-2. That match showed Chase he could win the big match.
      “That was a big turning point with Chase,” Masters said. “It showed Chase that he could not only wrestle with these guys, he could beat them. It showed he could beat anyone.”
      The two wrestled again Saturday in the championship of the Hoosier Heritage Conference tournament. The match went to triple overtime before Rose pulled off the 2-0 victory.
      Chris also had a big match in the HHC tournament. He was taking on Yorktown’s Alex Barr, the No. 1 seed in the 132 pound weight class. With 10 seconds left in the match Barr had a 1-0 lead and was on top of Chris. That’s when Chris made his move, he scored an escape point and Barr fell toward the out of bounds line. When Chris saw Barr down, he dove at his legs and was awarded the takedown to go up 3-2 with three seconds left. On the restart he let Barr up to secure the 3-2 win.
      “I couldn’t contain my emotions,” Chris said. “I had to let it out. That was such a crazy match and I was just so excited to win it.”
      The brothers have very different styles on the mat. Chase likes to go for the takedowns and be aggressive offensively. Chris is a patient wrestler who minimizes his mistakes.
      Both brothers have a goal to reach the state tournament.
      “I definitely think I should go to state this year,” Chase said. “It’s going to be rough for sure, but I feel like I can make it.”
      One of the keys to getting to state might just be having a sibling to push you. It’s working for the Wilkerson brothers right now.
      “Having a brother is definitely an advantage,” Chase said. “You grow up beating the crap out of each other. But, whenever you need someone to work with - we are there for each other and we want each other to succeed. When he does well, I feel as good as if I had done well myself.”

      2690 1

      #MondayMatness with Steve Krah: Senior Bailey has already forged unprecedented career with River Forest Ingots

      By STEVE KRAH
      stvkrh905@gmail.com
       
      Jeffrey Bailey is doing things that the wrestling program at River Forest High School in Hobart has never witnessed.
      With a 2021-22 season-opening victory (takedown/near-side cradle/pin in 31 seconds) Nov. 17 against East Chicago Central, Bailey, a 106-pound senior, added to what is already the best mark in Ingots mat history at 106-12.
       
      He went 35-5 as a freshman in 2018-19, 38-3 and an IHSAA State Finals qualifier as a sophomore in 2019-20, 32-4 as a junior in 2020-21 and became River Forest’s first state placer when he came in sixth.
       
      As a freshman, Bailey came in fifth at Frosh-Soph State and placed second at Frosh-Soph State as a sophomore.
       
      Bailey grappled in middle school, but he really became serious about the sport as a freshman – the same year that Mark Hidalgo became Ingots head coach.
       
      Hidalgo, a 1989 Merrillville High School who has coached wrestling and football at several schools the past 25 years, brought enthusiasm and made the mat matter at River Forest.
       
      “Before Coach Hidalgo got here we didn’t have a tradition,” says Bailey. “Guys just showed up.”
       
      Bailey points to a turning-point moment during his sophomore year when Hidalgo sat him down for a heart-to-heart talk.
       
      “He told me I have potential to do something no one has ever done in the school before,” says Bailey of the coach/Physical Education teacher. “I used to struggle with my confidence. I didn’t have confidence in anything I did.”
       
      Suddenly, Bailey was full of tenacity and that showed in his matches.
       
      “He knows wrestling, says Hildalgo of Bailey. He’s always watching it and trying to better him better. He’s pretty solid in all aspects, but he’s best on his feet.
       
      “He’s been shooting doubles for years. He’s added a lot more to his arsenal over the summer and in the offseason.
       
      “There’s a lot of good things about Jeff. He cares about this team. He pushes himself everyday in practice. He also puts in the work in the classroom. He’s a fun kid to be around. We’ve got a pretty good relationship.”
       
      Hidalgo placed fourth at state as a senior heavyweight. He was in football, wrestling and baseball (one year) at MacMurray College in Jacksonville, Ill., where he was coached by former Eastern Illinois University heayweight All-American Dave Klemm who had clashed with future NCAA champion and two-time Olympic gold medalist Bruce Baumgartner. Hidalgo was also at Purdue University for one year when  Jeff Jordan coached the Boilermakers.
       
      Marcus Shrewsbury, a 189-pound state champion at Crown Point in 2009, is Hidalgo’s nephew.
       
      The coach was on the Bill Kelly’s East Chicago Central staff when Hector Mendez ascended to the top of the IHSAA state heap at 125 in 2002.
       
      Hidalgo says Bailey had a real shot to win a state championship in 2021.
       
      “This year he’s focused,” says Hidalgo. “It’s state title or bust — one of those things.”
       
      Some chances for Bailey to get better and for fans to see him include Nov. 27 at the North Newton Invitational, Dec. 4 at the Harvest Classic (Lake Central), Dec. 11 at the Traicoff Memorial (Calumet New Tech), Jan. 8 at the Lake County Tournament (Hanover Central) and Jan. 15 at the Greater South Shore Conference Tournament (Hanover Central) – where River Forest will be trying of a third-straight title. The IHSAA tournament series includes the Jan. 29 Portage Sectional, Feb. 5 Hobart Regional and Feb. 12 East Chicago Semistate followed by the Feb. 18-19 State Finals at Gainbridge (formerly Bankers Life) Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
       
      Bailey says he has gotten to the point where he is good in the top wrestling position.
       
      “I like to turn and a I like to ride,” says Bailey. “It happened over time. My freshmen year, I gave up reversals.”
       
      Charles Voss, Jeffrey’s uncle, was a state qualifier at Owen Valley, but that’s the only wrestling Bailey has in his family tree.
       
      Jeffrey’s father – DeWayne Bailey was a high school basketball standout at Maranatha Christian in Portage and his youngest son also took the court when he was younger.
       
      “I tried, but I would get dejected and get mad,” says Jeffrey Bailey. “Everybody was so much bigger than me. I really couldn’t do anything.”
       
      At 5-foot-8, Bailey is among the taller 106-pounders and he uses those longer limbs to his advantage.
       
      “In scrambles I don’t get in bad positions where I’m uncomfortable,” says Bailey.
       
      But even with parents DeWayne and Heather preparing his meals he just wasn’t going to be that big. In fact, Jeffrey tried to add weight in the off-season and go up a class or two, but it just didn’t stick.
       
      “I burned too many calories,” says Bailey.
       
      He does go against bigger practice partners, including senior Jonathan Schultz (126), junior Alejandro Ramirez (132) and first-year Ingots assistant Eric Keith. Schultz is a semistate qualifier and Ramirez has been to regional.
       
      Keith was a four-time state qualifier with a state title at 140 as a Portage High School senior in 2000. His career prep mark was 170-8.
       
      “We have smaller guys in the room, but they don’t give me the feel that I want,” says Bailey. “Wrestling stronger guys makes me better.”
       
      Bailey trains and competes pretty much year-round, going to workouts around northwest Indiana and many Indiana State Wrestling Association events. Last year, he also went with Hammond Gavit grapplers to the Disney Duals.
       
      After high school, Bailey can see himself wrestling college if that opportunity arises. He expects to study History and pursue a path to becoming a high school Social Studies teacher and coach.
       
      Bailey is particularly interested in Biblical history.
       
      “I’m a Christian,” says Bailey. “I’m always trying to learn about my faith.”
       
      Jeffrey and his father have Bible study twice a week and have enjoyed a net series called “The Days of Noah.”
       
      Jeffrey grew up in the River Forest area with his parents and older brother DeWayne. He enjoys walking around town now and having them ask him about wrestling. It’s a big deal there now thanks in large part to Bailey, who returns the affection.
       
      Says Bailey, “I love my community, my parents and my coaches.”

      2660

      #WrestlingWednesday: Perry Meridian Loading Up for a Deep Run

      By JEREMY HINES
      Thehines7@gmail.com
       
      Last season Perry Meridian advanced 14 wrestlers out of sectional with 11 champions. They finished 13th in the state – and that leaves a terrible taste in their mouths.
       
      “We weren’t pleased at all with our finish last year,” said Falcon’s head coach Matt Schoettle. “We really felt like we should have been a top 5 team. We had some guys that should have made it to state that didn’t.”
       
      Last year was Schoettle’s first year as head coach for Perry Meridian. He had been an assistant coach for 18 years under Jim Tonte, who took the job at Warren Central. Tonte’s Warriors won state in his first year at the helm.
       
      “I learned everything from coach Tonte,” Schoettle said. “He has three state titles at Perry Meridian and then another one now at Warren Central. I learned dedication and commitment from him and how hard you have to work to get what you want.”
       
      This year’s Falcon squad is poised to make a run for the team title. The team returns state placers Sammy Fair (5th at 106) and Noah Warren (7th at 160). Fair is a sophomore and Warren is a junior this season.
       
      “Sammy is an awesome kid,” Schoettle said. “He will run through a brick wall for you. He’s a great student, a hard worker and every year he wins our extra workout award because he doesn’t quit. I look for very good things out of him this season.”
       
      As for Warren, Schoettle believes he has a real shot of winning a title this season.
       
      “Noah is kind of a clown on the team,” Schoettle said. “I’m an intense guy and he knows how to lighten the mood. His dad is my middle school coach. He works hard, doesn’t get in trouble but he knows how to make people around him have fun. He’s a great leader and he had an outstanding summer.”
       
      The Falcons graduated three state qualifiers. Brett Johnson finished 3rd at 152. Daniel Brookbank was 7th at 132 and Chris Ridle was a state qualifier at heavyweight. But, as it have done so often in the past, Perry Meridian believes they have athletes to step up and get the team to that next level.
       
      “I have three or four guys that were semistate guys last year that I think have state place-winner kind of talent,” Schoettle said. “Sunny Nier will be either 120 or 126. Kain Rust will go 138 or 145. Kain has multiple ISWA state titles and he could have a really good year. Jack Serview and Christian Warren could also get to state this year.”
       
      Incoming freshmen Brayden Littel and Brayden Lowery are also expected to have good seasons for the Falcons.
       
      The team has a lot of depth this season. Tuesday they held an intersquad match and there was a lot of competition at each weight class. There were 12 guys in the 138 bracket alone.
       
      “I told them that this bracket might be tougher than our first few tourneys,” Schoettle said.
      Perry Meridian’s goals are lofty. They want to win the dual team state title and the regular team state title.
       
      “We talk about it every day,” Schoettle said. “We have the team that can compete. We have to stay healthy, keep guys fresh and continue to work on improving and conditioning. As with any team, we will also need to get a few breaks. There are a lot of good teams out there this year, but we know we can compete with any of them.”

      2658 4

      #WrestlingWednesday with Jeremy Hines: Owen Valley striving for 2A excellence

      By JEREMY HINES
      Thehines7@gmail.com
       
      The Owen Valley High School wrestling team has one main goal – to make the Class 2A Team state tournament. On Sunday the Patriots will find out if they get invited to the tourney.
       
      “Last year getting to team state was our goal,” Patriot coach Steven Spicer said. “Nothing’s changed for this year. We have talked about it all offseason. The guys know what the goal is. They have bought in. If we get in, it will be huge for our program.”
       
      Last season was the first time Owen Valley’s wrestling team was ever ranked in Class 2A. Spicer felt it would come down to a dual meet between the Patriots and Monrovia for the final spot in the team state field. In that dual meet Monrovia won by three points, and got in.
       
      “I would make a case for our team by saying that we haven’t lost to a 2A school this season,” Spicer said. “We are undefeated in our class. Our community is behind us as well. Right now our wrestling ticket gate is higher than our basketball. The team is already very motivated, and if they get in, they will just be on fire.”
       
      Currently the Patriots are 11-2. Their losses come at the hands of Terre Haute South and Cascade.
       
      The heart and soul of the Patriot squad is junior Branson Weaver. He is currently ranked No. 11 at 138 pounds.
       
      “The kid is a mat rat,” Spicer said. “He loves wrestling. He wrestles year around. He went to Fargo. He’s our leader both vocally and by example. He runs our warmups. When he talks, the team listens.
       
      “On the mat Branson is a freak athlete. He’s explosive, strong, fast and incredibly flexible. His wrestling IQ is very high. He’s always wanting to learn and he asks every coach questions, daily.”
       
      Senior Eli Hinshaw is the highest ranked grappler on the Patriot squad. He is currently ranked No. 10 at 220. Coach Spicer said Hinshaw is a quiet leader on the team. Hinshaw was named All-State in football this season.
       
      Sophomore Emery Jackson is ranked No. 18 at 126 pounds and senior Bryce Mills is currently ranked No. 7 in the Evansville semistate at heavyweight.
       
      Hinshaw is the only wrestler on the team with any wrestling experience before Spicer took over the program five years ago.
       
      “Everyone else on the team started after I took over,” Spicer said. “Bryce started wrestling as a freshman. Eli Hinshaw started as an 8th grader. Jackson started in seventh grade.
       
      “But they have all bought into the offseason,” Spicer said. “They are competing against guys that have wrestled their whole lives. We’ve started doing some sort of wrestling year around and we are always looking for opportunities to get on the mat. We are lucky here that the coaches in other sports are all on board. We are a smaller school, and we all know we have to share athletes.”
       
      When Spicer started with the team there were five wrestlers. Now they have 24. This year he talks about how, for the first time, he has flexibility with the lineup and how that makes a big difference in dual meets.
       
      “Last year we were really solid, but there was no room for us to bump anyone around,” Spicer said. “We couldn’t manipulate our lineup. This year it’s been nice to have some freedom with the lineup.”
       
      Individually, the Patriots are hoping to have several wrestlers punch their ticket to state. Spicer believes a few of the guys can compete for a state title.
       
      But right now the goal is to get into team state. That’s the focus.
       
      “The guys deserve it,” Spicer said. “We went to the Midwest Classic. We went to Disney. We competed as a team and we don’t take anyone that’s not on our team. We could have. We could have been a little tougher that way. But we wanted only Owen Valley guys.
       
      “I truly believe that has made us more competitive this year. In reality, with our guys, we can put up points against any team in the state. I feel we can be competitive with anyone. We are not the most experienced team and we know that. But we want to be the better athletes. We want to be in the best shape and we have to be the toughest team out there. We are athletic, we are in great shape and we are tough and I hope we get to prove that at team state.”
       
       
       

      2640 1

      #MondayMatness: A.J. latest in a long line of Fowlers piling up victories at Calumet

      By STEVE KRAH
      stvkrh905@gmail.com
      One family has had their hand raised in victory nearly 500 times while representing Calumet High School wrestling.
      Brothers Artty (Class of 1991) and Ed Fowler (1992) grappled to victories for the Warriors then the next generation added to that total. Artty and Deanna Fowler’s five oldest sons — Nathan (2010), Noah (2014), Nick (2015), Kobe (2016) and A.J. (2019) — have all won for the Warriors, especially Nick and A.J.
      With success in the IHSAA state tournament series, A.J. has a chance to pass Nick on the way to the top of the Calumet victory list. No. 1 is now held by 2010 130-pound state qualifier Mike Clark (143).
      In a household full of wrestlers, A.J. found out he had to get tough just to protect himself.
      “I’m as aggressive as a I can be,” says A.J. Fowler. “All my brothers beat me up when I was little.”
      All the Fowlers have played football and wrestled for the Warriors. A.J. ran for more than 500 yards as a fullback and also played defensive end and outside linebacker last fall. He sees his collegiate path including business management classes and either wrestling or football.
      “The two go hand-in-hand for success in both,” says Jim Wadkins, a 1980 Calumet graduate who grappled at 177 pounds for coach Rolland Beckham (who had been an NAIA All-American at Indiana State and coached at Calumet for 18 years) and has been on the wrestling coaching staff since 1984-85 (he was an assistant to Ken Stigall, who was placed third at 112 at the 1967 IHSAA State Finals) and head coach since 1990-91.
      Known for close to a decade after reorganization as Calumet New Tech High School, the Gary-based school has about 600 students. That makes it one of Indiana’s smaller Class 3A schools.
      “We’ve got a lot of two- and three-sport athletes at Calumet,” says Wadkins. 
      A.J. Fowler wrestled at 182 pounds as a freshman, 195 as a sophomore and junior and is at 220 as a senior. His resume includes two sectional titles, one regional crown, three semistate berths and a state qualifying appearance in 2018. He has a chance to join Butch Carpenter as four-time semistate qualifier for Calumet.
      The Warriors are members of the Greater South Shore Conference and face a strong schedule which includes, in addition to the conference tournament, the Warsaw Invitational, Harvest Classic at Lake Central, Chris Traicoff Memorial Invitational at Calumet, Jeffersonville Classic, Al Smith Classic at Mishawaka and Lake County Championships. Chris Traicoff started the Calumet program in 1939. The program was shut down during World War II and beyond and Beckham helped bring it back with the help of AD and boys basketball coach Traicoff during the 1960’s. He died in 1989.
      According to Wadkins, Lowell native George Belshaw introduced Traicoff to Indiana University coach Billy Thom and even though 1935 valedictorian Traicoff played basketball and never wrestled a match in at Calumet Township High School, he won an NCAA title for the Hoosiers in 1939. That same year, he came back to Calumet to start the program. Calumet’s modern state tournament path has led them through the Griffith Sectional, Hobart Regional and East Chicago Semsitate.
      In other words, a lot of tough Region wrestlers.
      “It’s pretty tough,” says Fowler of northwest Indiana grappling. “You never know what you’re going to get."
      “You may get a guy who’s big, burly and knows about three moves but he’ll still go with you.”
      Wadkins notes that most Region wrestlers in the upper weights are juniors and seniors and Fowler held his own as an underclassman. Fowler has honed his skills with senior 195-pounder Aaron Lizardi and senior 285-pounder Keiloun Martin being his regular workout partners. He also spars regularly with assistant coach Andy Trevino. A state champion at 140 for Calumet in 1991, he has assisted Wadkins for more than a decade.
      “He’s an asset in our room,” says Wadkins of Trevino. “Coaching wrestling is a young man’s game. They’re able to get on the mat with the kids."
      “We’ve been very fortunate. Calumet grads or those connections to the program have shown a lot of devotion and have been good about giving back.”
      Alec Noworul (Class of 2014) and Lamberto Garcia 15 are giving back as middle school coaches who also help out at high school workouts.
      A.J. gives knowledge to his younger teammates by showing them the many moves he knows.
      “It’s kind of like a big brother system,” says A.J., who is also sometimes joined in practice by actual brothers Nathan and Noah. Sister Felicia is the oldest of the Fowler kids and the only girl. Wadkins says she might be the toughest. Youngest Kade (Class of 2026) has yet to get too involved in wrestling.
      Like his older brothers, A.J.’s matches keep his mother on the move. “She still has anxiety,” says A.J. Fowler. “She has to walk around after every match.”
      Calumet has competed this season with 22 wrestlers and filled most weight divisions, even when being undersized in some of them.

      2639

      #WrestlingWednesday: North Montgomery looking for more this year

      By JEREMY HINES
      Thehines7@gmail.com
       
      One and a half points. That’s all that separated North Montgomery from winning the Crawfordsville sectional championship last year.
       
      The Chargers were defeated by Southmont, their arch rival by a score of 242-240.5. It was the closest score between the top two teams in all of the state last year in sectional action.
       
      “Southmont is our county and they are our biggest rivals,” North Montgomery coach Maurice Swain said. “Our kids have been seeing those guys since elementary school. We’re hoping this year we can turn that score around.”
       
      North Montgomery is certainly poised to win a sectional title – and possibly more. The Chargers return a senior-laden team led by their 170-pound wrecking ball Tanner Webster. Webster is currently the No. 2 ranked grappler in the weight class, just behind his good friend Burk Van Horn.
       
      “Tanner is one of those kids that is always on the wrestling mat,” Swain said. “When I first came here he was in fifth grade and would wrestle in the varsity room. He was always working with our high schoolers. He always wants to get better. The goal this year for him is to win a state title.”
       
      Webster vividly remembers the excitement of advancing to state last year and ultimately placing sixth at 170 pounds. But now that he’s had a taste for the big stage, he’s setting his sights on bringing home top honors.
       
      “Last season just going to state was very cool,” Webster said. “It relieved a bunch of stress I felt to get there. But this year I want to win it all, and I want to have several of my teammates at state with me as well.”
       
      The Chargers have eight seniors on the team, and seven of those seniors are in the lineup.
       
      “Even the guys that aren’t seniors have been in our program for a long time,” Swain said. “At North Montgomery we don’t get move-ins. We have to develop our wrestlers.”
       
      Sophomore 106-pounder Seth Johnson is the team’s only other state-ranked wrestler. Johnson is currently No. 5.
       
      Cade Graves, Isaac Fruits and Cole Slavens are all ranked in the New Castle semistate. Graves is No. 7 at 152, Fruits is No. 5 at 182 and Slavens is No. 5 at 195.
       
      “I really think this is the best team North Montgomery has ever had,” Webster said. “Coach Swain has done an awesome job here. We know we can do some damage. From the bottom of our lineup to the top this is the best we’ve ever been.”
       
      The Chargers have the same goals every year. They want to win their County meet, their conference meet and do well in the state series. Southmont is standing in their way in all three goals.
       
      “Our county meet was postponed, but we are excited to see those guys,” Webster said. “We feel like we are better than we were and we hope to prove that.”

      2631

      #WrestlingWednesday: Alara Boyd Aiming for Gold

      By JEREMY HINES
      Thehines7@gmail.com
       
      Alara Boyd firmly believes that she can compete with any female wrestler in the world. That confidence has Boyd, a sophomore at Yorktown High School, setting her sights on winning a gold medal at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.
       
      “I for sure feel I’m there, skill-wise, with anyone in the world,” Boyd said. “I want to be a world champion. But more than that, I want to win the Olympics in 2020. I know what I have to do to get there. I have to keep working. I have to keep practicing and I have to keep improving.”
       
      The idea of Boyd wrestling in the Olympics is not a far-fetched one by any means. Boyd recently earned a bronze medal at the World Championships in Tbilisi, Georgia. Her lone loss came at the hands of Japanese gold medalist Atena Kodama, who tech-falled her opponent in the gold medal match.
       
      “I took a few shots I shouldn’t have taken against Japan,” Boyd said. “They put me on the shot clock and I started to get a little anxious. That really hurt me.”
       
      Boyd bounced back to win the bronze medal, defeating Canada’s Kirti Saxena 8-1.
       
      “My family and friends were super excited for me,” Boyd said. “When I got back they were all telling me how proud they were of me. I thought I wrestled well, but I want to win the world championships next time.”
       
      Boyd is a first-year cadet. She has two more years in the division.
       
      Boyd began wrestling when she was 4-years-old. She fell in love with the sport right off. Her dad, Jimmy Boyd, was her coach.
       
      As with most female wrestlers in Indiana, the majority of Boyd’s opponents are boys. Her practice partners are all seasoned veterans. Yorktown’s Christian Hunt, Josh Stephenson and Alex Barr all take turns wrestling Boyd at practice.
       
      Boyd has had success against the guys. Last year, as a freshman, she posted a winning record for the Tigers. She wrestled at 132, 138 and even 145 in some meets.
       
      In 2015 Boyd won the ISWA Freestyle and Greco Roman state championships, wrestling against a field of all male competitors.
       
      “Alara is very, very physical, even by the boys’ standard,” Yorktown assistant coach Kenny O’Brien said. “She’s very strong. She’s fantastic from an underhook. Her physicality is overwhelming at times. She’s extremely good on top in freestyle and she has one of the best leg laces in the world.”
       
      O’Brien also attributes some of Boyd’s success to her fight. It doesn’t matter who is in front of her, she will fight for the victory.
       
      “Her toughness and her fight are her best attributes,” O’Brien said. “If a girl or a guy hits her, she’s hitting back. She doesn’t back down from anyone. She’ll never back down from anyone. She’ll get right in their face and hit them back if they mess with her.”
       
      Boyd’s trip to Tblisi, Georgia was her first endeavor outside of the United States.
       
      “Things were a lot different there,” she said. “The people were overall pretty friendly. They live a lot differently than we do here. They don’t have all the luxuries we have, but it was neat to experience their culture. You see what they have went through, and you see all of the hard working people over there. It was neat to experience.”
       
      Boyd is currently undecided on whether she will wrestle for Yorktown during the high school season or concentrate more on training for the Olympics. She said she will most likely still wrestle for the school.
       
      In addition to be an Olympic hopeful, Boyd also wants to wrestle in college. Although she’s undecided on what she wants to study. Currently she’s leaning toward dentistry.

      2599

      #WrestlingWednesday with Jeremy Hines: O'Neill thrives in new role

      By JEREMY HINES
      Thehines7@gmail.com
       
      Ike O’Neill spent his first year of high school wrestling competing at the junior varsity level. He wasn’t overly strong or fast and his technique was average. There weren’t any real indicators that O’Neill would be a stellar grappler.
       
      O’Neill may not have had many believers that freshman season, but he would soon change that. O’Neill would prove that wrestling was no different than everything else he did in his life. O’Neill has a worker’s mentality and was willing to do more than anyone else to get the results he wanted.
       
      That attitude has led him to be a stellar student. His grade point average is 4.3. It also led him to become an Eagle Scout. O’Neill has proven time and time again that whatever he sets his mind to, he masters.
       
      “Ike is every wrestling coach’s dream, to be honest,” Westfield coach Phil Smith said. “He is a phenomenal student. He’s an Eagle Scout. He’s a phenomenal leader. He’s one of those kids where everything about him is work ethic and being tough.”
       
      As a sophomore O’Neill cracked the Westfield varsity lineup and eventually qualified for semistate. According to Smith, that’s when they knew that O’Neill could be special.
       
      Last season, as a junior, O’Neill qualified for state. It was a bittersweet moment for the Shamrock. While Ike wrestled on mat 4 in the ticket round of the New Castle semistate his older brother Thadeus was wrestling on mat 3. As Ike was wrestling, he could hear the crowd’s reaction and knew his brother had lost his match. So, when Ike won, it just didn’t feel right. He cared about his brother and knew what he was going through.
       
      Thadeus has been able to push Ike to get better in a lot of things. Mainly because the brothers are insanely competitive with each other. Thadeus was going for his Eagle Scout award, so Ike wanted to try and get his first.
       
      “Thadeus and I were always on the same sports teams growing up,” Ike said. “We did everything together. Naturally we started to compete with each other. If he beat me at wrestling, I wanted to go home and beat him at ping-pong or pool. It has developed into competing in everything.”
       
      On the mat Ike has a toughness that some people might not expect.
       
      “My teammates like to poke a little fun at me,” Ike said. “They say I look unathletic in a singlet. I’ve heard it a lot in high school. My friends say I’m the most unathletic kid to ever qualify for state. I just laugh it off.”
       
      Coach Smith says that a lot of people are surprised by Ike’s physicality and strength.
       
      “From his freshman year, on the surface, we didn’t know what he could do,” Smith said. “But we think every kid is capable if they put in work. With Ike, he didn’t have flashes of pure wrestling technique that really inspired us – but I think we always knew with him, it was a toughness thing.
       
      “He’s not the most flashy guy. But after he wrestled someone, his opponents usually come off the mat shaking their heads and thinking, wow, he’s a lot stronger than I thought.”
       
      Ike’s dad, Terry, was the longtime coach at Westfield. In fact, he was Smith’s high school coach. But Terry never forced Ike into wrestling.
       
      “He always gave us the option to wrestle,” Ike said. “Now, he says that, but if we stopped, I’m not sure how kindly he would have taken it. But he never wanted us to burn out in middle school. He let us control the pace that we developed.”
       
      Currently O’Neill is ranked No. 6 in the 145-pound class. His goal this season is to place at state.
       
      “Where Ike was at and where he is now is amazing,” Smith said. “He’s not the most gifted athlete but he certainly outworks everyone around him and his wrestling technique has really responded. That’s a testament to the kind of kid he is. He’s a no-mess around guy. He’s always there. He’s always trying to improve. He’s been our captain for two years now. He’s found his rhythm and it’s fun to sit back and see how good he can get.”
       



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