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209 articles in this category
2597 1#MondayMatness: After missing a junior season, Peru’s Sturgill focused for last high school go-round
By STEVE KRAH
stvkrh905@gmail.com
Trey Sturgill can hear his coach’s words of advice ringing in his ears.
“He’s always told me to never live with regret,” says Sturgill, a 113-pound senior competing for Indiana High School Wrestling Coaches Association Hall of Famer Andy Hobbs at Peru High School. “I’m
determined. I’m driven. My job is to get the job done and be the best person I can be.”
Sturgill, who Hobbs likes to call “Pancake” after a mat move of the same name, says he excels from the top position.
“I’m a dog on top,” says Sturgill. “I like to get the pins.”
So far, 65 of 96 career victories have come by fall. Sturgill (30-3 in 2019-20) won the 113 title at the Three Rivers Conference meet Saturday, Jan. 25 at Maconaquah.
“He’s got a pretty good skill set,” says Hobbs of Sturgill. “He’s very savvy.”
Sturgill missed all of junior season with an injury he can trace back to the freshmen-sophomore state when he was a freshmen. He continued to wrestle through his sophomore year, qualifying for the 2018 IHSAA State Finals at 106.
“I really wanted to make my state run,” says Sturgill.
The pain got to be too much and examination revealed Trey had four torn tendons and a broken shoulder. He them fixed and began physical therapy.
“I wanted to be stronger for my senior season,” says Sturgill, who was cleared to wrestle the week after the 2019 State Finals. His off-season included meets in Michigan and Ohio. “My shoulder is doing fantastic right now.”
Sturgill has multiple workout partners at Peru from 106 to 138.
“We have a pretty open room,” says Sturgill. “Each kid’s different. It helps me with my defense and what to look for in a real match.”
Trey is not the first member of his family to step into the circle.
His father, Bill Sturgill, wrestled for Northfield High School and was a semistate qualifier.
Trey was hooked on the sport when Bill took his youngest boy to a Peru Wrestling Club event at 3.
Brother Peyton Sturgill, who graduated from Peru in 2016, was a two-time state qualifier. Half brother Kane Rockenbaugh (Peru Class of 2013) was a semistate qualifier. Mother Rana has been there to cheer them on.
Peyton Sturgill is on his way to earning his college degree and becoming a math teacher. Trey Sturgill has sights set on teaching high school physical education.
“I’m still deciding on wrestling (in college),” says Trey. “We’ll see how this season goes.”
Away from wrestling, Sturgill likes to play disc golf at courses in Peru or Wabash.
“I like getting out and enjoying the fresh air and nature and being with my buddies,” says Sturgill.
Hobbs, a Tipton High School graduate, is in his 34th season as a wrestling coach and 25th season as head coach at Peru.
“I’ve enjoyed every year of it,” says Hobbs, who has 453 dual meet victories and leads a Tigers program with the motto is “ No Magic, Just Hard Work!!!.”
The veteran coach teaches his grapplers to “never walk past a piece of trash on the ground” and to “be humble enough to prepare and bold enough to compete with the very best!”
“You control what you can control and don’t worry about the other guys,” says Hobbs, who has produced 41 state finalists — 39 at Peru and two while coaching at Princeton. “You drop the hammer and take more shots.“
“Those are the ways you have success in the sport.”
Hobbs, who is also a health teacher, believes in having and following a plan.
“We’re specific with everything,” says Hobbs. “With nutrition, we avoid process sugar and drink a lot of water.
“We get sleep, wash hands and wear hat and a coat. Everybody’s got to
learn that curve.”
Hobbs’ coaching staff features Daric Fuller (two-time state qualifer), Zak Leffel (two-time state qualifier), Colin Quin (two-time sectional two-time sectional champion), Jordan Rader (three-time state qualifier and 2018 state runner-uo at 170), Kegan Kern (four-time semistate qualifier and Al Smith Classic finalist) and Chris McKinney (conference and sectional champion). Fuller (history), Leffel (math), Quin (P.E.) and McKinney (chemistry and physics) are teachers. Rader is an Indiana University student. U.S. Air Force vet Kern is Miami County Sheriff. Kern owns his own law firm. McKinney served two tours in Iraq with the U.S. Army.
2590#MondayMatness: Carroll's Byman setting an example on and off the mat
By STEVE KRAH
stvkrh905@gmail.com
Joel Byman is an example for current and future wrestlers at Carroll High School in Fort Wayne.
Not only is the senior 126-pounder a fine grappler for the Tim Sloffer-coached “Super Chargers,†he is ranked No. 1 in a class of about 500 and has been accepted to Harvard University.
Byman has never gotten a B in his life.
“I once got an A-minus,†Byman said. “Calculus is a lot of fun and I enjoy (Advanced Placement) Spanish.â€
He looks forward to the rigorous academics of the Ivy League.
“It opens so many doors for the future,†Byman said. “I’ll probably study economics. I want to get a degree I can use to get into another country. My ultimate goal is to be a missionary or pastor overseas.â€
While he is not planning to wrestle at Harvard at this point, Byman does not rule out continuing his mat career should it become an option.
When he’s not wrestling or helping a teammate with his studies, Byman might be playing the trumpet in the Carroll jazz band or the piano at church.
Sloffer, who is in his first season as Carroll head coach but involved with the program since his elementary school days, is proud to say that Chargers wrestling is “sending good characters, good men out into the world†and Byman is a prime example.
“He’s a leader in everything he does,†Sloffer said. “He leads by example. He excels in everything that he does.
“I would never bet against him.â€
While they all won’t be at the top of their class or go on to Harvard, Sloffer said Byman is leaving a legacy for his younger teammates and future Chargers.
“I think the kids see that,†Sloffer said. “Our juniors (who will be seniors next year) will remember what these seniors did and Joel’s the biggest part of that. We have a group of seniors (including Stone Davidson, Lucas Hook, Jessie Lawson, Tristan Lerch, Tyler McKeever and Travis Sloffer ) which have done a nice job this year.
What does Byman do best on the mat?
“I’m pretty good on top with keeping control, especially in tight matches,†Byman said. “I’ve got to give all the credit to my Savior, Jesus Christ. I wouldn’t be anywhere without Him. Also, my family and my teammates (junior Grant Byman is also a Carroll wrestler), the way they encourage me is just awesome.â€
Byman was one of 11 Carroll wrestlers to qualify for the 2016 Fort Wayne Semistate and got better in the off-season at the Disney Duals in Florida.
He’s having a solid senior season for a squad which spent the Christmas holiday break by placing eighth in Class 3A at the Indiana High School Wrestling Coaches Association State Duals in Fort Wayne (up from 12th the year before) and fifth at the 32-team Al Smith Classic in Mishawaka (up from 10th).
“We’ve progressed each year,†Byman said. “We want to take our team to another level and set an example for future years.â€
Coach Sloffer agrees with that assessment.
“Things are really starting to look up for us,†Sloffer said of a high school program which is supported by the Carroll Wrestling Club, which includes grapplers from Arcola, Cedar Canyon, Eel River, Hickory Center, Huntertown, Oak View and Perry Hill elementaries as well as Carroll and Maple Creek middle schools plus high schoolers. “It’s just been a big effort from a lot of people, really for generations.
“We’re just trying to make a better program and get the parents involved.â€
Carroll, who counts Sloffer, Joe Caprino, Kyle Wood, Logan Lee and Justin Smith on the coaching staff, has earned six straight sectional and four consecutive regional championships and is seeking its first semistate team crown.
Crowds at Fort Wayne’s Memorial Coliseum Expo Center and Mishawaka’s “Cave†impressed Byman.
“It’s crazy to see how many people are supporting wrestling and are excited about it,†Byman said. “It’s awesome.â€
Byman said a typical Carroll practice includes plenty of live wrestling.
“That’s really helped us get in shape,†Byman said.
Sloffer said Byman was attracted to wrestling as a Carroll Middle School eighth grader because of the challenge it presented.
“Wrestling is the toughest sport there is,†Sloffer said. “Even if he has a loss, he’s not one you have to worry about. He’s going to come back and get re-focused.
“Wrestling will be a part of who he is.â€
2580#WrestlingWednesday: Mappes Aiming for Gold
By JEREMY HINES
Thehines7@gmail.com
Center Grove senior Gleason Mappes comes from a very tough family. His three brothers were all outstanding wrestlers and his dad was a state champion. But, his mom has taken more wrestlers to school then the rest of the family combined.
“She is our team bus driver,” Center Grove coach Cale Hoover said. “She’s the toughest one in the family. She’s extremely competitive.”
Gleason Mappes is the last in a long line of great wrestlers in his family. His dad, Donald, was a 1978 state champ at Roncalli. His brother Sean won state in 2012 for Center Grove. His oldest brother Shelby placed third in state and his brother Rhett is currently recovering from a knee injury, but is part of the University of Indianapolis wrestling team.
“Gleason is the last of four very good wrestlers,” Center Grove coach Cale Hoover said. “I’ve coached them all. I’ve had at least one Mappes in the room for the 12 years I’ve been here.”
Gleason has been able to learn from his family’s strengths. He’s a three-time state qualifier and a two time placer. He has finished fourth the past two seasons.
“Coach tells me I have a little bit of the attributes of all my family,” Gleason said. “Sean was a very funky wrestler. I try to be funky like that. He also has naturally good hip position and I’ve tried to emulate that as well. Shelby was more of the type of wrestler that just wanted to go in and beat you up until you give in. He’s really good on his feet and good at riding. I’m working to be that good on my feet as well. All of them were mentally tough.”
Mappes has worked on improving his takedown ability since last season.
“My main goal is to make an offense that is dynamic and that can’t be stopped,” he said.
Mappes says the biggest thing his family has taught him is that you move on, no matter what.
“You don’t get hung up on things that happened,” Mappes said. “You keep moving on. You don’t dwell on those things because they will just hold you back. If you dwell on what you could have done, you aren’t going to go much further.”
Coming from such a strong wrestling family, Gleason doesn’t remember a time when he didn’t wrestle. But, he hasn’t had the number of career matches that are normal for a wrestler of his caliber.
“Gleason entered high school with less than 100 matches in his career,” Hoover said. “He wrestled three years in middle school and a handful of club matches. He was a short little fat kid, but you could tell he was gifted and that he had a lot of talent.”
As a freshman Gleason had a rough season. He lost 20 matches that year. Gleason is the only wrestler in at least five years to lose 20 matches and make it to the state finals.
Reaching state lit a fire under Gleason. He came out the next year with a 37-11 record and finished fourth at 160 pounds as a sophomore. Then, as a junior he was 41-3 and finished fourth at 160 pounds.
“Gleason has a tremendous upward climb,” Hoover said. “I really have no idea where his ceiling is. He isn’t even close to it yet.”
Mappes is hoping to be Center Grove’s first four-time state qualifier. Ultimately, he is wanting a chance to wrestle under the lights.
“That’s my goal,” Mappes said. “I want to finish under the lights.”
After high school Gleason is going to wrestle for the University of Indianapolis and he will study nursing. Losing him from the Center Grove room will be tough on the Trojan family, especially on coach Hoover.
“I just feel so fortunate to coach him,” Hoover said. “When I first came here he was in first grade. I’ve known him most of his life. I know for sure I’ll be dominating their family for the wrestling Hall of Fame.”
2545 6#WrestlingWednesday with Jeremy Hines: Cowboy up! Edgewood's Cash Turner has a unique off-season training regimen
Photo by David Hughes/ BeltBucklePhotos.com
By JEREMY HINES
Thehines7@gmail.com
Cash Turner doesn’t get his strength from lifting weights. His muscles are built by moving over 500 hay bales a year, splitting wood and working on his family’s 100-acre farm. He doesn’t get his grip from the gym either – that comes from holding on for dear life while trying to ride a massive bull for as long as possible. And, that fearless attitude those around him say he has – that comes from growing up with a father that was a phenomenal wrestler and then went on to become an all-around champion in the rodeo world.
The Edgewood junior is certainly not your typical wrestler. He’s the Rocky Balboa in Rocky IV vs. the Ivan Drago’s of the world. His training isn’t conventional, but it works.
“Cash is training without training, and he’s doing it a lot,” Edgewood coach Greg Ratliff said. “I remember one time he went to his grandpa’s place in Kentucky instead of going to workouts. I asked him what he did while he was there, and he told us he and his grandpa spent the week just digging post holes. Somehow, I knew he would get more out of that then he ever would by hitting our weight room.”
Turner knows two things well – rodeo and wrestling. When he’s not in wrestling season, he’s working on his rodeo skills. His only break from the rodeo is when he’s wrestling. Coach Ratliff believes the work Turner is putting in on his rodeo is only benefiting him on the mat.
“We talk a lot about multi-sport athletes,” Ratliff said. “There are a lot of crossovers. The will, the drive, and the determination he uses in bull riding carries over to wrestling. There isn’t as much footwork and agility, but all the toughness that comes with it is a big plus. I think, in a day and age where coaches are asked to do more and more and more, and wrestlers are told they need to wrestle every weekend – but the best wrestler in your room is like – I have this going on. It’s refreshing. You can do other things and still get good. As long as they are training in something, that’s going to help make them better wrestlers.”
For Cash, part of the allure of the rodeo is facing fears and overcoming them.
“The hardest thing in my life is probably trying new things,” Turner said. “I was always an avid bull rider, but my dad asked if I would want to try saddle bronc riding and bareback riding – which is basically riding wild horses. I was the most scared I’ve ever been in my life. I was going to get on a giant horse that wants to throw me off. But I did it. I overcame that fear.”
That bravery has helped Cash excel in the rodeo. He qualified for the High School Nationals in Nebraska where each state brings four representatives to compete.
“The rodeo definitely makes me tougher in wrestling,” Turner said. “I know if I can do that, I can probably put a kid my size on his back on the mat.”
Although Turner’s dad, Toby, was a very good bull rider and wrestler. He didn’t want to push those things on Cash.
“Toby placed second in state in wrestling, twice,” Ratliff said. “In the rodeo he was on the PBR circuit and was a National Champion. It’s really cool to watch their interactions with each other in the wrestling room (Toby is an assistant coach). They are both so stubborn, but his dad really didn’t want to push wrestling or rodeo on his son. As it turns out, those are Cash’s biggest passions. Cash just loves them both.”
Turner found success early in his high school wrestling career. He won the Bloomington North sectional at 106 pounds his freshman season. He then went on to claim the regional title at Bloomington South and advanced to state by placing third in the Evansville semistate. In that semistate, Turner had his favorite match in his career up until this point.
“It was the match after my ticket-round win,” Turner said. “I faced a kid that I had never beaten before, and we had wrestled many times – probably around a dozen or so. I just knew this time would be the time. I wrestled how I wrestle and ended up hitting a lat drop on him and scored a few points, then hit another funky move and ended up winning by quite a few points. So far, that was my favorite match. I was getting over an obstacle.”
Coach Ratliff remembers that match well.
“I remember it because the young man he was wrestling’s dad yelled out ‘watch out for the spladle’,” Ratliff said. “I don’t know if Cash heard it or not, but he immediately hit the spladle. He went up five points. That was an exciting match.”
Turner proceeded to place seventh in state that freshman season.
He did not make it back to state as a sophomore. He won sectional and regional for the second time in his young career, but fell short in the ticket round of semistate, losing in the ticket round to Brownsburg’s Brady Isom. Isom went on to place third in state at 126 that season.
“Last year was tough,” Turner said. “I went up from 106 my freshman year to 126 as a sophomore. That was a big jump. I knew people were going to be a little stronger than me. I went as far as I could. The ticket round loss was a tough loss, but he was a really good opponent. I took what I could from it and I’m trying to work this year at getting back to state. That’s my goal.
“I think when you’re a junior you start to get a sense of urgency you didn’t have before. When you’re a freshman and sophomore you look at wrestling and you’re like, I still have three…or two more years. Now you realize it’s coming fast and pretty soon I’ll just be done. I only have one year after this.”
Turner is coming into the season slightly hobbled. He broke his elbow in September riding a bull.
“Funny story about that,” Cash said. “I had a duck hunting trip planned with a few friends. It was going to be a few days after the rodeo. I went to the rodeo and ended up hurting my elbow. I didn’t know I broke it. I finished my events and even won some events. When we went home, I didn’t think much about it, but I put it in a sling and went to school the next day. I couldn’t bend it at all.
“I showed our athletic trainer and he looked at it and said it was definitely broken. I went to the doctor, and they put a cast from my wrist to my elbow. The first thing I told my mom was I had to see if I could shoot a shotgun with one arm. I went out and tried to shoot a few times. It was hard, but I could do it. I went on the hunting trip and even killed a few birds there. It was an interesting experience.”
Going hunting with a broken elbow, while your entire arm is wrapped in a hard plastic cast shows just how stubborn Turner is.
“He’s the kid that is always stubborn,” Ratliff said. “For example – we do a drill in practice where we set it up like it’s an overtime match. First takedown wins. He might get taken down, because his practice partner is really good at takedowns, but Cash will argue and argue about whether something was a takedown or not. He just doesn’t give up. He’s going to keep wrestling from there. The ref has to really think about it. He will tell you ‘That wasn’t a takedown, I still had a hold of his toe’.”
Turner has several plans after high school. He is currently involved in a fire science and fire safety vocational school and would eventually like to be a firefighter. He said he would like to go to college somewhere that has a fire science education program where he can get a degree in that field. He also wants to pursue the rodeo out west, where there are more opportunities in the sport.
For now, however, he’s focused on getting back to the state finals.
“That’s my ultimate goal,” Turner said. “It was great to go as a freshman and I want to get back there.”
2534#MondayMatness: Family atmosphere, 'next guy in' mentality drives Penn success
By STEVE KRAH
stvkrh905@gmail.com
Penn has been an IHSAA state championship contender in most years since Brad Harper took over as head coach of the Kingsmen in 2006.
In 2015, Penn won its first state team title.
The goal every year is reach the top of the Indiana heap.
It’s also to grow the program’s reputation in the state and beyond.
At any given time during the high school season, there are around close to 100 wrestlers striving to get better while also forming a bond.
“The family atmosphere — that’s huge for us,†Harper said. “That’s why we have 90 kids on the team.
“We probably have 14 seniors and only three of them start. Why are you letting the seniors stay out? Because they want to be a part of it.â€
Long-time assistant coach Chad Hershberger, a 2000 Penn graduate, hears the word every time the Kingsmen break from a meet or a practice: “Family!â€
“That’s what we are,†Hershberger said. “We are a family from the time we step into that (practice) room until we leave. It’s 24-7, 365.â€
One of Harper’s teammates at Mishawaka High School (Brad won a state title in 1998 and was a state runner-up in 1999) was Mike Cramer, who is now associate pastor at New Life Baptist Church in Osceola.
Cramer has been coming to Friday practices for years to give motivational talks that relate life to wrestling. Topics include hard work, teamwork, determination and — of course — family.
Not every athlete buys into the family values that the coaching staff of 20 constantly talks about.
But most do and thrive because of it.
They gravitate to coaches like five men who have been at the core of the coaching staff for the past decade — Harper, Hershberger, Dave Manspeaker, Jim Rhoads and Tom Dolly.
They also go to the many longtime volunteers to learn wrestling technique, but also to be motivated or to just have a friend and role model.
“We mentor some of these kids,†Hershberger said. “Some of them don’t have much and they just want to be a part of something.â€
So while individuals set their own goals, the team goal is always a high one and everyone is expected to contribute.
At some schools, they call them “program kids.â€
At Penn, it’s “next guy in.â€
“You’ve got to be ready because you never know when someone is going to go down,†Harper said.
Getting wrestlers ready to jump into the fire is a schedule that has junior varsity wrestlers taking part in many varsity tournaments.
“The only way that some of these kids were going to be able to step into that role is to have the varsity experience,†Hershberger said. “Are we always going to win? No. But that’s not what we ask. It’s about getting better and getting that varsity competition so when we do have injuries, that next kid is ready to step in. They are battle-tested.â€
Penn, which placed sixth in Class 3A at the Indiana High School Wrestling Coaches Association State Duals Friday, Dec. 23 in Fort Wayne, also derives success from its feeder program. Three middle schools — Discovery, Grissom and Schmucker are all on the same page with the high school.
The Penn Wrestling Club begins with pre-kindergarten grapplers and goes all the way through high school, where it’s known as Midwest Extreme Wrestling (MXW) and wrestlers come from all over to take part in national team events.
It begins with the Kings Kids (Pre-K through First Grade) and goes to the Noble Kingsmen (Grades 2-5) Elite Kingsmen (Grades 2-6) and Black Knights (Grades (6-8) before high school.
Chad Harper, Brad’s brother and a member of Mishawaka’s 1991 IHSAA team champions, is club’s event coordinator and vice president on the board of directors. He said there are currently 176 active wrestlers though eight grade and there are 40 or more in the high school club.
When the high schoolers travel to Indiana events, they tend to go as the Penn Wrestling Club. At national tournaments, they tend to represent MXW.
MXW promotes wrestling regionally, nationally and possibly at the world level.
“It just makes for a good wrestling room,†Chad Harper said.
Through fundraising efforts (each wrestler has their own account), club wrestlers travel all over the nation — from Las Vegas to the Fargo Nationals to the Disney Duals in Florida and more.
“We’re seeing competition nationwide and that’s huge,†Brad Harper said. “Our goal is not just to be good in the state, we want to be No. 1 in the nation.â€
On April 7-8, 2017, PWC and MXW will again host a national dual tournament inside Compton Family Ice Arena at the University of Notre Dame. The 2016 duals — the first wrestling meet on the ND campus since 1992 — drew eight regional teams and the hope for 2017 is 16.
“We want to grow it every year,†Chad Harper said. “We want to help build up the Notre Dame club.â€
Fran McCann, who helps coach at the high school and club levels at Penn, was the Notre Dame head coach when the school discontinued intercollegiate wrestling.
Heading into 2016-17, Penn’s single-season leaders were Austin Kunze (217 takedowns in 2009-10), Tim Koch (37 reversals in 1987-88), Alex Gregory (35 pins and 50 wins in 2010-11), Derrick Jones (87 near falls in 1997-98) and Trevor Manspeaker (31 technical falls in 2012-13). Career leaders were Kenny Kaiser (331 takedowns from 1985-88), Tom Ginter (62 reversals from 2002-05), Alex Gregory (102 pins from 2007-11), Jeremiah Maggart (197 near falls from 2004-07), Trevor Manspeaker (93 technical falls from 2012-13) and Zach Davis (169 wins from 2011-14).
Penn won its first Northern Indiana Conference title in 1980. The Kingsmen went into this season with a five-year streak of NIC crowns.
2533 2#MondayMatness: Flatt Encourages Individualism for the Wildcats
By STEVE KRAH
stvkrh905@gmail.com
Bill Flatt does not try to fit a square peg in a round hole.
The 17th-year head wrestling coach at South Bend Riley High School knows that each athlete is different.
Flatt gets his Wildcats to play to their strengths and it has paid off with plenty of mat success.
“I don’t try to put them into a mold,†Flatt said. “It’s not ‘here’s how I want all of you to wrestle.’ I emphasize their individuality.â€
Flatt encourages his wrestlers to find what style best suits them and go with that. He will be there to help them refine it.
The veteran coach and is a former Mishawaka High School (Class of 1979) and Columbia University (Chicago) grappler. As an MHS junior, Flatt went 22-1 for Hall of Fame coach Al Smith. Flatt’s only loss came in the semistate semifinals to the defending state champion.
After college, Flatt was an assistant to Smith for one season before taking over the Riley program.
With all his time on and around the mat, Flatt knows that some wrestlers are better on their feet and others excel on top.
“The guys who are good riders and pinners, when they are on bottom, I don’t want them getting to their feet and getting escapes,†Flatt said. “I want them to get the reversals to get into their best position and score from there.
“I’m always looking to get them to their best positions, whichever that is. It may be a match-to-match situation.â€
With seniors Austen Laughlin (40-2 at 145 pounds) and Kassius Breathitt (38-4 at 152) and junior Tristan Goering (33-2 at 170) winning weight-class titles and senior RZ Teague (27-15 at 160) finishing fourth, again bolstered Riley as the Wildcats [laced third at the Mishawaka Sectional. Next up is the Rochester Regional.
“The middle of our lineup has really set the tempo for the team,†Flatt said. That tempo helped the Cats go 17-8 in 2015-16 duals and is leading to wins in the postseason.
“We want to just keep that momentum going,†Flatt said. “Get the points you need and get off the mat. This time of the year, it’s nothing but the W. Keep going to the right on that bracket. Go to the left and you lose another match and you’re done. So we want to keep going toward that championship bout.â€
Goering placed fourth at 160 at the 2015 IHSAA State Finals. Laughlin is a two-time State Finals qualifier and a 46-match winner in 2014-15.
“Tristan’s run in the semistate and state finals last year was tremendous,†Flatt said. “For Austen, it’s all about confidence. He’s wrestled so much, there’s always another trick in his bag, one more thing he can do. He breaks people and just gets them to submit.â€
Ultra-competitors Laughlin, Breathitt, Teague and Goering are regular sparring partners during intense Riley workouts.
“We hate losing,†Laughlin said. “That’s what motivates us to get better. It definitely gets heated in (the practice room).â€
When Breathitt looks at Laughlin, Teague and Goering, he sees driven athletes.
“They’re determined,†Breathittt said. “They want to go places. They love the sport.â€
“We all work hard in here and push each other to be better,†Teague said.
Goering said it’s a matter of iron sharpening iron.
“Austen is one of the best on our team technically,†Goering said. “Kassius stays in really good position. RZ is a combination of the two. He’s real-rounded overall. My strengths are my athleticism, my explosiveness. I’ve been told I’m hard-nosed. I’m not the most skilled, but I go out there real hard and that tends to break guys down.â€
One bit of advice from Flatt that sticks with Goering is focusing on each period instead of the whole six-minute match.
“If you win two minutes at a time, you will win the match,†Goering said.
The junior also serves notice about the 2016-17 Wildcats and sees Riley having a good shot at ending Penn’s stranglehold on the top spots in the sectional and Northern Indiana Conference.
“We’ll be better next year than we are this year,†Goering said.
Laughlin said it is his ability to adapt to many styles and to go against teammates in practice that know how to scramble to helps him win close matches.
While Breathitt is strong as a bottom wrestler, it’s also what he has between the ears that helps him be successful.
“It’s that mental toughness and staying strong throughout the match no matter what happens,†Breathitt said. “You’ve got to believe in yourself. You’ve got to think that you can do it.
“I’m pretty decent on my feet, but nobody can hold me down. I’m not staying on the mat. A sit-out hip-heist is kind of my go-to thing. I keep running those. I also have moves like Granbys and such.â€
Having drilled so much, Breathitt has confidence in his best set of moves.
“I keep running it until they stop it,†Breathitt said. “I don’t like to change it up for other people. I like to keep doing what I’ve trained to do.â€
It’s a pretty smart group, too. Flatt said Breathitt, Teague and Goering are on the their way to academic all-state honors.
Many Riley wrestlers compete throughout the year as a part of the South Bend Wrestling Club, which holds most workouts at Riley and South Bend Joseph.
The current pack of Wildcats are continuing a strong tradition of South Bend’s South Side. From 1960-15, Riley racked up 53 indivudal State Finals.
Jon Galloway (1964-65-66) was a three-time state champion for the Cats. Larry Katz (1963), Matt Wills (1991), Matt Nowak (1995) and George Malone (2007) also took state titles.
“We just keep producing,†Flatt said. “We bring kids in, give them the idea they can be successful and try to put their name on (Riley Wrestling Wall of Fame) list.â€
2517 1 1#MondayMatness with Steve Krah: Wawasee Warriors manage to successfully mix focus on team, individuals
By STEVE KRAH
stvkrh905@gmail.com
Embracing the group component with many eyes on personal achievement, Wawasee High School wrestlers are having another win-filled season.
The Warriors head into the week of Dec. 19 at 12-4 in varsity duals (including 4-0 against Northern Lakes Conference goes). Senior 170-pounder Gavin Malone is unbeaten so far in 2022-23. Seniors Hunter Miller (152) and Logan Stuckman (138) have one loss apiece and junior Kaleb Salazar (106) has two setbacks.
Asked to name his best qualities as a wrestler, Malone says “being dedicated and hard work. I’m trying to be the best leader I can be.”
Depending on the situation, Malone leads either by example or vocally.
At 18, he’s been grappling since 3.
“There’s been a lot of blood, sweat and tears,” says Malone. “Since I joined the Viper Wrestling Club I’ve developed a lot of moves that I can use in a match.”
The Wawasee Wrestling Club has about 80 members and about 20 of them with the advanced/competition-ready Vipers.
Malone is driven by the advice of several coaches — present and past.
Middle school coach Kevin Taylor, who was Wawasee’s head coach for six seasons, talks about hard work and dedication.
Former assistant Jesse Espinoza said “jam, jam, jam” — the idea of being tough on top and being the hammer rather than the nail.
From Bumgardner, Malone heed the call to keeping pushing and focusing and staying in good position.
From Garrett Stuckman, it’s “keep fighting and always be moving.”
Malone says the team’s main focus at the beginning of the season is the State Duals.
“Wrestling is an individual sport with a team part,” says Malone. “At the end we strive for our goals. I hope everybody’s goal is to be a state champion.”
Gavin’s primary workout partner is senior Cameron Zimmerman (182) though he also drills with Miller or junior Donovan Blair (195).
“If I can use by strength with the technique it will get me a lot further,” says Malone.
After high school, he hopes to wrestle in college and study Criminal Justice.
Miller, 17, has been wrestling since he was 3.
“I have a lot of tricks in my bag, but I focus on two or three good moves in each position,” says Miller, who counts Malone and Stuckman as practice partners. (Logan is) quick and he holds pretty good position like me.
“It makes us able to capitalize on mistakes.”
He sees himself and Malone as by-example leaders and Stuckman and Zimmerman as vocal leaders.
Hunter also likes the individual part of the sport.
“My goal is to be a state champ,” says Miller. “You don’t have anybody holding you back.
“You’ve got to get it done for yourself.”
After high school, Miller plans to study engineering in college at either Purdue University or Trine University. He says scholarship opportunities and which school he chooses will have a bearing on whether he wrestles at the next level.
Stuckman says he prefers to push the pace and “jam, jam, jam.”
“It’s go, go, go,” says Stuckman, who at 17 has been wrestling for 12 years. “What makes our team stand out is we’re all good at something.
“You have to respect us.”
After high school, Logan says he expects to work in the family business — Stuckman’s Sanitiation.
What makes this team of 42 (35 boys and seven girls) what it is?
“It’s a collection of great human beings,” says Bumgardner. “It’s the way they care about each other and love each other.
“They are extremely coachable. It’s been a lot of fun working with this group so far.”
Bumgardner and his assistants (Jamie Salazar, Braxton Alexander, Mike Deak, Isiah Faurote, Hal Heagy, Hunter Reed, Miguel Rodriguez, Shawn Senter, Garrett Stuckman, Raymon Torres and Dillon Whitacre) have grapplers competing really hard but in a relaxed environment.
“It’s painted on our (practice room) wall — Warrior Tough. It’s a mindset,” says Bumgardner. “We try to do everything to the best of your ability.”
Another motto: “Score points and have fun.”
“We’re not focused on pressure,” says Bumgardner. “There’s a lot going on in the world today and we need to focus on being great human beings rather than letting wrestling athletics consume our identities.”
Braxton Alexander (Class of 2019) is tied atop the career wins list with Kevin Carr (Class of 1999) at 166.
Wawasee is scheduled to host NLC opponent Concord Wednesday, Dec. 21 then gear up for the 32-team Al Smith Classic at Mishawaka Dec. 29-30.
The Warriors make their sixth straight appearances at the IHSWCA Class 2A State Duals Jan. 7. The competition will be held at Jay County.
In the past, the program has placed first in 2018, second in 2019, qualified in both 2020 and 2021 and came in fourth in 2022.
Wawasee hosts the NLC meet (with Concord, Goshen, Mishawaka, Northridge, NorthWood, Plymouth and Warsaw) Jan. 14.
The IHSAA state tournament series takes the Warriors to the Plymouth Sectional (with Bremen, Culver Academies, Culver Community, LaVille, Plymouth, Tippecanoe Valley, Triton and Warsaw) Jan. 28, Penn Regional Feb. 4, East Chicago Semistate Feb. 11 and IHSAA State Finals Feb. 17-18 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
Frank Bumgardner is in his eighth season as Wawasee head coach.
He says the Warriors schedule allows for emphasizing team at the beginning and individuals at the end.
“There are situational awareness things we do,” says Bumgardner of the approach in dual meets where team points are so precious.
He welcomes the challenge of the State Duals where Wawasee wrestlers will “face hammers all day long.”
A graduate of Whitko Junior/Senior High School (2007), Bumgardner was head coach at his alma mater before coming to Wawasee.
Bumgardner earned an Education degree Indiana Purdue Fort Wayne and was teacher. He is now leading training and development at Viewrail, a Goshen-based company which designs, manufactures and installs custom stairs and railing.
2515 5#WrestlingWednesday with Jeremy Hines: Critchfield ready for one last go in Indiana
By JEREMY HINES
Thehines7@gmail.com
Nathan Critchfield was down – but he sure as heck won’t allow himself to be counted out.
Critchfield wrestles through pain each and every day. He doesn’t complain. It has become a way of life for the Evansville Mater Dei senior.
Critchfield wrestled his first three years of high school in Illinois. His best finish was third in the state meet in 2020. Then he got the news that would ultimately change his life – he had a tumor on his spine.
“My back was hurting all year and moving into freestyle season I got it checked out that May,” Critchfield said. “They just did a physical exam and I kept at it and kept wrestling. Then, in August of 2020 I was still in pain and I got checked out again. They told me I had a tumor on the inside of my spinal cord.”
The news rocked Critchfield. He knew he was going to have to endure a grueling surgery and a long road to recovery. They wouldn’t know if the tumor was cancerous until after the surgery. The diagnosis was devastating – both physically and mentally for Critchfield.
“Hearing about the tumor was shocking, to say the least,” Critchfield said. “It came at a time that was so crucial in my life. I was going into my senior year. That’s an important time in your social life and in your academics. Then hearing that you’re probably not ever going to wrestle again, that was a big hit.”
Critchfield ended up sitting out his entire senior year to deal with his medical issues. He would have graduated in 2021 but will now graduate in 2022.
His first back surgery was a 12-hour ordeal. The next week he ended up getting a MRSA infection in the incision that required another surgery. He wasn’t out of the woods yet. The first surgery had caused his legs to not work properly. That required yet another surgery.
“Between my legs and my back, I couldn’t walk for a few months,” Critchfield said.
Critchfield tried to do a little drilling in wrestling in February, even though he says he wasn’t supposed to. His legs still weren’t working the way they were supposed to work In April he had another surgery to relieve the pressure in both of his legs.
In the end, the tumor was not cancerous. And, although he’s still in pain, it’s something he has learned to live with.
“This whole ordeal has made me a different kind of person,” Critchfield said. “I have really grown in my faith. I get reminded of it all every day when I go to practice. Both of my legs hurt and my back hurts. Wrestling really sucks with the pain – but I love doing it. I put myself through it because I don’t know what else I would do.”
Critchfield doesn’t care if his opponents on the mat know about his bad back, or his issues with his legs.
“People tell me not to let others know I’m hurting,” Critchfield said. “They say to not let your opponents know you’re not feeling your best. I don’t think that would give them an edge on me though. I think it gives me a little edge, actually. They are going to wrestle a guy knowing he’s going to feel like crap and he’s still not scared. They are about to wrestle a guy that has went through hell but is still out there ready to go. That’s got to mess with them more than it does with me.”
Critchfield is currently ranked No. 2 in the state at 220 pounds. He joins a Mater Dei team that is loaded with ranked wrestlers this season.
Mater Dei has two wrestlers currently ranked No. 1 in their weight classes, both are returning state champs in Brody Baumann and Gabe Sollars. Crtichfield is No. 2 at 220. Hunter May is No. 3 at 152 pounds. Isaiah Schaefer is No. 4 at 106. Evan Seng is No. 5 at 113 pounds, Ashton Hayhurst is NO. 8 at 145 and Reed Egli is No. 13 at 120 pounds.
“This is my first year at Mater Dei and it’s been pretty fun,” Critchfield said. “It’s an interesting atmosphere and it’s a lot different than other schools. They put a lot of emphasis on wrestling for your school instead of for yourself. They have built a program and the whole community gets behind it. When you hear about the culture at Mater Dei, you never imagine how it really is until you’re a part of it.”
Mater Dei coach Greg Schaefer is glad to have Critchfield on the squad.
“Nathan is just a genuine, hard-working, hard-nosed kid,” Schaefer said. “He’s one of those guys that will be hard to outwork. He has a great attitude and seems to be extremely grateful doing what he’s doing.”
Schaefer said a lot of the kids in the Mater Dei program don’t even know what all Critchfield has been through.
“You wouldn’t even know that there was anything going on with him,” Schaefer said. “He doesn’t talk about it, and he doesn’t act like there’s any issues. It’s pretty incredible to think about what he’s been through and that he still maintains the attitude and desire to chase after his dream.”
As far as Critchfield’s wrestling abilities, Schaefer describes him as a big guy with the skill set of a little man.
“He’s very skillful,” Schaefer said. “He’s not like some of the guys that are just big bruisers. He’s more technical than most big guys. He wrestles more like a little guy.”
Critchfield has wrestled for Mauer Coughlin since he was very young. He parents used to drive him to the practices over an hour away, three times a week. There he made friends with a lot of the guys on the team and a lot of Indiana wrestlers throughout the state.
This year his goal is to go out on top. He’s seen the Indiana state finals and wants nothing more than to wrestle under the spotlight.
“My No. 1 goal is to win a state title,” Critchfield said. “I like to go as hard as I can and put it on people. I keep the pace up and make people want to quit. I make them tired, and I ride hard. I’m real tough on top – but nobody holds me down either. And I don’t quit. That’s my biggest strength. I will not ever quit.”
2511 1 4#MondayMatness with Steve Krah: Union City’s Daniels raises his game, heading to State Finals
By STEVE KRAH
stvkrh905@gmail.com
Bradin Daniels became the first Union City Junior/City wrestler to qualify for the IHSAA State Finals in a dozen years when the junior won the 126-pound title at the 2024 Fort Wayne Semi-State.
Before the Feb. 10 accomplishment, the last Indian to punch his ticket to the state tournament’s last stage was Kyle Walters at 160 in 2011-12, a season in which he want 40-4.
As a Union City assistant coach, Walters has been in Daniels’ corner along with Indians head coach Kevin Lawrence.
“He’s just a hard worker,” says Walters of Daniels. “He’s worked for it all season.”
Away from the mat, Lawrence owns a construction company and Walters is a software engineer.
Because of NBA All-Star Game activities, the site of the State Finals has been moved this year from Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis to the Ford Center in Evansville.
The first round is Friday, Feb. 16. There will be two sessions (152-285 and 106-144). First-round survivors compete Saturday, Feb. 17.
Daniels heads to the Pocket City at 38-2 on the season.
Union City is a Randolph County school with an enrollment around 250.
“I did it for these guys over here,” says Daniels, who pointed to the UC faithful that came to cheer Saturday at Allen County Memorial Coliseum and saw him defeat NorthWood junior Will Hahn (pin in 2:42), Marion freshman Hixon Love (6-0 decision), Delta senior Neal Mosier (6-5 overtime decision) and Jay County senior Cody Rowles (8-4 decision). “I did it for my coaches. I did it for me. I did it for my family (including parents Devon and Samantha Daniels and brothers Gage and Blayne).
“They all knew I had it in me. This year it changed.”
Says Lawrence, “it was more the way he wrestled. He’s more patient now then he was before. He now knows that all he has to do is win a match. He doesn’t necessarily have to do it all in the first period.
“He can wrestle a three-period match now and go six minutes.”
Daniels said he became serious about wrestle in sixth grade.
“I placed second at Middle School State and I was like ‘Wow!,’” says Daniels. “My freshman year I missed weight at sectional and last year I got in my head because I had to face the No. 1 seed.”
Daniels gave himself a pep talk going into 2023-24.
“I told myself there’s nothing stopping me this year,” says Daniels. “You’re going to go and win it whether you like it or not.”
Gage and Blayne Daniels both wrestled for UC.
“They’re over there rooting me on,” says Bradin. “They tell me that no matter what else is going on, just wrestle.”
Other season highlights for the youngest Daniels boy include winning his second Tri-Eastern Conference championship (pinning Winchester junior Isaiah Spurlin in the finals) and placing first for the second straight Bill Kerbel Invitational at New Haven (beating Northfield freshman Elijah Gahl by 13-0 major decision for the crown).
Daniels also earned his first Jay County Sectional title (besting Rowles 4-0 in the championship bout). He placed second at the Jay County Regional (losing to Rowles by fall in the finals) then won the Fort Wayne Semi-State.
As a sophomore, Daniels was a sectional runner-up and came in fourth at regional and did not place at semi-state.
Bradin came in third at the past two East Central Indiana Classic tournaments.
“He’s always had the ability,” says Lawrence. “Little things here and there he was able to put together this year.
“That’s been the difference.”
The past two seasons, Daniels competed at 126. He began the current season at 132, but continued to lose weight and went back to 126.
Union City’s Matt Taylor placed fourth at the State Finals in 1991.
Besides Taylor in 1990 and Walters in 2012, other state qualifiers include Kyle Anderson in 2007, Zach Woodbury in 2004, Jim Garrett in 1992 and Rob Bousman in 1987.
2496#WrestlingWednesday: No Dull Ending to This Season
By JEREMY HINES
Thehines7@gmail.com
Terre Haute North has never had a wrestler reach the championship match in the state tournament. Thomas Dull is hoping to change that this season.
Dull has been a solid wrestler throughout his career, but when he took the time between his sophomore and junior season to work on expanding his offensive attacks – the rewards were almost immediate. Last year, as a junior, Dull advanced to the state tournament for the first time in his career, and ended up finishing fifth.
Dull was defeated in the sectional and regional championships last season by Jacob Hendrich, but Dull was able to win the final meeting between the two in the third place match at semistate. Dull pinned Hendrich in that match. Dull went on to place fifth at state.
“My defining moment came between my sophomore and junior year,†Dull said. “That’s when things really started to click for me. Things started to really work. I became more aggressive and I think that was able to make me turn a corner.â€
The most notable difference came in Dull’s offensive attack options. He was a three-time ISWA Greco-Roman state champion and relied heavily on his arsenal of throws to win folkstyle matches. He understood that he was going to have to open things up and work on his leg attacks to be able to beat the top tier wrestlers in the state.
“Thomas really had a reputation as a thrower,†Patriots coach Mark Frisz said. “You get to the higher levels, and you have to have more of an attack. So he has opened up his offense. That really showed last year during the state tournament.â€
Dull, like many successful wrestlers, believes the key to success lies in hard work. That work ethic helped him on the football field this year when he earned all-conference and honorable mention all-state as a linebacker.
Despite playing football at a very high level, Dull didn’t want to fall behind in wrestling. So he often conditioned on his own for wrestling after a football practice.
“I tried to stay in wrestling shape,†Dull said. “I ran. I worked on hand fighting. I have wrestling mats at my house so I’d get them out and work on them. A few times I even took them to the city park to work out in the fresh air. People probably thought we were weird for doing that, but I loved it. It was different than being in a wrestling room.â€
Last year’s trip to the state meet motivated Dull to get back this season.
“Going to state was the best experience I’ve ever had with wrestling,†Dull said. “There isn’t anything comparable to it in Indiana. I am definitely not satisfied though. I want first. After doing what I did last year, I know I can shoot for the top now.â€
Coach Frisz is also hoping to get back to state – and for the first time in his 27-year coaching career, he’d like to get a wrestler under the lights.
“I haven’t had a state champion,†Frisz said. “I hope to find out what it’s like. I go to state every year and watch the kids under the lights. Having that feature match, around that big crowd is amazing. It would be a dream come true for Tomas, and for me and our program. It certainly would be a special moment.â€
Dull fell in love with wrestling when his dad, Larry, took him to a match between Terre Haute North and Terre Haute South when he was five years old. Larry had wrestled for Jay County in the 80s where he injured his knee and had to miss his senior season. His workout partner, Larry Brown, finished third in 1988 at heavyweight.
Thomas has dedicated countless hours to the sport of wrestling. His hard work has been an inspiration to his teammates.
“Thomas is a real leader,†Frisz said. “He has great leadership abilities. Kids gravitate to him. He picks up a room. His personality is infectious and it brings a room to life and makes practices as fun as they can be.â€
2495#MondayMatness: Demien Visualizes Himself on Top
By STEVE KRAH
stvkrh905@gmail.com
Tanner DeMien likes to see his success even before he achieves it.
The NorthWood High School sophomore wrestler has learned to use visualization to take him to the next level. As a freshman, he placed seventh at the IHSAA State Finals at 106 pounds and his sights are set even higher this winter.
“I see myself running through my moves and getting my hand raised,†DeMien said. “I think about previous matches and how I can fix those mistakes.â€
Fourth-year NorthWood head coach Damon Hummel said DeMien has gotten better in many aspects of wrestling, but it is between the ears where he has shown the most improvement.
Hummel said DeMien gets the mental game.
“He understands how to go into a tournament (with four or five matches) and mentally prepare himself,†Hummel said. “Kids have a tendency to wear themselves out by the end of the day. He prepares himself to be better at the end of the day.â€
With his wrestling I.Q., Tanner is able to diagnose his issues about as quickly as Hummel and his staff.
“He’s been around wrestling enough that he knows what to do and what not to do,†Hummel said. “He picks himself apart more than most coaches do.â€
Between matches at a super dual, Tanner will go into a quiet place and do visualization exercises and run the halls to keep his heart rate up.
These are lessons that Tanner has learned from the many camps and off-season programs — he toured the western U.S. with the Ohio All-Star Travel Wrestling Team for 45 days last summer — he’s attended.
Tanner, 16, is thankful for his father, Jason, who got him into wrestling as a 45-pound peewee at around age 6, for his help and guidance.
“He’s a big part of what I am and what I’ve accomplished,†Tanner said of father, who is also a NorthWood volunteer assistant coach. “I give my props to him. He’s been teaching me ever since I can remember.â€
The DeMiens have heard highly-decorated coaches like Dan Gable speak on the importance of visualization.
“A lot of camps we’ve been to have really talked about the mental game,†Jason DeMien said. “It’s seeing the match before you step on the mat.â€
While rotating between 106 and 113 pounds, Tanner has also refined his moves on the mat.
“I’ve gotten better in the top position and I’m able to turn people and put them away,†Tanner said. “It’s more about technique than a strength thing. I want to get more points for my team.â€
Jason DeMien said his son has learned to apply more pressure on top, gotten good at escapes as well as movement on his feet.
“As he has gotten older, he’s learned to get angles and work those really hard,†Jason DeMien said.
Tanner goes into each practice with a game plan. He knows what he wants to concentrate on and he does so with intensity and is a believer in Hummel’s insistence on repetition.
“If I’m going drill high crotch, I’d rather do that 50 times then run five moves 10 times each,†Tanner said. “It’s just getting a couple of moves down and running them.â€
Hummel calls Tanner a “drill king.â€
“He loves to hit the move and hit the move,†Hummel said. “We talk to all of our kids about repetition.â€
Hummel and his coaching staff do not throw the kitchen sink at the Panthers. The idea is to be proficient at the things they do and not how many things they do.
“When you get close to January, there’s not much more you can teach the kids,†Hummel said. “They’ve learned what they’ve learned. Now we need to fine-tune everything. You need to be ready for sectional at the end of the year.
“Kids think they can do everything, but you’ve got to teach them two or three good moves. Some of these kids can get a couple nice takedowns and go to state with that if you’re good at it.
Practice intensity goes up while duration goes down.
“When you’ve only got one guy per weight class, you can’t beat the heck out of them everyday in 2 1/2 practices,†Hummel said. “A lot of coaches believe in a lot of moves. We believe in a smaller move base and hit them harder and faster.â€
While Tanner sees plenty of mat time during the year, he is not just a wrestler. He plays tennis for NorthWood in the fall.
“It’s great for a kid to do that,†Jason DeMien said of the multi-sport appoach. “It gives them a break from being on the mat where your body just gets worn down. Doing something different gives your mind a break.â€
Not that Tanner didn’t use his mental skills on the court.
“There’s a lot of carryover between tennis and wrestling,†Jason DeMien said. “Tennis is a very mental sport and agility is huge. I noticed that his mental game was so much stronger than kids who have been playing a long time.â€
Look for Tanner and his NorthWood Panther teammates Wednesday, Dec. 23, at Rochester’s McKee Memorial Invitational and Tuesday and Wednesday, Dec. 28-29, at Mishawaka’s Al Smith Classic.
2487#WrestlingWednesday Feature: Coast to Coast Path for Kevin Lake
Brought to you by EI Sports
By JEREMY HINES
Thehines7@gmail.com
MANCHESTER – Kevin Lake wasn’t a great wrestler back at New Haven High School. He was just a one-time regional qualifier. But what Lake lacked in wrestling success, he has made up for in coaching success. He has found his calling in coaching the sport he loves.
“I was very average in high school and college,†Lake said. “But I felt like I blossomed as a coach after traveling around and learning from some of the best coaches out there. I was always a mat rat. I was always in the coaches’ rooms trying to learn more about the sport. When you become a coach, you learn things better than when you are an athlete. You get a different perspective.â€
Lake was recently hired as the new head wrestling coach at Manchester University. While he doesn’t have the athletic pedigree some coaches have, Lake has certainly immersed himself in learning the sport of wrestling.
Lake grew up in a coaches’ home. His dad, Gary, was a long time football coach at New Haven, Ft. Wayne Wayne and Ft. Wayne Elmhurst.
“Coaching was a big part of my childhood,†Lake said. “Some of my fondest memories are with my dad in the locker rooms and on the sports field. Sports really played a huge role in my life.â€
Gary Lake is a member of the Manchester Hall of Fame. So is Kevin’s twin sister, Leanne.
“My sister was a much better athlete than me,†Lake said. “She played basketball and softball at Manchester. She’s also in the Hall of Fame there. I’m the only one not in the Hall of Fame. I guess my only shot now is to get there by coaching.â€
Lake wrestled at Manchester under coach Tom Jarman. Lake refers to Jarman as a legend in the coaching world and as a mentor.
After graduating from Manchester, Lake pursued his graduate degree at Central Michigan University. There he got involved with the wrestling program, and was able to learn from coach Tom Borrelli.
“Central Michigan is really where I got the confidence and understanding of what it took to become a high level wrestling coach,†Lake said. “Even today, what I bring to the table is a lot of what I learned as a graduate assistant.â€
Lake took his first head coaching job at Division III, Mac Murray in Jacksonville, Ill. That job became a spring board to go to Princeton University as the head assistant coach.
I coached an All-American there in Greg Parker,†Lake said.
After Princeton, Lake spent a year at South Dakota State and worked with coach Jason Liles – who was an extremely successful Division II coach working his first job in Division I.
Lake’s travels didn’t end there, however. That summer he got a call from a good friend, Shawn Charles, who was just hired as the head coach at Fresno State in California. Lake became his head assistant and moved his family out west.
Fresno State dropped its wrestling program after just two years.
Lake got out of the college coaching realm for a while at that point. He joined Beat the Streets in Los Angeles, a program that helps teach responsibility and values through wrestling.
“I always had coaching in my heart and in my blood,†Lake said. “I knew if the right opportunity came up, I’d take it. That’s when the job at Manchester came open and I jumped at the chance.â€
Lake is married with two daughters. He moved to Manchester about a month ago, and recently his daughters saw snow for the first time.
“The snow was like one of those slaps in the face welcome homes,†Lake said. “I didn’t realize how soft I had gotten. The snow is beautiful, but man is it cold.â€
Lake believes he has taken a little bit from each coach he worked with or was coached by over the years.
“At Central Michigan I learned how to lead and how to run practices,†Lake said. “My time at Fresno State I learned under one of the best technicians in the sport. Shawn Charles taught me knowledge and technique.
“At Princeton, the philosophy of Princeton athletics as a whole really related to how I want my athletes to be. It was a value of higher education and pursuit of excellence that I really liked.â€
At Manchester, Lake knows the program isn’t going to become a national powerhouse overnight. But he wants his athletes to all be high achievers in athletics, character and wrestling.
“I want them to be the best in the classroom, on the mats and to act with class on the streets,†Lake said.
Lake said when looking for wrestlers for his program, he looks for kids with a workmanlike attitude. He likes aggressiveness – guys that will push the pace and also have good defensive skills. He wants smart wrestlers with strong core values.
“I look for effort, too,†Lake said. “Often times you can tell more about how a kid comes back from barely losing a match. You can tell if he’s hungry and has something to prove. Those are the kids that I think can thrive. I want those type of kids.â€
2466 3#WrestlingWednesday: Sellmer looking to punch his ticket to state
By JEREMY HINES
Thehines7@gmail.com
Tristan Sellmer is a wrestling junkie.
When Sellmer isn’t training on the physical aspects of the sport, the Floyd Central junior is learning the mental side. He spends time each day watching film or studying new moves. He is hoping his knowledge of the sport, and his strong work ethic, will help him reach the Indiana High School state finals this season.
“Tristan Sellmer eats and breathes wrestling,†Floyd Central coach Brandon Sisson said. “He loves it. He’s always studying film. He also seeks out the best wrestlers and wants to go against them.â€
Sellmer has had a lot of success in his high school career. To date, he is a three-time sectional champion and two-time regional champ. His tournament trail has ended the last two years at the Evansville semistate.
As a freshman Sellmer won regional, but then received an unfortunate draw when Paul Konrath injury defaulted in the Castle regional. Sellmer then had to face Konrath in the first round, and lost 12-2.
Sellmer was close to punching his ticket to state as a sophomore. He won his first round semistate matchup, but then lost a heart breaker to Avon’s Nathan Conley 3-2.
“Not making it to state eats at me every single day,†Sellmer said. “It makes me train more and more. Every chance I get I am training or watching technique videos. I stay occupied completely with wrestling now.â€
Sellmer doesn’t play any other sports, and he says he doesn’t have a hobby. Wrestling and his grades are his only passions right now.
This season Sellmer has faced five of the top 15-ranked grapplers in his 138-pound weight class. He’s won all but one of those matches. Sellmer, ranked No. 4 currently, lost to No. 3-ranked Kris Rumph 3-2 in overtime. He has beaten No. 2-ranked Zach Melloh, No. 5-ranked Conley, No. 8-ranked Jake Schoenegge and No. 14-ranked Derek Blubaugh.
Sellmer’s Floyd Central team claimed its 28th sectional title this season. The school has won sectional 28 out of its 49 years in existence. The Highlanders had 13 advance to regional with five sectional champions.
Johnathan Kervin, Devon Stikes, Ty Sorg, Bradley Philpot and Sellmer were the sectional title winners.
“This is one of my more talented teams,†Sisson said. “But they are also one of the most fun and coachable teams I have had. There isn’t any negative energy in the room.â€
Sellmer is one of the kids that pushes his teammates to get better. He has put a lot of work in during the offseason. He’s went to several national tournaments and feels that’s really what has helped him get to the level he is wrestling at today.
After high school Selmer would like to wrestle in college and eventually get a degree in accounting. He loves numbers, and they come easy for him he says. Right now he has not decided where he will attend.
2441 3#WrestlingWednesday: Chundi excels on the mat and in the classroom
By JEREMY HINES
Thehines7@gmail.com
Carmel senior Suhas Chundi isn’t one to brag about his accomplishments – and there is plenty to brag about. His GPA is astronomical. His SAT score was close to perfection. He doesn’t want either of those actual numbers published because it’s just not something he thinks needs attention.
Chundi isn’t just gifted in the classroom though – he’s also a superb wrestler with state championship aspirations.
Last season Chundi placed fourth at 106 pounds. He enters the 2019-2020 campaign as the No. 2 ranked 113 pounder in the state – but has already made weight at 106.
Chundi’s success in academics, and in wrestling comes from his work ethic.
“Academics and wrestling are a lot alike,” Chundi said. “I was born with a little bit of natural intelligence, but I’m not any Rain Man genius or anything. I had to put in the dedication, figure out what to do and follow the plan. It helped me be successful.
“Wrestling is the same way. I don’t have a lot of natural talent, but I listen to my coaches, try to learn what they are telling me and follow their plan.”
On the academic side Chundi spent the summer preparing for the Biology Olympiad. Out of over 2,000 applicants, the top 20 are chosen to go to the Biology camp. In that camp there are days of learning, doing labs and taking tests. At the end there is over nine hours of testing and the top four students get selected to represent the United States in the Biology Olympiad. Chundi was one of those top four and went on to place 25th in the world at the event in Hungary.
“I think saying he’s insanely smart is an understatement,” Carmel wrestling coach Ed Pendoski said. “I’ve coached guys that have went to Northwestern, Cornell and the Navy Academy. But Chundi is on a different level. He’s applied to Harvard, Cornell, Stanford and a school that’s part of Northwestern that you have to apply to just to see if you can get the admissions application.
“I asked the head of our science department if the Biology Olympiad was a big deal. He said it is ‘out of your mind big,’ and said that it will set his plate forever.”
Pendoski had one bit of advice for Chundi as he left for the Biology competition.
“I told him if the guy from Poland finishes higher than him, don’t bother coming home,” the coach said jokingly.
Last season Chundi had 15 losses but come tournament time he was clicking on all cylinders. He won sectional and regional, got runner-up in the New Castle semistate and eventually placed fourth in state at 106 pounds.
“I want to be a state champion this year,” Chundi said. “But I also want to share the podium with most of my teammates. I want Carmel to become a wrestling school this year.”
Chundi is one of the team leaders for the Greyhounds – which is unusual for a guy competing in the smallest weight class.
Chundi is 5-2, 106 pounds but Pendoski said the team listens to him.
“He’s a lot of fun to be around,” Pendoski said. “He has a huge personality inside of the wrestling room. He really does a good job of leading by example.”
This season Chundi will be one of the rare seniors at 106, which Pendoski hopes will help him have a strength and maturity advantage over the field.
“He’s a late bloomer,” Pendoski said. “He’s really trying to elevate his game this year.”
Chundi’s parents moved to the United States from India two years before he was born. He visits India frequently and really enjoys the trips.
“Things are more rugged in India,” Chundi said. “It’s fun getting a taste of that culture and being able to visit family.”
The Carmel senior has proven he can succeed on the mat, or in the classroom. He’s also an outstanding teammate, according to Pendoski.
“I really can’t think of a better example of an ultimate teammate,” Pendoski said. “From helping give a guy a ride, to community service, to cutting weight – he does it all. When his career ends in February, Suhas Chundi will be on to bigger and better things and will excel at whatever he does.”
2426 2#MondayMatness: Team focus has been good to small but mighty Triton
By STEVE KRAH
stvkrh905@gmail.com
There may be an “i†in Triton, but there’s no “i†in team.
And for the Trojans — under the direction of co-head coaches Matt Arvesen and Ron Brown — team is the most important thing.
That philosophy has helped a school that is small (enrollment 265) become mighty in the wrestling community.
Bolstered by the attitude and success of the Class of 2015 (then-sophomore 106-pounder Malachi Greene, senior 152-pounder, Grant Stichter, junior 160-pounder Gage Waddle and senior 170-pounder Nate Spangle) won their weight class at the Plymouth Sectional), Triton went to its first Indiana High School Wrestling Coaches Association State Duals in 2015-16 (placing 10th in Class 1A).
Waddle defended his sectional crown as a senior last winter.
The Trojans have been invited back to the State Duals for 2016-17 (the meet is Friday, Dec. 23 at Memorial Coliseum in Fort Wayne).
“We’re where we are at because we kept the idea of team,†Arvesen said. “Everybody’s important. No person is more important than anybody else. Even my best guys will take the time to work with the younger kids, even if they have to sacrifice a little of their practice time.
“It’s really nice that we have some kids who have learned how to lead in the room but, ultimately, it stems back to that (Class of 2015) group. They were all about each other and how the team was doing.â€
Arvesen said talk about “Team State†had been going on at the Marshall County school for four or five years and then Triton qualified and it really bolstered the program even more.
“(Going to the State Duals) was nice because they kept everybody else focused on the team aspect,†Arvesen said. “We were never going to see the light of day, going to State with the Warren Centrals and the Penns. We just aren’t there as far as the level of commitment kids need as whole year-round to develop into that kind of team.
“Whereas, we saw as an opportunity to get our kids to focus on the team and get the numbers out in the room, we could (earn an invitation to a classed dual tournament).
“Last year, the experience was fantastic.â€
Even the kids who set the stage and had since graduated were there to cheer on the Trojans.
“They took a break from college and made the trip to Fort Wayne,†Arvesen said. “It was cool to see everybody come together like that.â€
The athletes on the current squad are young and talented and still very team-oriented.
“It’s really nice that we have some kids who have learned how to lead,†Arvesen said. “But with all the young kids, we are focused on learning technique.
“Down the line, your condition is going to play a role, your strength is going to play a role, but ultimately, your level of technique and how well you do your best stuff is what’s going to take you to that highest level.â€
Arvesen wrestled for coach Bob Read at Plymouth High School and was an IHSAA State Finals qualifier as a sophomore in 1998 at 171 pounds then placed fifth at the IHSAA State Finals as a junior in 1999 at 189 and second as a senior in 2000 at 189. He was on the coaching staff at Yorktown High School while attending Ball State University and picked up technique from Troy Dulaney (now at Daleville).
Brown, a 1999 graduate of Crosswell-Lexington High School in Michigan, was on the wrestling staffs at Richmond and Marion high schools before coming to Triton. Last fall marked his second as the school’s head football coach.
A traditionally-strong basketball community, wrestling is now creating a buzz and crowds at Triton’s gym aka “The Trojan Trench.â€
“We’ve gotten more numbers (out for the team),†Brown said. “People have been talking about our success. It was a big deal the first time we qualified for (the State Duals).â€
Triton graduates Jason Thompson (who is also head junior high wrestling coach) and Brock Vermillion and Wawasee graduate Shaun Belin are also part of the Trojans wrestling coaching staff. Arvesen and Thompson also help coach football.
Triton wrestlers begin learning a core of basic moves in the kids club — led by the high school coaches — and progress as they move up the ladder. The move set doesn’t change from fourth grade up to high school.
“By the time they are freshmen, they pretty much know all the basics and we can get into the more complicated stuff,†Thompson said. “We can just move along. We don’t have to stop and take time to say ‘this is the double-leg (takedown), this is the Half (Nelson).’ We’ve already taken care of those things in the younger years.â€
The idea is to keep the lingo simple.
“We all have the same terminology,†Arvesen said. “I can say something to any one of my kids and they’re going to understand what we’re talking about and what we want them to do during the match.â€
Some don’t step on the mat until they reach high school. But those who experience wrestling and start building a report with the coaches early at Triton have a real chance to succeed.
“Most of our success can be attributed to getting them to buy in at a very young age,†Thompson said. “It really starts when we get the kids in junior high and they really buy into our system. He’ll have confidence in you as a coach if you have a good relationship with him.
“If he knows you want him to be successful and you’ll work hard for him as long as he returns the favor for you. If you can get the kids to buy in early, they’ll do that for you throughout their career.â€
Brown said it’s not just about takedowns and pinning combinations at Triton.
“We care more about them as people than athletes and I think they see that,†Brown said. “They put out a lot of effort for us. It’s a unique situation here. We see them so much in the classroom and in other sports.â€
Consequently, the Trojans are close-knit.
“You can see it in how we handle them when they come off the mat after a tough loss or in the wrestling room,†Brown said. “It’s all very respectful and in a caring manner.â€
Greene, now a senior 132-pounder, enjoys the family atmosphere of the Triton program as well as the coaching staff’s ability to get the most out of their athletes.
“Coaches drill us in a certain way to battle and fight for every point,†Greene said. “What makes us successful is that we don’t give up.â€
Junior Vincent Helton (182) said the Trojans give it “everything we have†at practices which typically include plenty of drill work and time for a little fun.
“Everyone is focusing in the room and listening to what the coaches are telling us and working hard,†Helton said. “We cheer each other on. We’re their backing each other up.â€
Even as sophomores, 195-pounder Cameron Scarberry and heavyweight Billy Smith have their ideas of what makes Triton successful.
Scarberry: “It’s our coaches’ enthusiasm for the sport and their constant reminding us that it’s an individual sport, but it’s also a team sport. We need to work hard and be intense through practices so we can do well individually and as a team. (Getting ready for State Duals) really gives us the boost of confidence we need to do better.â€
Smith: “We have great coaches. They love wrestling just as much as the kids do. You can’t do good if the coach doesn’t love wrestling. Our coaches never put us down. They expect us to do our best (no matter the level of opponent).â€
Because they’re all into it TOGETHER.
2395#WrestlingWednesday: Penola makes his mark after impressive Al Smith
By JEREMY HINES
Thehines7@gmail.com
Two years ago Thomas Penola didn’t crack Zionsville’s varsity lineup. Last year he had a mediocre season, going 24-13. A week ago he entered the prestigious Al Smith Classic as an unranked, unseeded junior competing in arguably the toughest weight class in the tournament.
Now, just a week later, Penola’s career has taken a drastic turn. He won the Al Smith at 170 pounds, beating four ranked wrestlers in the process. When the new state rankings came out this week, Penola had one of the biggest jumps in the ranking’s history. He went from not being in the top 16, to his current rank of No. 3.
“I was really surprised when I saw the rankings,†Penola said. “I didn’t know what to expect. I had beaten some good guys at the Al Smith, but I generally don’t even look at rankings. I just listen to my coaches and go out and wrestle.â€
Penola’s coaches are perhaps the ones surprised the least about his sudden rise into the state’s wrestling spotlight.
“Thomas has had a great year,†Zionsville coach Jared Williams said. “We knew going into the Al Smith, with the competition that was going to be there at that weight, that we’d have a chance to see where he stood. I thought he could win it. I really thought that, going in, he’s there with anyone.â€
Penola knocked off No. 16 ranked Jordan Rader (14-2) in the opening round of the Al Smith. He later defeated Mike Edwards (10-5), No. 10 ranked Jared Swank (19-2), No. 9 ranked Tavonte Malone (24-1) and No. 5-ranked Zack Fattore (15-2) to win the championship.
Penola is currently 20-1 on the season. Both he, and his coaches, point to his vigorous off-season training as the reason for his success this season.
“For me, the biggest difference was that I stopped playing football and focused on wrestling,†Penola said. “The coaches I have been working with are great. They helped me focus on working on my feet. I went to camps, I worked out at CIA. I got to wrestle some guys that have really pushed me. Before this summer my weakness was wrestling on my feet. Now, I’d say, it’s my biggest strength.â€
Coach Williams credits Penola’s work ethic and desire for the turnaround.
“I really thought last year that he would make a big jump,†Williams said. “I don’t think quitting football really had anything to do with it other than he came into our season healthy. He had one of his knees worked on last year and missed all of freestyle and folkstyle season. He felt behind and really wanted to focus on wrestling during the fall. I wouldn’t encourage anyone to stop playing football. If you want to make a big jump, it can happen in the spring and summer.
“Thomas is hyper focused, and that’s why he is where he is today.â€
This year Penola’s goal is to place high at the state meet. He acknowledged that it won’t come easy. He is focusing on each match he wrestles and knows he can’t get to the point where he overlooks anyone.
“I see what happens with him in the room,†Williams said. “I can feel it when I wrestle with him. He’s up there with anyone. He has that state-placing potential. But we’ve talked, and he has a lot of things that have to improve for him to be in a state title conversation. But he’s going the things he needs to do.
“He’s as coachable as any person I’ve ever had. He takes in everything we, as a coaching staff, tell him. If we say we need something to happen, he’ll do everything in his power to make it happen. He does everything right, from nutrition, to rest to working hard in the weight room. He’s a leader for our team. And, the reason he loves wrestling is because he knows it’s a sport that rewards those that work the hardest.â€
Penola also credits having teammates that push him in the room as a reason for his success.
“Guys like Sam Gobeyn, Matt Wertz and Josue Hill all have the same mind set and are improving because of their work and the way they push each other,†Williams said.
Outside of wrestling Penola loves to hang out with his family, which includes two sisters and five brothers. He enjoys watching football and wrestling. And, he says, he loves eating when it isn’t wrestling season.
2388#MondayMatness: Curtis and Laughlin lead tough Yorktown team
By STEVE KRAH
stvkrh905@gmail.com
Yorktown won its third Indiana High School Wrestling Coaches Association State Duals Class 2A title in five years two days before Christmas in Fort Wayne.
Among those leading the Tigers were senior Brad Laughlin and sophomore Brayden Curtis.
Both are ranked No. 1 as individuals — Laughlin at 160 and Curtis at 106. Curtis competed at 113 for Tigers coach Trent McCormick at the IHSWCA State Duals.
Laughlin’s career mat resume includes three trips to the IHSAA State Finals — he was a qualifier at 120 as a freshman, fifth-place finisher at 138 as a sophomore and took third place at 145 as a junior.
Curtis wound up seventh among 106-pounders at the 2016 State Finals.
McCormick, who is in his 29th season at Yorktown with more than 500 dual victories, 92 state qualifiers, 50 state placers and three state champions (heavyweight Ross Janney in 2010, 138-pounder Devon Jackson in 2012 and 160-pounder Rhett Hiestand in 2014), explains what makes Laughlin and Curtis special.
For West Point-bound Laughlin, it’s his willingness to do whatever it takes to get better. He takes very little time away from the mat or weight room during the year.
“He’s got a great work ethic,†McCormick said of Laughlin. “He’s put a lot of time in during the off-season.â€
Until this year, Laughlin and Cael McCormick (Trent’s son and the fifth-place finisher at 152 at the 2016 IHSAA State Finals) were primary drill partners for about six or seven years.
“They sharpened each other’s edge in the practice room,†Trent McCormick said.
Laughlin is a student of the sport and studies FloWrestling video of himself and others and incorporates it into his system.
And this Tiger likes to pounce.
“I love to attack,†Laughlin said. “I think that’s one of my strongest suits. I attack, get takedowns and put points up on the board.â€
Laughlin, who placed fourth in the Super 32 Challenge in Greensboro, N.C., in October, signed to wrestle at Army — fittingly — on Veterans Day.
He chose West Point because he likes the idea of fighting with “boots on the ground.â€
“On the ground with a rifle, that’s something that appealed to me,†Laughlin, a Yorktown team captain, said.
Having Army wrestling in his future has benefitted his high school team and his senior season.
“He knows he’s wrestling at the next level,†Trent McCormick said. “He’s shifted his training to more of a collegiate style. That helps him now, whether it’s being aggressive or proper positioning and those kinds of things.â€
McCormick enjoyed wrestling success himself at Delta High School (at 185, he placed fourth at the State Finals as a junior for team state champions in 1985 and first as a senior to team state runners-up in 1986; he went 35-1 that final prep season) and remembers what teammate David Palmer (state champ at 167 in 1981 and 177 in 1982) always used to say: “You can either hate drilling or hate losing.â€
Yorktown practices are drill-heavy and McCormick sees Brayden Curtis as someone who’s benefitted from hard work and daily challenges from teammates.
“You have to have good drill partners if you want to be good,†McCormick said. “Everyday he’s wrestling Josh Stepehson. Zachary Todd and sometimes his own brother (junior Xavier Curtis), Brayden will wrestle anyone in the room if you ask him to. He just wants to get better everyday.â€
Brayden has been using his older brother as a wrestling role model for years.
“It started in eighth grade,†Brayden Curtis said. “I saw my brother have success and I just wanted to be great like him.
“He’s a real good counter to me because he’s tall and lanky and I’m very short and stocky. I have a little bit of quickness.â€
While being ranked No. 1 might be flattering, Curtis. Laughlin and McCormick are quick not to place too much stock in it.
“It’s not something I’m too concerned about,†Laughlin said. “I just want to go out there and compete. Rankings are made for the fans.â€
“At the end of the day, it’s just a ranking. I just want to improve from last year when I got seventh (at the IHSAA State Finals),†Brayden Curtis said. “I just want to be satisfied with what I do.â€
Getting people talking about the sport is never a bad thing, but there’s more to it than that.
“It’s always nice to see your name in lights, a little recognition for the work you’ve put in,†McCormick said. “(Being ranked) doesn’t mean anything when you step on the mat. You’ve got to take care of business.â€
But Yorktown wrestling, which was IHSAA state runners-up in 2010 and 2013 and third in 2014, is not only about the business of wrestling.
McCormick and his coaching staff wants their young Tigers to go on to be productive members of society.
“We try to use wrestling to instill life skills into our kids,†McCormick said. “We talk about these things all the time — say please and thank you, don’t be afraid to get your hands dirty, do good things in life. don’t always make the easy choice, make the right choice. It’s all those things that kids need to hear these days.â€
2369 3#MondayMatness with Steve Krah: Bluffton’s Bertsch has sights set on making history
By STEVE KRAH
stvkrh905@gmail.com
Landon Bertsch did not start wrestling in elementary as some top performers do. He was a swimmer in elementary school.
Then as a sixth grader, he met up with Ben Sprunger.
The winningest grappler in Bluffton High School history, Sprunger came back to his hometown to teach middle school Physical Education after college and began introducing youngsters to wrestling.
“For me it’s about numbers,” says Sprunger. “It’s about getting as many kids out, motivating them, getting them in love with the sport and continuing to develop them.”
That strategy worked with Bertsch.
“I fell in love with it,” says Bertsch. “It took me awhile to get good at it.”
By the time he reached high school, Bertsch was getting pretty good on the mat. A 132-pound Bluffton Tigers senior in 2021-22, he is a three-time IHSAA State Finals performer (qualifier in 2019 at 113 with a 39-3 record, qualifer in 2020 at 126 with 42-2 mark and sixth-place finisher in 2021 at 126 with a 24-2 ledger). His career mark 10 bouts into his final prep season was 115-7.
“He lives for wrestling,” says Sprunger of Bertsch. “That’s his thing. He puts a lot of effort into it.
“He has the grit and the toughness you can’t always coach, It’s that X Factor. Either you have it or you don’t.”
Sprunger, who is in his sixth season as Bluffton head coach, finished his high school career at 139-10 and placed three times at the State Finals — seventh at 125 as a sophomore in 1998, second at 125 as a junior in 1999 and first at 130 as a senior in 2000.
Bertsch, who also trains with the club at Bellmont and at Indiana Tech in Fort Wayne, has the chance to catch and pass Sprunger on the victory list and become Bluffton’s first four-time state qualifier.
For Bluffton, the IHSAA tournament series goes through the Jay County Sectional and Jay County Regional and Fort Wayne Semistate.
“I don’t plan on losing this year,” says Bartsch, who went 6-0 in the Allen County Athletic Conference Duals Saturday, Dec. 11 at Jay County and is 10-0 on the season. “I just want to be the best.
“My coach helps me and encourages me.”
It’s confidence that Bertsch has taken with him in each of his previous State Finals appearances.
“What goes through my mind is that these guys are not better than me,” says Bertsch. “They are the same level. I can beat every single guy here.”
As a freshmen, he was pinned by eventual fifth-placer David Pierson of Warren Central in the first round.
As a sophomore, Monrovia’s Ben Dalton edged him 6-4 in the Friday match on the way to seventh place.
“That still haunts us a little bit,” says Sprunger of the late takedown that eliminated Bertsch in 2020.
In 2021, he beat Wawasee’s Branden Dilley by technical fall in the first round and lost 5-3 to eventual runner-up Cheaney Schoeff of Avon in the second round on the way to sixth.
What about the down time between matches at a big meet?
“I mess around with my friends and let my body relax,” says Bartsch. “It helps me stay calm and not get too anxious or too excited.
“When it’s time to wrestle. it’s ‘go time’ again and I’m get ready to go.”
As his high school days have progressed, Bertsch has gotten bigger and become a tough defender and attacker.
“He’s growing up a little bit and filling out,” says Sprunger. “He’s stubborn on his feet. He won’t give up takedowns. If he’s on top, he’s a beast. He’s tough on his feet, too.
“He’s not scared of any opponent or any situation.”
Bertsch counts junior Austin Lewis — a returning state qualifer at 120 now at 145 — as a regular workout partner.
“They make each other better,” says Sprunger. “They both have a hunger to wrestle.”
The coach also rolls with the Tigers in practice, including Bertsch.
“He’s crazy,” says Bertsch of Sprunger. “He beats up on all of us.”
Bertsch notes that Sprunger keeps him honest and he makes it a point to stay in position.
“It allows you to set up and make shots and it allows you to have a good defense,” says Bertsch. “You’ve got to have good balance to be in good position. You’ve got to keep moving.”
When Bertsch moves on from Bluffton, he plans to go to college as an engineering major and wrestler. He has not yet decided on which school. His favorite high school subject is math and he’s looking forward to Calculus next semester.
Landon’s father — former middle school wrestler Matt Bertsch — is a civil engineer and owner at Bertsch-Frank & Associates LLC, a land surveying and construction engineering company located in Fort Wayne where his oldest son did an internship last summer.
Adams Central High School graduates Matt and Elizabeth Bertsch have three children — Landon, sophomore Alydia, eighth grader Eli and fifth grader Addie.
2366 2 1#MondayMatness: Stroud leading Elkhart Central back to the top
By STEVE KRAH
stvkrh905@gmail.com
A willingness to work toward constant improvement has helped raise Elkhart Central High School’s wrestling profile on the bigger stage.
The 2016-17 Blue Blazers forged an 11-5 dual-meet record, beat crosstown rival Elkhart Memorial in a dual meet for the first time in many years then raised an Elkhart Sectional team trophy for the first time in 28.
With Nick Conner (285 pounds), Tykease Baker (160) and Xander Stroud (145) winning their respective weight classes Blue Blazers edged Northridge by two points. It was the ECHS program’s first sectional team title since 1989.
The Blazers won the sectional with a come-from-behind pin victory in a consolation match.
“It takes a lot of team effort,” says Central head coach Zach Whickcar, now in his sixth season of leading the wrestling program at his alma mater. He grappled for four seasons, graduating in 2006. “Everybody needs to pull their weight.
“We won sectional with 14 guys, but it was the 14 behind them were every bit as important. They needed someone to practice with.”
“It’s been a total buy-in. We took 11 kids to the Jeff Jordan’s State Champ Camp (during the high school off-season). The kids genuinely like being around each other.
“It’s consistency and being present that gets you to where you want to be.”
While they want to win during the regular, everything the Blazers do is focused toward the postseason.
“I’m always telling them that we want to be peaking at sectionals,” says Whickcar. “We want to put out a product that’s competitive. But we want to do what is best for the kids. We want to win a sectional (team title) and we want to do well (as individuals) in the state tournament.”
Since Whickcar took over as head coach for the 2012-13 season (the Blazers were 2-16 in duals that year), Central has produced five IHSAA State Finals qualifiers — Johnny Tredway (eighth place at 160 pounds in 2013), Eliseo Guerra (sixth at 220 in both 2014 and 2015), Stroud (eighth at 145 in 2017) and Chaz Boyd (did not place at 138 in 2017).
Whickcar calls Stroud a “mat junkie.”
“He’s always wrestling,” says Whickcar of a grappler who regularly attends Indiana State Wrestling Association Regional Training Center sessions at Jimtown High School and Midwest Extreme Wrestling Club events at Penn High School besides going to places like Virginia Beach and the Iowa Nationals during the summer. “He takes advantage of those opportunities.”
Stroud said competing in big tournaments has one effect and practicing against good wrestlers has a another.
“The wrestling is done in the RTC’s,” says Stroud. “The tournaments help you with your mindset. It’s about not being worried about who you are facing and just working on your stuff. You wrestle like how you want to wrestle.
“It’s just you wrestling that other kid.”
Plenty of time in the circle has led to acute mat awareness for Stroud.
“He has a real feel for what he needs to do,” says Whickcar. “Like all of our wrestlers, he is able to find a couple of good things he is good at and uses them. He has pretty good leg attacks. But he definitely can get better.”
The wrestler talks about what mat awareness means to him.
“Where I’m at on the mat and the moves I chose to make depends on where I’m at,” says Stroud. “If I’m we’re the outer edge of the mat and I’m on the inside part of the mat and he’s closer to the line, I might shoot him out to get him out-of-bounds to re-set my position to the center.”
“Or maybe he has my leg, I’ll watch my position and step out so we can re-set and go back to the center.”
A rule change this season also allows wrestlers to get pins outside the circle. Before they could get “back” points but not falls.
“You still have to have a supporting part (of your body) inbounds,” says Stroud. “Now you can go for a pin instead of just getting points.
“You have to really watch your position more now since you can get pinned out-of-bounds.”
The current Central lineup features Sean Johnson (106), Eric Garcia (113), Brad Felder (120), Jacob Hess (126), Tony Lopez (132), Raul Martinez (138), Peyton Anderson or Austin Garcia (145), Nathan Dibley (152), Xander Stroud (160), Carlos Fortoso (170), Peterson Ngo (182), Alex Lucias (195), Omar Perez (220) and Nick Conner (285).
Stroud, Conner, Lucias, Martinez, Perez and Ngo (back after wrestling for Central as a sophomore) are seniors leading the 2017-18 Blazers.
“Those six seniors have busted their butt,” says Whickcar. “They love the sport.”
Stroud, who is planning to study biomedical engineering in college and may wrestle at the next level, says he prefers to lead by example.
“Omar Perez and Alex Lucias — They are pretty vocal,” says Stroud. “I only yell when I have to.
“Our team is pretty good about doing what they are supposed to (be doing). During the season, we do larger things. At the end of the season, we fine-tune things. That’s when you want to peak — at the end of the season.”
The Blazers opened the 2017-18 varsity season Saturday, Nov. 25 by placing second to Central Noble at the Elkhart Central Turkey Duals.
Before the New Year, the Blazers have home dual meets slated against Northridge Dec. 5 and Mishawaka Dec. 7.
Then comes the Jim Nicholson Charger Invitational at Elkhart Memorial Dec. 9 and dual meets at Elkhart Memorial Dec. 12 and South Bend Adams Dec. 14 followed by the 32-team Al Smith Classic at Mishawaka Dec. 29-30.
Coming down the stretch of the regular season, there’s a dual at Penn Jan. 4, East Noble Invitational Jan. 6, Northern Indiana Conference meet Jan. 13 and dual at Jimtown Jan. 18.
Besides Whickcar, ECHS wrestlers are pushed by a coaching staff with Central graduates Abe Que, Trevor Echartea and Zack Kurtz, Elkhart Memorial graduates Carson Sappington and Steven Vergonet and Concord graduate Brian Pfeil.
2355#MondayMatness: After semistate run as junior, Hebron Hawks' Donovan aiming high in senior campaign
By STEVE KRAH
stvkrh905@gmail.com
Ewan Donovan has made a bigger and bigger impact on the wrestling scene as the Hebron High School grappler has gotten bigger.
Now a 195-pound senior, he hopes to end his prep career in a big way.
“I’m really looking forward to the state series,” says Donovan, who among Indiana’s top-ranked grapplers in his weight class. “I really want to get going. I really want to make some noise.
“It’s the heart. I have a desire to be the best. I never want to settle for mediocrity. I push myself.”
Ryan and Shayne Donovan have four children — Heaven (20), Ewan (17), Myah (14) and Hadley (10).
Ewan is the line boy. He has been encouraged by his father in all that he does, including wrestling. Ryan Donovan was an assistant at Hebron when his son took up wrestling around the fifth grade.
“He always told me the best I can be in anything I do in life,” says Ewan Donovan of his father. “He’s been huge in my wrestling career.”
A four-year varsity competitor, Donvan was a 160-pounder as a freshman. He worked out and bumped up to 182 as a sophomore. Working even harder, he went to 195 as a junior.
Donovan has sweated with the trainers at Sports Medical Institute in the off-season to increase his power, speed and strength.
“They shaped me into a better athlete,” says Donovan. “I really couldn’t have done it without them.”
He also put in long sessions at Calumet-based Regional Wrestling Academy led by Alex Tsirtsis and practiced his moves around northwest Indiana.
“There’s definitely a special breed around The Region,” says Donovan.
“It’s a really good environment.
“I love the feeling of all the mat rooms around here.”
Donovan enjoyed a strong junior season, losing just two matches.
Unfortunately, one of those setbacks — against Calumet's A.J. Fowler — came in the “ticket round” at the Merrillville Semistate. Fowler has
moved up to 220 in 2018-19.
Donovan has wrestled bouts at 195 and 220 this season and was on-pace to become Hebron’s all-time victory leader, topping the 81 wins of 2014 graduate Giovanni Phan.
Hawks head coach Todd Adamczyk, who has Donovan in a weightlifting class, and has watched the biggest wrestller on the current squad add to his successes.
“He goes above and beyond and does all the extra things,” says Adamczyk, who is his 12th season in charge at Hebron. “Like most freshmen, he had a rough transition middle school to high school. But he made up for it the next couple years.
“He’s the whole package right now.”
Adamczyk’s advice has stuck with Donovan.
“He says you need to push yourself when you’re training,” says Donovan. “Your mind is telling you stop, but you have to push yourself to keep going.
“Wresting is definitely a lifestyle and it’s year-round and you have to be fully-committed. It teaches you life and about putting in the hard work and trying to be the best you can be at everything.”
That work ethic extends to the classroom for Donovan, who carries a grade-point average in the 3.7 range (on a 4.0 scale). His favorite subjects are History and English.
After high school, he hopes to continue his wrestling career while attending college as a double major for business and environmental. This will help him as he is next in line to run the family farm. The Donovans grow corn and soybean on more than 2,000 acres around Hebron. Hebron had wrestling for two years in the early ’80s then the program faded away. Adamczyk brought it back, first as a club sport, then two years with a junior varsity schedule. The first varsity season with 2009-10.
There were growing pains, but the Hawks have come a long way since then.
“When we first started, we asked ‘are we ever going to get there?,’” says Adamczyk. “We don’t fill every weight class. There’s only 320 kids in the school. We do the best with what we’ve got.”
Adamczyk wrestled at Hammond High School for head coaches Karl Deak and Bill Malkovich. His Hebron staff includes former Crown Point grappler Troy Bush (who is also middle school coach at Hebon) and Hebron grads Ryan Perez and Raul Fierro. Perez is also on the roster at Calumet College of St. Joseph.
2354 2#WrestlingWednesday: Alec White embraces changes
By JEREMY HINES
Thehines7@gmail.com
A lot has changed in the wrestling room at New Palestine High School over the course of a year. The Dragons have a new coach and a lot younger team. But one thing remains the same – Alec White is still a hammer in the New Pal lineup.
White, a senior, is a three-time state qualifier. He placed fourth as a freshman at 106 pounds. As a sophomore he qualified for state at 113 pounds and then returned as a junior in the same weight class and took sixth. This year White is the No. 5-ranked grappler at 126.
“Alec is just cool,†first-year New Palestine wrestling coach Alex Johns said. “If I were to describe him, that’s the first thing you notice. He’s cool. This year he has taken a different approach. He’s very intelligent and he has a game plan for each match. He’s more laid back this year than he has been in the past. He’s enjoying the ride instead of worrying about the results.â€
Last season New Palestine was loaded with talent. At the top of that list was Chad Red Jr., who finished his high school career as one of the most decorated wrestlers in Indiana history. Red was undefeated in high school, winning four state titles in the process.
Red wasn’t the only talented senior on last year’s squad. Jared Timberman was ranked in the top three most of the year at 145 pounds. Cameron Diep and Eugene Starks were also very good wrestlers for the Dragons.
In addition to losing those quality seniors, coach Chad Red Sr., also resigned at the end of the season.
This year New Palestine has a young lineup and a first-year coach.
“Last year we always expected to win, team-wise†White said. “This year we’re looking at it as a long process. Each and every person on the team has to trust the process and continue to get better. Obviously we have individual goals as well. Mine are set very high. Other people on the team have different goals that are attainable.â€
Coach Johns is enjoying his first season at the helm of the Dragons. He wrestled for the University of Indianapolis and was later a graduate assistant there. He hopes to instill some of the core values of a college wrestler into his high school team.
“We are young and inexperienced this year,†Johns said. “But the future looks bright for us for the next several years.â€
White was very disappointed with his sixth-place finish last season. White lost to Warren Central’s Skylour Turner in the Shelbyville sectional final 2-1, but then reversed that decision a week later in regional action, beating Turner 5-3 in the final. White and Turner were on opposite sides of the bracket at the New Castle semistate, but Cathedral’s Jordan Slivka beat Turner 7-3. White then beat Slivka 4-3 to win the semistate championship.
White won his first round at state, but lost the next round 6-2 to Geoffery Davis. Davis then lost to Slivka in the third-fourth place match. White lost to his tourney nemesis, Turner, 3-2 in the fifth and sixth place match.
“I was upset with my finish,†White said. “I thought I had a great opportunity to get under the lights. The draw didn’t matter to me. I felt like I was one of the best in the weight class, but someone beat me. That happens in wrestling. I’ve turned the page. I don’t like focusing on last year. I’m a different wrestler now.
“I’ve been chasing a state title ever since I can remember. That’s been my goal ever since I first saw a state finals when I was about three years old. I saw two kids wrestling under the lights and everyone watching them. I knew someday I wanted that to be me.â€
White feels he has improved over the course of the year.
“I’ve improved in every aspect,†he said. “My mental toughness, my wrestling ability and my knowledge has really improved. And I hope I continue to improve. I don’t think I’ve peaked. My best days are certainly ahead of me.â€
The Purdue Boilermakers are hoping that is true. White will wrestle for Purdue next season.
2350 1#MondayMatness: Getting better all the time drives Norwell 220-pounder Gray
By STEVE KRAH
stvkrh905@gmail.com
Each time Cale Gray steps on a wrestling mat he wants to be better than the last.
The Norwell High School senior wants constant feedback.
The 220-pound Gray stays after workouts to consult with Knights head coach John Johnson, going over moves and studying film.
“He tries to be a student of the sport,” says Johnson, who has coached Gray since the sixth grade. “After every match he wants to breakdown how he wrestled. I don’t find a lot of guys like that.
“He really tries to improve technically all the time.”
With four pins in as many matches, Gray (18-0 so far in 2019-20) helped Norwell place fifth in Class 2A at the Indiana High School Wrestling Coaches Association Duals in Fort Wayne.
The Knights went 3-1, losing 44-32 to Western then beating West Vigo 51-21, Wawasee 46-27 and Oak Hill 36-33.
Asked his best quality as an athlete and Gray replies that is his willingness to take instruction.
“It’s my ability to listen to my coaches and take in information that they give me,” says Gray. “It’s constructive criticism. I take it into account.
“Coach Johnson always critiques me on my feet and he wants me to be more heavy-handed. I’m pretty light with my hands. I don’t use them enough. Whenever he critiques me, I’ll ask him to work with me after practice.”
Gray grappled at 170 as freshman, 182 as a sophomore and 195 as a junior.
“I’d like to think I was a bit under the radar,” says Gray. “No one knew my name.”
That started to change when he placed second at the Jay County Sectional and Jay County Regional and third at the Fort Wayne Semistate, avenging sectional and regional championship losses to Jay County’s Chandler Chapman.
Gray then placed sixth in his first appearance at the IHSAA State Finals in Indianapolis and finished the 2018-19 season at 31-7.
“Last year I was definitely predictable,” says Gray. “I had a good set-up and it got me pretty far on my feet. But when I got to the semistate and state that didn’t really work.
“I was kind of a one trick pony.”
This season, Gray has been helping Johnson to diversify his attack from his feet.
“We’ve worked this year on being able to attack both the trail leg and the lead leg,” says Johnson. “He’s a big, strong guy and super athletic for his size. He can do multiple things. It’s just doing them.”
“I’ve seen him hit probably three of four (Granby Rolls) already this year and you just don’t typically see a lot of big boys doing that.”
Gray is fond of an expression that sums up his approach.
“I like to be a jack of all trades and master of none, but it’s better than being a master of only one,” says Gray. “If I have only one thing to go to and it doesn’t work, I don’t have much to go off of.”
“I try embrace every aspect of wrestling except legs. I try to pick up things and know what to do in match situations.”
Gray long ago fell in love with weight training and even worked out with a strength coach in Colorado last summer.
That continued when he got back to Indiana and before his final season of high school football (he was an all-Northeast Eight Conference defensive end for the second straight year and also played fullback).
“When I was on my own time, I’d lift every day of the week I could and I’d eat like five to seven meals a day to get bulking,” says Gray.
“When football started coming around, I didn’t have as much time to eat those meals or lift. We only lifted three times a week and I’d have time to eat three of four meals a day.”
Gray, who also did some folkstyle wrestling in the off-season, got up to 235 pounds but was unable to pack on more weight and it was decided he would wrestle at 220 for Norwell instead of 285.
As Gray has gone up in weight, he has noticed a difference in styles.
“220’s do a lot more power ties and slide-bys and they move around for a snap single,” says Gray. “Hand-fighting is something I need to get better at.”
Gray hopes to wrestle in college and study exercise science and kinesiology. He has gotten attention from smaller collegiate programs.
“I only placed sixth last year (at the State Finals),” says Gray. “My goal is to become a state champion.
“Hopefully, those D-I’s will take notice at that point.”
Cale is supported by his family. He is the son of Mike and Tracy Gray and Chris and Danny Droke. His has and older brother (Dylan) and a twin sister (Cassidy).
Before the IHSAA state tournament series (sectional Feb. 1, regional Feb. 8, semistate Feb. 15 and State Finals Feb. 21-22), the Knights has a home dual against Leo Jan. 14, the Garrett Invitational Jan. 18, a road dual against South Adams Jan. 22 and the Northeast Eight Tournament at New Haven Jan. 25.
Johnson, who is in his fourth season leading the high school program, has watched Gray come a long way.
“Cale was a very average middle school wrestler,” says Johnson. “Even as a freshman, he was OK.”
Like with many successful wrestlers, something clicked and Gray became really committed to mat game.
“Once they start to buy in, there’s no ceiling for them,” says Johnson of the mentality he shares with his athletes. “At the end of the day it takes sacrifice.
“I don’t care if it’s your weight and staying after practice to watch because this is what’s going to make you stand out.”
The coach says shortcuts won’t help you get there.
“Make them beat you because they’re a better wrestler, not because you cheated yourself,” says Johnson.
For those dedicated like Gray, Johnson says wrestling is with them all the time.
“It really becomes a lifestyle that you have to buy into — some kids do it well and some really battle with it,” says Johnson. “That’s why wrestling is really the best preparation for just being an adult.
“I always make it about more than wrestling because it really is. I want to teach them about real life. Get to practice on time. Little things like that.”
Wrestlers who are late for practice at Norwell know they have running and/or suicides in front of them.
“If you’re going to commit to something, let’s do it well and be reliable,” says Johnson. “I want to make these young men ready to hit the adult world and be responsible and productive.”
2347 3 4#MondayMatness with Steve Krah: It’s all about family for Smith/Banks bunch, Plymouth Rockies
By STEVE KRAH
stvkrh905@gmail.com
Family.
It’s a word that appears on T-shirts.
Teams shout it as they break huddles.
It’s a closeness and a bond they’re building as they work together.
Plymouth High School head wrestling coach Travis Smith has taken his blended brood of a wife, four boys and a girl and added the members of the Rockies program.
“We’re like a big family,” says Travis. “I don’t know how many kids stay at my house on a regular basis.
“I’ve raised my sons to be very loyal to each other. We don’t fight and bicker as a family. I discipline as needed. They don’t argue with each other. I don’t allow that.
“Because of the family environment we’ve had the privilege of being involved in together we welcome everybody else.”
It’s a welcoming atmosphere.
“We draw people to us as a family,” says Travis. “That’s why kids want to be around because of security, safety and they know they can trust us.
“We’re going to ride and die with them everyday.”
After a few years as a volunteer under Indiana High School Wrestling Coaches Association Hall of Famer Bob Read, Smith took over and 2022-23 is his third season in charge at Plymouth.
Travis is married to Cortney Smith.
“She’s the glue,” says her husband.
Their family includes Gavin Banks (22), Dominic Smith (19), Caydn Smith (16), Wesley Smith (16) and Angel Smith (13).
Gavin Banks (Class of 2018) and Dominic Smith (Class of 2021) are former Plymouth wrestlers, Rockies assistant coaches and Lincoln Junior High head coach and assistant respectively.
Caydn Smith (152 pounds) and Wesley Smith (145) are juniors on the PHS squad.
Angel Smith is an eighth grader who will help launch girls high school wrestling at Plymouth in 2023-24.
Caydn and Wesley appreciate the close atmosphere of Plymouth wrestling.
Says Caydn, “We try to create strong bonds with everybody on the team.”
Says Wesley, “We all motivate each other. Nobody (outside the team) really sees that side and what we have to do to prepare for matches. Having those guys in the room are big supporters.”
Travis Smith started at Valparaiso High School and finished at North Judson-San Pierre Junior/Senior High School, grappling for the Bluejays and graduating in 2001.
“I was mediocre in school,” says Travis. “When I became a grown man and started training for (Mixed Martial Arts) and Jiu-Jitsu I got the opportunity to train with a lot of good wrestlers. That’s how I ended up being able to pass that on.”
The owner of Hybrid Combat Club — an MMA gym in Plymouth that teaches Brazlian Jiu-Jitsu and Muay Thai and houses the Hybrid Wrestling Club — has witnessed a mat progression in his family.
“Gavin was the rough draft,” says Travis of the son he adopted when the boy was very young. “Gavin and Dominic didn’t get the resources that Caydn, Wesley and Angel have.
“(Caydn and Wesley) have been able to piggyback off the mistakes we made coming up together. I didn’t have a lot of experience when I was younger so I had to grow with them as a coach.”
With 85, Banks is in the top 10 on the Rockies all-time career wins list.
“My dad and I watched a lot of YouTube and I wrestled a lot of club matches,” says Gavin of his experience in learning the sport. “A lot of it came from at-home work.”
Gavin assesses his younger brothers.
“Wesley and Caydn are very knowledgeable, technical wrestlers,” says Gavin. “Wesley is more savvy when it comes to wrestling. He’s stingy and hard to score on. Caydn is a strong, athletic kid who can do a lot.”
Gavin says having a large arsenal is helpful, but the successful wrestlers have go-to moves.
“Being great at a few things is much better (than being OK at many),” says Gavin.
Dominic has learned that the fluidity of Jiu-Jitsu moves translate well to wrestling.
A club, junior high and high school wrestler at Plymouth, Dominic had Read as head coach his first three seasons and his dad took over his senior year.
It was his “one-more mentality” that Dominic appreciated about Read.
“Uno Mas. He said it all the time,” says Dominic. “You’ve always got one more.”
He says it was a dream to wrestle for his father.
“He’s a great coach,” says Dominic.
He recalls Gavin as a wrestler.
“The big thing that everybody remembers is how natural he was,” says Dominic. “He was always so calm. He never had a worry in the world. He was always ready. We was never going to quit.
“He was always present in a match.”
Dominic says each brother has wrestled with this own style.
“Caydn’s a very, very nasty wrestler,” says Dominic. “He doesn’t care who you are he’s going to press you. Overall, the kid is just mean.
“Wesley is a very, very technical wrestler. He’s always in good position. He’s always ready for anything coming at him.”
Caydn describes his strengths as a wrestler.
“I can just go,” says Caydn. “My cardio is really solid.”
Caydn subscribes to the idea of less is more.
“Perfect a few moves and stick to those,” says Caydn. “Just find different ways to hit those moves.”
Wesley talks about his stinginess and mat approach.
“I don’t give up a lot of points,” says Wesley. “I don’t give up on my position. Some kids don’t know when to bail and when to fight for position.”
Angel started grappling about the time she started school.
“I was born into wrestling and I was always at tournaments with my brothers so I thought I should try it,” says Angel. “I started when I was very young and I’m glad I did because it progressively did get harder.
“My brothers are very good at teaching a bunch of stuff on my feet. Wesley’s very technical on his feet. A lot of stuff that I do I’ve implemented from Wesley.”
Angel takes the quote “Don’t Quit - if you re already in pain, already hurt — get a reward” and uses it to drive her.
“I’ve always thought of that during very tough matches,” says Angel. “When I’m beat up and I feel broke. Getting a reward after that is the greatest feeling.”
Mishawaka’s 32-team Al Smith Classic which concluded on Dec. 30 saw Plymouth junior Anthony Popi (285) come in second. Wesley Smith placed third at 145 and Caydn Smith lost in the “ticket” round at 152.
In the Northern Lakes Conference meet Saturday, Jan. 14 at Goshen, top Rockies placers were Wesley Smith (36-1) first at 145, Popi (34-2) at 285, Caydn Smith (30-6) second at 160, sophomore Christopher Firebaugh (26-10) third 132, junior Alonzo Chantea (21-8) fourth 113, junior Seth Wright (22-8) fourth 138 and senior Matthew McCrum (22-9) fourth at 182.
The Rockies host the Plymouth Sectional Jan. 28. The IHSAA tournament continues with the Penn Regional Feb. 4 and East Chicago Semistate Feb. 11 and concludes with the State Finals Feb. 17-18 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
2339 2 2#WrestlingWednesday with Jeremy Hines: Hot Diggity Dog Elijah Anthony focused on a state medal
By JEREMY HINES
Thehines7@gmail.com
Elijah Anthony is hoping the fourth time is the charm.
Anthony, a senior wrestler at Frankfort High School, has qualified for state three years in a row. Each time, he’s fallen just short in his Friday night round. He has not placed yet at the state meet.
“He has got to be one of the best state qualifiers that has never placed,” Frankfort coach Steve Cook said. “He has probably had the toughest draw on Friday night, three years in a row. He’s wrestled someone that has placed in the top three of the finals every single year.”
Anthony didn’t have high expectations during his freshman campaign at state. He was wrestling with a broken hand. He drew Mater Dei’s Alec Freeman in the Friday night match. Freeman won 9-1 and went on to place third in the weight class.
“From the get-go I’ve expected to place every year at state,” Anthony said. “My freshman year I had a broken hand, and I knew it would be really tough to place. But my sophomore and junior years I really felt like my coaches took me to a different level, and when I didn’t place it really got in my mind.”
Anthony drew Avon’s Cheaney Schoeff for the Friday night round of state in 2020. It was a close match, with Schoeff escaping with a 7-5 victory. Schoeff then went on to finish second in the weight class.
Last season Anthony drew Brownsburg’s Brady Isom on Friday night. The two battled for six minutes, with Isom emerging with a 1-point victory, 3-2. Isom ended up placing third, and yet again, Anthony went home without placing.
This season Anthony is hoping his fortune starts to change.
“I’ve really tried to focus on all the little things this year,” Anthony said. “I focus on every single match. I work hard in every single practice. I’m just ultra-focused right now.”
Cook can see that focus every day in the Frankfort wrestling room.
“I’ve never met anyone like Elijah,” Cook said. “When he sets his mind to something, he’s going after it. Wrestling is his life.”
Anthony says he’s consumed with wrestling these days.
“All of my time is devoted to wrestling,” he said. “After practice I go help with the middle school team. When I get home, I study film. My whole life is wrestling right now.”
A month ago, Anthony got a scare that he thought might end his wrestling season. He was driving and he lost control of his vehicle. He ended up jumping a curb, knocking down a few trees and coming very close to hitting a telephone pole.
“I seriously had no idea if I was going to wrestle again after that,” Anthony said. “I remember just thinking what if this is the end of my season. I was super nervous about that.”
As it turned out, Anthony did not have any serious injuries from the wreck. He was hoping to wrestle that same weekend, but due to the circumstances he didn’t make weight for that meet. He was back on the mat the next week.
Currently Anthony is 30-0 on the season and ranked No. 6 in the 132-pound class.
Anthony wrestles at the Central Indiana Academy of Wrestling. There, his usual practice partner is the No. 1-ranked grappler in the 132-pound class – Zeke Seltzer.
“I might have to wrestle Zeke in semistate. I really can’t wait to wrestle him.”
Anthony’s wrestling style is like a pit bull that just never stops attacking. He’s aggressive, takes lots of shots and keeps his foot on the gas the entire match. He has learned to stay in better position when attacking as well.
“He’s very aggressive,” Cook said. “He’s non-stop from the whistle. He’s always on the attack, for sure.”
After high school Anthony would like to wrestle in college. He wants to study education and become a high school math teacher. He said his ultimate goal is to coach wrestling.
Anthony started wrestling when he was four but didn’t like it at first. He ended up quitting for a while. He took the sport back up in fourth grade and has been hooked ever since.
“I was in fourth grade and I started going to watch the state finals matches every year,” he said. “I watched Chad Red and Nick Lee, and all those big matches. When I made it there myself, I thought that was the coolest thing. Now, it’s all about business. If I get back to state, I’m there to win it. That’s my mentality.
“I really love wrestling. In this sport there is always something more. You accomplish one goal, and there is another one that comes up. I love that challenge.”
2328 1#WrestlingWednesday Feature: Drew Hughes of Lowell on Task for Elusive State Title
Brought to you by EI Sports
By JEREMY HINES
jerhines@cinergymetro.net
Drew Hughes has already had the type of high school wrestling career many dream of. He finished second in the state his freshman season and fifth last year. But Hughes is far from satisfied.
Hughes doesn’t aim for fifth place. His goal is a championship — nothing less.
Hughes sets the bar high for himself. Anything less than a state championship will be a disappointment.
Last state tournament might have been a turning point in Hughes’ career. He had beaten Lawrence North’s Tommy Cash and Merriville’s Jacob Covaciu during the season. He topped Cash 4-0 and Covaciu by technical fall. But after he was pinned in the first minute of the second round of state by Center Grove senior Tyler Fleener (via the spladle), he had to watch Cash claim the 138-pound title with a 5-3 decision over Covaciu.
“That has motivated me,†Hughes said. “The fact that I was there just watching, and not being out there wrestling in the finals pushes me every day. I realized I had to get better on my feet. I needed to work harder on my all-around technique.â€
Hughes has done just that.
Hughes is one of the best in the state from the top position. He can turn almost anyone he faces. But now he’s added a new dimension to his repertoire. He has greatly improved his attacks from the neutral position. He has become more confident on his feet.
The improved performance on his feet has led to a 13-0 start to the season for the Lowell junior. He has not given up a point, and has pinned all 13 wrestlers who have stepped on the mat against him.
“My goal is a state title,†Hughes said. “But I also want to go through the year without getting scored on, and by pinning everyone I face.â€
Hughes is currently the top-ranked 160 pounder in the state. The No. 2-ranked grappler at 160, Crown Point’s Darden Schurg, is one Hughes will likely see several times during the tourney. The two are in the same sectional, regional and semistate.
“We have grown up wrestling each other,†Hughes said. “We have wrestled each other since we were 8-years old.â€
Inside the Lowell wrestling room, Hughes has been training with Eric McGill, a former two-time state champion for Munster High School. He won the 125-pound class as a junior and 140 as a senior. McGill went on to wrestle for Cornell University.
“I wrestle with him quite a bit,†McGill said. “.He has good practice partners, but most of the live wrestling is done with me. When he was smaller I could beat him. Now he’s bigger and he’s getting the better of me. It’s fun, but he’s a beast now.â€
Hughes has great respect for McGill.
“He has been a really good influence on me,†Hughes said. “He’s one of the best partners you could have.â€
Hughes’ older brother Kenny has also been a good influence. Kenny was ranked No. 2 last year at 160 pounds. He lost in the same round of state as Drew, and ended up finishing seventh.
Hughes has jumped from the 120 pound class as a freshman, to 160 now. This year he isn’t having to cut weight, unlike past seasons. That decision has allowed this year to be his most fun so far.
“I love wrestling because it’s a fun sport,†Hughes said. “And when you’re not cutting weight you’re not in that bad mood that cutting can some times lead to. I’m able to focus a lot more on wrestling now.â€
With weight no longer an issue, Hughes is concentrating on getting back under the lights. His freshman year he was defeated by Warren Central’s Deondre Wilson 6-2 in the championship match at 120 pounds.
“I was hoping I was going to be wresting for a title last year,†Hughes said. “But I remember as a freshman that it was a great experience. Looking back I know I was a little shocked to be there wrestling under the lights. I really felt I could have won, but I froze up. If I get there again, I’m not going to get so caught up with the atmosphere. I’m going to go out and do what I do, and just wrestle.â€
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