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Manage articlesHigh School News2796Best of Brand Award for Indiana
The Best of Brand Awards were designed to help grow the sport of wrestling by honoring programs who are marketing themselves effectively via social media. Starting in 2011, the program has grown to include more than 150 college programs and 150 high school programs. At the high school level, we have recently expanded to include awards programs specifically for states and Indiana was one of the first chosen.
With that being said, we are currently looking to get as many high school programs involved in the programs as possible. The first part of the competition we are currently accepting registration for is the Gold Standard category. This is the most prestigious award that tracks program presence on social media. If you are interested in learning more about the program, visit the link below.
To register, click on the link below and fill out the form. We will start tracking for this award November 15th and programs who register earliest will get the highest priority. Thanks so much for your efforts to help grow your program and wrestling!
Learn About Awards Program: http://www.nwcaonline.com/nwcawebsite/best-of-brand-awards
Registration Link: http://goo.gl/forms/RYLDwLDgIi
High School News4663 7Big Seven Seniors Announce College Choices
The last of the big seven has announced his college plans as Merrillville’s Purple Hulk is going to be a Boilermaker next year. Streck is going to take on double duty as he will play football also in West Lafayette.
With Streck’s announcement it wraps up a lot of projecting and speculating of where our top seniors are headed. The first ones to announce their intentions were Kobe Woods and Blake Rypel who both project at the 197lbs weight class. Both will stay in-state with Woods going to Purdue and Rypel to Indiana.
The next big announcement was Chad Red’s plans. There had been much speculation on his destination as he is one of the top recruits in the country. Red decided to head west to the Big Red and Nebraska.
Within the past two weeks we have had announcements from Drew Hughes, Jacob Covaciu, and Brock Hudkins. Hughes will head north and sport some green while wrestling for Michigan State. Covaicu will also head north, but his destination is Madison and to join the Badgers. Lastly, Brock Hudkins will head to Northern Illinois next year.
While the seven returning champions have received the most press in regards to their college choices, there have been others that have made early commitments. Austin Holmes of Hamilton Southeastern will join the Indiana Hoosiers. Drew Hildebrandt will look to man the 125lbs spot at Central Michigan. Finally, Cael McCormick will join Army West Point next year.
Good luck to all these athletes as they represent the state at the collegiate level.
High School News2043 1Kevin Lake Hired at Manchester
Former New Haven graduate and Manchester wrestler Kevin Lake has been hired to head the Manchester University wrestling team. Lake comes to Manchester after stints at Princeton, South Dakota State, and Fresno State. Most recently he was the program director at Beat the Streets Los Angeles.
High School News5060Where are they now with Brad Traviola
Wrestler’s Name: Brad Traviolia
High School: Wawasee
College: Northwestern University
Talk a little about your high school wrestling experience:
Coach Rich Welborn had developed Wawasee into a very respectable wrestling program by the time I reached high school. Our team annually had high expectations. I was part of a group of kids from our area that competed in freestyle competition throughout the spring and summer months from a fairly early age - which I believe was a first for Wawasee. This additional time spent wrestling paid off as Wawasee had a nice run of sectional and regional championships and several state place winners.
What other sports did you play/enjoy in high school?
Football. The Wawasee Warriors were state runners-up in Class 3A in 1985. This was the first year in which the state championship format included all teams. Our team was barely over .500 during the regular season but we got hot during the playoffs and made a run all the way to the state finals. It was great fun being part of that experience and playing in the Hoosier Dome.
Memories of your state championship:
I recall feeling a sense of relief more than anything else. I lost in the semi-finals as a junior and I put a lot of pressure on myself to finish my senior year on top. I think for any state champion the accomplishment serves as a validation of the time, effort and commitment put forth by that individual or team.
Summer wrestling & summer camp experiences:
As part of the Indiana junior freestyle team I attended a week-long training camp at Doug Blubaugh’s “Top of the World Camp†in Bloomington. My parents almost turned around and took me home after arriving and seeing dogs running all over the wrestling mats, the “swimming facility†(an overgrown pond), and several coaching staff members clearing land around the camp with heavy construction equipment in between wrestling sessions. I’m glad I stayed because I learned the front-headlock from one of the very best.
College wrestling experiences:
Northwestern was a great fit for me. The campus was close (3 hours drive) but not too close to home. My teammates became my extended family. The camaraderie among my teammates was so important because the hardest part about jumping from high school to college for me was adapting to the high level of competition every day in the practice room. Taking fourth place as a team at the 1990 NCAA Wrestling Championships was definitely the highlight.
National & international experiences:
While I competed in a few national freestyle tournaments I never really got into it. High school was great in that football served as a nice break from wrestling and vice versa. After my freshman year of college I didn’t want to see a wrestling mat for months.
Favorite practice partner & why? (High school or college)
I was fortunate to have great practice partners in both high school and college. At Wawasee I practiced every day with Lance Lantz who won a state championship at 167 lbs. our senior year. There is no substitute for facing top level competition every day. At Northwestern the talent level was incredible and being a middle weight I found it beneficial to practice with both smaller, quicker guys, as well as, heavier, stronger teammates so I could work on different parts of my style depending my opponents’ strengths and weaknesses.
Who was your toughest opponent and why?
One of the toughest had to be David Lee of Wisconsin (1989 NCAA Champion at 167 lbs.). He was one of the few opponents that I don’t know whether I could have beaten even on a good day.
Most memorable match?
One match that I think about from time to time is an early round match against Marty Morgan of Minnesota at the 1989 NCAA Championships. This was the fourth time I wrestled Marty that year and he had won two of the previous three. I wrestled one of the best matches of my career this time and won our final bout decidedly. The ironic part about it, and probably the reason I think about the match occasionally, is that I lost my next two matches and came up just short of earning All-America honors. Marty went on to eventually earn 6th place while only losing to the same two individuals I did. He just met them later in the brackets because I won our match! So let that be a lesson for all of the youngsters out there - keep your intensity up at all times, especially after a big win!
What were your main sources of motivation as a wrestler?
I just wanted to be the best.
What impact has wrestling had on your life?
Like many people, sports provided me opportunities to learn from both my successes and failures. The incredible demands of wrestling are what helped me develop my work ethic and my ability to dedicate myself to a goal. Wrestling provided me an education and eventually employment as a coach at Northwestern. It absolutely opened the door for me to continue my career in college athletics.
What are you duties with the Big Ten and NCAA?
I’m the Deputy Commissioner of the Big Ten and serve as the Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer of the conference. My responsibilities include managing the day-to-day operations of the conference office.
I also serve on the NCAA Wrestling Committee. The committee reviews the rules and policies that govern collegiate wrestling and can recommend changes that it feels are in the best interest of the sport.
Where do you see college wrestling in 20 years?
My optimistic outlook foresees the number of Division I programs staying around 85. I believe that we will continue to see a growth of programs at the Division II and Division III levels. It is my hope that the NCAA will eventually sanction a dual meet championship and that will help re-energize the regular season. If wrestling has a chance to reach a broader fan base it will be through the dual meet format.
Views on class wrestling based on school enrollment (A big debate within the state of Indiana):
I must admit that I carry a rather silly sense of additional pride knowing that I won a single-class state championship. A little bit of bragging rights when trash-talking with teammates from other states. However after having seen the benefits that a class system provides, both in promotional value for the sport and a better student-athlete experience, I can’t really argue against it.
Any last words you would like wrestling fans of Indiana to know?
It’s great to see more and more quality wrestlers coming out of the state.
High School News3562 9Indiana Invited to 2016 Pittsburgh Wrestling Classic
IndianaMat is proud to announce the participation of an Indiana All-Star team at the 2016 Pittsburgh Wrestling Classic(formerly Dapper Dan) on March 26<sup class='bbc'>th</sup>, 2016! This is the most prestigious and tradition rich wrestling All-Star event in the country. The main event pits a team of USA All-Stars against the top wrestlers from Pennsylvania. This year Indiana will be featured in the preliminary meet against a team of wrestlers from the tradition rich WPIAL.
This event is for seniors and will showcase the best that Indiana has to offer on a national stage like never before. This year’s senior class will arguably be one of the best ever in terms of accomplishments and depth. Currently there are five seniors ranked in the top 7 in their respective weight classes. Look for this year’s class to continue to make an impact on the history books throughout the year. This will mark the first time Indiana has been invited to participate in the event.
Indiana will face a tough group of wrestlers from the WPIAL, which is short for the Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League. The WPIAL is made up of nine counties: Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Fayette, Greene, Lawrence, Washington, and Westmoreland. This area is regarded as THE hotbed for wrestling in the whole country. Wrestlers that have wrestled in this league include Cary Kolat, Coleman Scott, Jake Herbert, Nico Megaludis, amongst many others.
The Pittsburgh Wrestling Classic is more than just an All-Star dual meet. The weekend will include a dinner social with guest speakers along with other activities. The wrestling portion will occur on Saturday at the University of Pittsburgh. The event will feature the top USA wrestlers against the Pennsylvania All-Stars. Along with the 13 wrestlers from 113lbs-285lbs, Indiana will also be represented by four coaches from around the state.
We will have more details as to who will be chosen for this team and the coaching staff as the season progresses.
The event website is http://wrestlingclassic.com/and it will have all the event information.
Past Pittsburgh Wrestling Classic participants and their results
2014 126 - Stevan Micic Hanover Central, Indiana MD Zeke Moisey, Bethlehem Catholic 13-4
*Micic was selected as the Outstanding Wrestler for Team USA
2012 113 Jarred Brooks Warsaw, Indiana DEC Billy Rappo, Council Rock South 8-5
145 Jason Tsirtsis Crown Point, Indiana MD Zach Beitz, Juniata 13-4
2004 140 Alex Tsirtsis Griffith, Indiana DEC Isaiah Britton, Loyalsock 6-4
171 Blake Maurer Mater Dei, Indiana DEC Kurt Brenner, Freedom 8-6
1998 130 Steven Bradley, Beech Grove, Indiana, DEC. Mark Conley, Dningtn, 5-3
Past Five Year WPIAL Results
Illinois 33 WPIAL 10
Oklahoma 37 WPIAL 10
WPIAL 28 Virginia 19
Maryland 34 WPIAL 10
WPIAL 42 Michigan 0
High School News3554 95Dingo in Vegas at the World Championships (Day 3)
Greetings from Las Vegas. While the first two days have had some really exciting moments, at the end of two days,the US has only 1 medal to show for their effort. I saw Harry Lester being interviewed after his repechage loss and he was extremely emotional about his day's work. Robby Smith was, conversely, ecstatic about his non-medal performance, and rightly so. He really energized the crowd in a way that only Bisek equaled or surpassed.
Day 3 brings the final Greco competition, and 3 women's freestyle weights. The US draws are as follows:
Greco
85kg/187 lbs Jordan Holm Vs. Javid Hamzatov (Belarus) --Three-time World team member Side Show Holm brings a high energy style, along with high energy hair, to the mat against Hamzatov. He won gold at the Dave Schultz and the Hungarian Grand Prix, and currently sports a #13 World ranking. Hamzatov sits one place higher at #12, but Holm, in my opinion, has the ability to surprise in this event. Of course, the kind draws for the US ended on day 1, so Holm will have to navigate a tough field that features former World champ #10 Melonin Noumonvi of France, #1 David Chekvetadze of Russia, #2 Zhan Belenyuk of Ukraine and #3 Habibollah Akhlaghi of Iran. If Cuba's heavyweight Lopez can be beat, anyone can be beat, so Holm might pull a surprise or two.
Women's Freestyle
48kg/105.5 lbs Alyssa Lampe Vs. Thi Hang Vu (Vietnam) -- World #13 Lampe gets a nice opening matchup vs. unranked Vu of Vietnam. Of course, Vu was still a Junior World silver medalist in 2012, so she's no slouch. Lampe is coming off a 5th place finish at World's and could be poised to make a big move in this year's home country tourney. Standing at the very top of the weight class are two dominant competitors: #1 and multi-X World and Olympic champ Eri Tosaka, possibly the second most dominant woman wrestler in the world (to teammate Saori Yoshida), and the very consistent #2 Mariya Stadnyk of Azerbaijan. Lampe will need to use her physical, American style to wear down her opponents. She should win her opening match and has a very solid shot at a bronze.
53kg/116.5 lbs Whitney Conder Vs. Isabelle Sambou (Senegal) -- #11 Conder also draws an unranked opponent, although Sambou was fifth at the 2012 Olympics. Conder is a former Junior World champ and won Pan Am gold this year, so she has some nice accomplishments already. This is her 3rd World team,and this could be the one where she medals. The aforementioned Saori Yoshida of Japan is the most successful wrestler of all-time, male or female. She recently broke Karelin's record of World titles, as she currently has 15 World titles, including 3 Olympic golds. #2 Sofia Mattsson of Sweden is a 5-time World medalist and is very consistently in the money at Worlds. Conder is a similar bet for bronze as Lampe.
69kg/152 lbs Elena Pirozhkova Vs. Vs. Alison Keju (Marshall Islands) -- #8 Pirozhkova is one of the three former World champs in this division. She, like Lampe and Conder, drew an unranked opponent. I had no idea where the Marshall Islands were, so I looked it up. It's a part of Micronesia in the South Pacific. Keju is considered to be Marshallese...so now you know. Pirozhkova is plenty capable of medaling, as she has done so 4 times at the World level. This is a more open weight class than the two previously listed, and Pirozhkova could win the whole shebang. Hopefully, the 'home' crowd (she was born in Russia) gets her pumped and she wrestles to her full ability. Standing in her way are #1 Natalia Vorobieva (Russia), former World champs #3 Alina Makhinya (Ukraine) and #9 Jenny Fransson (Sweden), as well as #2 Feng Zhou of China.
Here's to hoping for 4 US medals tomorrow. U-S-A!!
High School News4182Wrestling Wednesday: Humphrey Ready for World Title
Photo by Tony Rotundo/Wrestlers are Warriors
By JEREMY HINES
jerhines@cinergymetro.net
When Reece Humphrey was in sixth grade he told his dad he wanted to try wrestling. He remembers his dad, Jim, having a big smile on his face when he learned the news.
Soon Jim started showing up to Reece’s practices. Then he started running the practices. Reece thought his dad running practice was a little odd, until he found out that his dad was a World silver medalist and a two time Olympic wrestling coach.
“I didn’t go out for wrestling because of my dad,†Reece said. “I didn’t even know about his career. I went out for wrestling because my friends talked me into it.â€
Now, over a decade later, Reece wrestles for a living. He is the United States’ top 61kg freestyle grappler and will represent his country at the World Championships this week in Las Vegas.
Reece grew up in Indiana, where he was a three-time state champion representing Lawrence North High School. He then went to Ohio State where he earned All-American honors twice with the Buckeyes.
“I remember back in high school, a state championship meant everything to me,†Humphrey said. “Then in college I wanted to be an NCAA champion. I ended up finishing second. But now, the ultimate goal is to win the World Championships, and I really feel like this is my year to do it.â€
Humphrey advanced to the Worlds by beating Daniel Dennis 12-1, 4-1 in the qualifying round.
Now, at 29, he’s the second oldest member on the US team. Humphrey is joined by Tony Ramos (57kg), Brent Metcalf (65kg), James Green (70kg), Jordan Burroughs (74kg), Jake Herbert (86kg), Kyle Snyder (97kg) and Tervel Diagnev (125kg).
“I’ve been practicing twice a day, 11 times a week all year long for this,†Humphrey said. “I love what I do. Wrestling is 24-7 for me.â€
Humphrey has cut nearly 30 pounds to get down to his competition weight.
“That’s all I’m thinking about every second,†Humphrey said. “I’m on a strict diet. Making this weight is very tough for me. I’m pretty lean around 160 pounds.â€
His class, 61kg, is 134 pounds.
This time at the World Championships Humphrey feels it is his time to take gold.
“The first time I competed at World I didn’t know what to expect,†he said. “The second time I lost a close one to a two-time medalist. Now I know how to train, how to prepare. The competition is on home soil and I’m so ready to go out and do this.â€
Humphrey feels this is his last chance to win a World medal.
“I’m anxious, nervous and excited,†he said. “I feel the pressure, but I love it. You don’t get that many shots at winning a world title. You have to take each one seriously. This really could be my last chance. I want to go out on top.â€
Reece is proud of the fact he grew up in Indiana.
“Indiana isn’t known as one of the best wrestling states,†he said. “But when I was wrestling we had about 10 really tough kids that did really well at nationals. Angel Escobedo is my training partner. He was a four-time champ from Indiana.â€
Humphrey teaches at a lot of camps throughout the state as a way of giving back.
“I do a lot of camps,†he said. “I plan on opening a club (in Ohio, where he currently resides) when I’m done with the Olympics in Rio. I’m all around the country doing camps. I have no weekends, ever. But I love working with the kids and spreading my knowledge. It’s my way of giving back to the sport that has given me so many opportunities.â€
Wrestling allows Reece to be able to spend a lot of time with his family. He and his wife Meredith have two children – Parker, 4 and Reace, 3.
“I am fortunate to be able to spend a lot of time at home with the kids,†Reace said. “And when they start school I’ll be retired. I get to be a huge part of their life.â€
This has been one of Humphrey’s most successful wrestling years so far. He won the US Open, made the world team and is now competing for a title.
“Aleksander Bogomoev (Russia) is very tough,†Humphrey said of the top ranked 61kg grappler. “But I feel like I can go out and compete with anyone right now. I’m at the top of my game.â€
High School News3052 72Dingo in Vegas at the World Championships
Greetings from The Orleans in Las Vegas, Nevada! I'm one lucky Hoosier, as I will be covering the entire week of competition for my favorite website....this one. I got in this evening and walked around the casino and floor area a bit. I saw athletes, male and female, milling around the casino, some looking intense and focused, and some enjoying what Las Vegas is famous for. Athletes from countries like Japan, Kazakshtan, Bulgaria, Russia and, yes, Trinidad and Tobago are very easy to spot, with the telltale ears and scars that often grace high level wrestlers. There are a lot of folks here from around the world, and the buzz is palpable.
Tomorrow morning, Greco competition kicks off the action, as titles will be determined at 66, 75 and 98 kilos. Draws have been released for the US, and are as follows:
66 kg/145.5 lbs -- Bryce Saddoris vs Hugo Miguel Da Silva Passos (Portugal). Two-time World member Saddoris has a favorable draw for his first match in Passos, who has had minimal international success. A two-time All-American while competing at Navy, Saddoris is also a true hometown hero, as he was a four-time state champ in Nevada. Saddoris has a very solid chance to win his first match, but he has a very tough road for a medal. 2014 World champ Davor Stefanek of Serbia is the odds on favorite to win gold, and 2014 bronze medalist Tamas Lorincz of Hungary is another strong candidate to take it all. Outside of those two, many of the top competitors from the London Olympics and the 2014 World Championships are not representing their respective countries this year. An ideal scenario for Saddoris is for him to win his opening match and then get pulled into a repechage match, where a couple of upsets could spring a bronze medalist for the former Midshipmen standout, That said, it's likely too much to ask of Saddoris at this point in his career. Hope I'm wrong.
75 kg/165 lbs -- Andy Bisek vs Luis Eduardo Avendano Rojas (Venezuela). 2014 bronze medalist Bisek opens up against an opponent he handled easily at this year's Pan Am games. Bisek has been competing internationally for a solid decade and this is his fourth World Championship. He really seems to be peaking, as evidenced by his medal at last year's competition. Despite his recent success, he's still ranked only 14th in the world, a testament to the depth of talent at this weight. Like Saddoris, Bisek has a favorable early draw, and, hopefully, he can parlay an early win into a run to the medal session. Hyeon-Woo Kim (Korea), the 2013 world champ, and Arsen Julfalakyan (Armenia), the 2014 world gold medalist, lead a strong, deep group and are the top favorites to win it all this year, although it would be foolish to underestimate Roman Vlasov of Russia, the 2012 Olympic champion and silver medalist at the 2013 Worlds. In a perfect world, Bisek puts it all together and makes a title run, but more realistically, he wins his opening match and benefits from a repechage situation. Bisek was the lone medalist in Greco for the US in 2014, and his performance on the opening day of competition could be an omen of things to come for the entire US Greco team.
98 kg/216 lb -- Caylor Williams vs Davi Jose Albino (Brazil). Three-time World team member Caylor Williams, who competed in college at UNC-Greensboro, has a tougher opening round match than Bisek and Saddoris in Albino. While Williams hasn't produced a lot of topnotch international finishes, he has displayed big-match potential, as evidenced by his huge upset of 2012 Olympic Silver medalist Rustam Totrov of Russia. However, in order to have any shot to medal tomorrow, Williams has to wrestle at his best each minute of each match. This is an especially loaded field, led by Artur Aleksanyan (Armenia), a 2012 Olympic bronze medalist, 2013 World silver medalist and 2014 World champ, Islam Magomedov (Russia), the latest in a long line of nightmarish Russian grapplers, and Ghasem Rezaei (Iran), the London Olympic champion. It would be a fairly substantial upset if Williams managed a medal this year.
I will update this thread during the competition, although I have to be careful with the picture-taking, as they are very particular about this topic. I have my fingers crossed that Bisek can reproduce last year's impressive run, and either Saddoris or Williams can pull some upsets. LET'S GO U-S-A!!!!!
High School News18582015 IHSWCA Vice Presidential Candidate Mark Line
1. Tell us what your background in wrestling is as a coach and as a competitor.
HS: Columbia City
Collegiate: Anderson (Hoosier-Buckeye Collegiate Conference Champion/NAIA qualifier)
University of Indianapolis
Coaching: Craig MS (Lawrence Twp. 3 yrs)
Knox HS/MS (1 yr)
North Newton HS (3 yrs as volunteer)
Boone Grove HS (2 yrs)
Ben Franklin MS/Valparaiso HS (2 yrs volunteer)
Valparaiso HS (2 yrs)
20 year IHSWCA Member and current Crown Point Regional Rep
2. Why did you decide to run for office in the coaches association?
To work with the Coaches throughout the state to help improve and advance wrestling in Indiana
3. What does the IHSWCA do well?
Clinics/Team State/Attempts to communicate desires to the IHSAA
4. What can the IHSWCA improve on?
Continue to grow membership
5. What do you think you can bring to the association as the VP and eventually president?
Desire to grow the Association and to try to communicate our desires to and work with the
IHSAA to incorporate them
6. Who was most influential in your life both as an athlete and coach?
My Father and Coach Don Armstrong (Columbia City)
7. How would you go about recruiting more coaches to be members of the association?
Email AD's, so they can pass it to their coach and then follow up with them, to encourage
Coaches to include their MS Coaches as well
8. What makes Indiana high school wrestling so great?
The State Tournament Series, the number of schools represented throughout and schools
of all sizes
9. What other experiences outside of wrestling do you believe would help you in this position?
I believe in negotiating in the business world will help prepare me in trying to negotiate and work
with the IHSAA on our proposals
10. What issue(s) do you feel the coaches association should address?
Wrestle-backs/ possibly modification of the scoring in the tournament
11. How would you improve communication between the IHSWCA and wrestling coaches?
Mass email and/or postings on IndianaMat.com
12. How does the IHSWCA become an association that is well respected by the IHSAA?
By continued growth (membership); open forum with members and the IHSAA
13. In what direction do you see the IHSWCA Team State going?
I would like to see it remain
High School News23292015 IHSWCA Vice Presidential Candidate Greg Ratliff
1. Tell us what your background in wrestling is as a coach and as a competitor.
I have been wrestling since the 6th grade. I got cut from the basketball team and my PE teacher/ wrestling coach Rod Dorsey made sure I got involved with wrestling. I wrestled for 4 years at Franklin Community High School and graduated in 2001. During my last two years of college at IU, I got involved in coaching at the school I student taught at, Mooresville High School. I have coached 2 years at Mooresville (assistant), 1 year at Franklin Community (assistant), 1 year at Benjamin Rush Middle School (head), and 7 years at Edgewood High School (3 assistant and 4 head)
2. Why did you decide to run for office in the coaches association?
I want to be involved with the association because it is an opportunity for me to help improve our sport. Wrestling fans are passionate and often very giving of time, energy and support to help improve the sport. I would like to help be an extension of that for our sport.
3. What does the IHSWCA do well?
The IHSWCA always has our sport’s best interest in mind. I know they have many good ideas and there are many people that give tons of time to make the association work. I like the way they have focused on bringing back the old team state and improving it.
4. What can the IHSWCA improve on?
I believe that we can probably work more on communicating with our members and the voices of our sport. It sounds like there has also already been a movement to start to incorporate a little more technology like virtual meetings.
5. What do you think you can bring to the association as the VP and eventually president?
I am always open minded and trying to find ways to improve things. I am not a guy that is stuck in his ways. I am all for incorporating technology to our process of doing things. I do a good job of promotion and building enthusiasm. I also feel that one of strong suits is to pay attention to small details and do some gritty and detailed work.
6. Who was most influential in your life both as an athlete and coach?
I have had many influential people in my life and try to take little pieces of information from every coaching person I have been involved with. There is no doubt in my mind though, that I would have never got involved with wrestling from a professional stand point had it not been for my high school coach Bob Hasseman. I loved being around the sport. I couldn’t get enough of it. I always thought that Hasseman had the best job in the world. He got to watch kids play sports all day, hang out in a weight-room, and then be around wrestling. That sounded like nothing but fun. It’s probably a good thing I didn’t know reality beforehand. I always felt that I wanted to help people reach their potential like Coach Hassemen was doing on a daily basis.
7. How would you go about recruiting more coaches to be members of the association?
I think that coaches need to know why they should join. What is in it for them? I think there needs to be more email communication with the coaches on how to register.
8. What makes Indiana high school wrestling so great?
Wrestling is the greatest sport for many of those reasons that we often use to sell kids to join our sport; discipline, hard work and all of the other life lessons. Indiana is so great in particular because of the state tournament itself. It really is the best state finals of any sport in our state. I have had many people who attended their first wrestling event at the state finals and were absolutely impressed with the whole presentation.
9. What other experiences outside of wrestling do you believe would help you in this position?
My experiences as a Physical Education and Health teacher have helped me become a better leader and to manage situations and people effectively.
10. What issue(s) do you feel the coaches association should address?
I think we need to continue to address the team state tournament and making it an actual portion of the state tournament series.
I like the idea of coaches having a singular stat/ match reporting such as trackwrestling. Football and basketball games are all reported in some capacity. It would be nice if wrestling matches weren’t so secretive.
I like the idea of wrestle- back to determine a true top 4 at semi-state so we are less concerned with someone getting a bad draw. I also would like to see wrestle-backs to 3rd at the state tournament.
I also think we need to look at the number of Saturday matches that we are currently participating in. As a coach I’m not going to get rid of those currently because I want my wrestlers to get as many opportunities as everyone else. That being said, Saturday 5 way dual meets make it hard for the casual observer to come watch. We want our sport to grow, but I have a hard time asking students to come sit in a gym for 8 hours.
11. How would you improve communication between the IHSWCA and wrestling coaches?
Communication doesn’t have to be anything crazy. It appears that there has already been a message board created to allow for communication on Indianamat. I think that we need to have an email database with all wrestling coaches that allows to communicate issues to them and hear their thoughts. Using technology such as surveymonkey is a great way to help find out pressing issues to our coaches as well.
12. How does the IHSWCA become an association that is well respected by the IHSAA?
I cannot speak on the current standing with the IHSAA, but being well respected is all about creating relationships with people. We need to take a civil approach to dealing with them and make sure they understand we are not just attacking them.
13. In what direction do you see the IHSWCA Team State going?
I believe the IHSWCA is currently doing the best they can within the parameters they are given. It obviously would be best if they qualifiers were based on the current year, but I also understand that we are currently not able to do that. Out of the whole mess of losing team state, a much improved team state was created. I like that team state is classed into the right amount of groups. Other positives are that it is in one singular venue on one day and all teams get at least 3 matches so that each place is determined 1-12. I think the future has to have some sort of in-season qualifier or something based on in-season rankings. That means that it can’t take up points on the schedule though.
High School News2777 5#Wrestling Wednesday Feature: Purdue Ready for NCAA Championships
Brought to you by EI Sports
By JEREMY HINES
jerhines@cinergymetro.net
When Tony Ersland took the job as Purdue University’s head wrestling coach he knew it would be a challenge to compete in arguably the toughest wrestling conference in the country. He embraced the challenge.
Ersland’s Boilermakers finished the season ranked in the top 25 in the country. Purdue finished with a dual record of 10-8 overall and 3-6 in the Big Ten. Eight Boilermaker wrestlers will compete in the NCAA National Championships this week, starting Thursday.
“There were a lot of positives for us this year,†Ersland said. “This was my first year in the program with the kids. We set the foundation for how we are going to operate. Overall, I’m happy with the progress we made this year.
Ersland comes to Purdue from Nebraska, where he was an assistant coach for the past eight seasons. He has coached several top wrestlers, including Craig Brester who was a two-time NCAA finalist and a Big 12 champion.
“Craig is one athlete who is near and dear to my heart,†Ersland said. “He started out as a walk on at the University of Nebraska. Then he became a two time All-American. He’s the type of athlete that makes coaching worthwhile. He poured his heart and soul into wrestling. He was a special wrestler, and his work is what made him that way.â€
Purdue’s Danny Sabatello, Brandon Nelsen, Nick Lawrence, Doug Welch, Patrick Robinson, Chad Welch, Patrick Kissel and Braden Atwood will all be competing in the NCAA Championships.
“Our goal is to have national champions and All-Americans,†Ersland said. “That’s the mindset we are going in with. We want to go in and perform at a high level. We’ve wrestled outstanding competition all year long. The Big Ten is a brutal grind. It’s like SEC football. We’ve had four out of the top five teams in the country in the Big Ten.
“It’s extremely competitive. It’s tougher sometimes to win in the conference than it is in a national bracket. There are no illusions going into the national tournament. You know exactly what you need to do.â€
Ersland likes the quality of wrestlers he has been able to look at in Indiana. He feels that there is great talent in the state.
“Purdue is in the middle of a great wrestling state,†Ersland said. “Indiana turns out a lot of good talent and we want to see those wrestlers stay at home. We don’t want the Jason Tsirtsis out there to look elsewhere.â€
When asked about Indiana’s high school tournament format, Ersland said he prefers to keep a one-class system.
“Personally I like the one class tournament,†Ersland said. “I can understand a two class format as well. But as far as evaluating talent, I really enjoy the one class. You don’t end up with a watered down system.
“I think Michigan’s system sort of waters it down. They have four classes and that’s too many. One or two tops is the way to go.â€
Ersland is married to wife Carolyn. They have twin sons, Jaxon and Mason.
“They will always have a wrestling partner,†Ersland said of his sons. “My hope is that they will fall in love with the sport as much as I have. But right now they are just four years old. They love to come to practice and watch the guys roll around. I try to get them in bed, but sometimes they just want to stay up and watch wrestling on T.V.â€
The NCAA championships begin at noon on Thursday in St. Louis.
Feature Articles5147 1#WrestlingWednesday Feature: Wabash Wrestling has Lefever Fever
Brought to you by EI Sports
By JEREMY HINES
jerhines@cinergymetro.net
To say Wabash College’s wrestling program is like a family might be an understatement.
Wabash has five wrestlers who have qualified for this weekend’s Division III Nationals, three of which are brothers.
The Little Giant’s are hoping those brothers can catapult the team to their best ever finish in the National Championship.
“Last year we finished ninth as a team, which was our best finish ever,†Wabash assistant coach Danny Irwin said. “Without a doubt we feel like we should do much better this year, just based on our seeds. All five guys are capable of getting on top of the podium.â€
Wabash is led by the Lefever brothers, who wrestled for Fort Wayne Carroll in high school. Twins Reece and Conner are seniors. Reece is the No. 2 seed at 157 pounds. Conner is the top seed at 174 pounds and younger brother Riley, a sophomore, is a returning champion who is the No. 1 seed at 184 pounds.
Wabash freshman Devin Broukal and junior Ethan Farmer, both from Bloomington South High School, have also qualified for Nationals, but are unseeded.
Riley won Nationals last season. Wrestling didn’t always come easy to the youngest Lefever brother, however. In high school he finished his freshman season with a dismal 11-18 record. He improved by his sophomore year, finishing 26-15. As a junior things really started to click. Riley was 38-3 his junior year, wrestling at 160 pounds.
In his senior season Riley finished 46-1 and was a state runner up.
“I didn’t really start to enjoy wrestling until my freshman year,†Riley said. “That’s when I found my love for the sport. I started wrestling all year around with my brothers. Because of that, I really started to improve pretty quickly.â€
The Lefevers are each others’ biggest supporters, but they are also highly competitive with one another – especially Conner and Reece.
“With Riley being the little, big brother (he’s younger, but physically bigger) he doesn’t get into it as much as Reece and Conner do,†Irwin said. “I think those two would just assume kill each other then let the other guy win. We have to break them up all the time for the good of the team."
“But as much as they fight, I don’t think anyone could be as supportive to each other as they are.â€
Conner admits that Riley is the toughest of the three right now, mainly because of his size.
“Riley would beat the crap out of us,†he said. “He throws us around like rag dolls. We have had a lot of time to throw him around like that, until he got in college. We don’t like it, but it is what it is.â€
All three brothers credit their parents, Kent and Nancy, for pushing them to get better in the sport.
“I know the way we were raised has had a big impact on how we wrestle,†Reece said. “My parents sent us to camps. They were always willing to spend the time and money it took to get us to tournaments and camps. They always made sure they gave us every opportunity in wrestling.â€
Even now, Kent and Nancy do not miss any matches. They travel all across the country to see their three boys compete.
All three are hoping to take home a National Championship. They know that if they do, Wabash will place higher than it ever has before.
“They all three can win,†Irwin said. “And hopefully get us some bonus points in the mix. If they do that, that will put us in contention for a National title.â€
Wabash finished the season with a 12-2 mark and was fourth at the National Duals.
“We all love this school,†Reece said. “The team camaraderie is very good. We are all close friends and we all want our team to succeed. We are definitely a family at Wabash.â€