Y2CJ41

By STEVE KRAH
stvkrh905@gmail.com

 
Sometimes a change of venue is the best thing for a person.
 
Mikey Robles placed fifth at the Michigan High School Athletic Association State Finals as a Niles High School 103-pound freshman in 2020.
 
He qualified for the regional stage as a sophomore then had to quarantine during the COVID-19 pandemic and saw his season end. His grades began to slip, making him academically ineligible. There were other distractions in his life that caused him to look for a new school.
 
“It was so I could better my life and move away from all the drama and stuff,” says Robles of his decision to change schools.
 
The oldest of eight children (four boys and four girls), Robles came to Indiana and Kim Wagley (the grandmother of his girlfriend) became his legal guardian until he turned 18.
 
“(Wagley) treats him like a son,” says Steven Sandefer, head coach at Mishawaka High School where Robles enrolled after Niles. “She’ll do anything for him. She’s a sweet lady.
 
“She’s working with us to keep him motivated and on-track and making good decisions. He’s come a long way in the last two years.”
 
Sandefer, who is in his ninth year as a wrestling coach and sixth leading the Cavemen program, knows what it takes to be successful inside the circle.
 
“It’s a lot of hard work,” says Sandefer. “You have to have discipline. I say this to my guys weekly: In wrestling and in life you’re going to have to do things you don’t want to do things are not always going to be easy if you want to get where you want to go.

“It reinforces a lot of those bigger life lessons.”
 
That message has reached Robles.
 
“Wrestling has helped me be a better person in life,” says Robles. “Since it does come with discipline you show people a lot more respect and it also helps you stay out of trouble.”
 
Robles was with the Cavemen in 2021-22 but ineligible to compete.
 
“My grades have gotten back up to where they are pretty good,” says Robles, who counts History as his favorite subject and sees a future as an electrical engineer.
 
With then-Niles wrestling head coach Todd Hesson bringing his Vikings to Penn’s Henry Wilk Classic, Robles had competed against Mishawaka in the past.
 
Before joining the team, Mikey was familiar with Cavemen grapplers Christian Chavez, Chris Peacock, Courtney Rider, Gunnar Sandefur and Isaac Valdez.
 
The 2022-23 season — Robles’ senior campaign — opens with him No. 12 in the Indiana Mat preseason rankings at 138 pounds for a team that is No. 2 in Class 3A.
 
“When I’m on the mat I just like to get physical,” says Robles, who is 18 now and got started in the sport at 5. “I just love to wrestle. This is my senior year. I want to go as far as I can and leave everything on the mat.”
 
Sandefer says he saw “flashes of greatness” from Robles last winter and during the off-season, but is not sure he was yet fully in grappling shape.
 
“He has a lot of room to grow in his wrestling,” says Sandefer.
 
Many wrestlers progress from the end of one high school season to another.
 
“When the season gets here you can see the improvements the kids made in the off-season,” says Sandefer. “They get to showcase their talents.
 
“That’s the real rewarding part.”
 
Robles’ regular workout partners are 113-pound senior Peacock and 145-pound junior Brabender and — occasionally — 132-pound junior Zar Walker. The coaches he works with most are Sandefer and assistant Fabian Chavez.
 
“We don’t screw around,” says Robles of their practice room mentality. “We go in their and try to get better.”
 
The wrestlers teach each other moves and talk about making them more effective.
 
“Staying in shape and packing on muscle is good,” says Robles, who stands 5-foot-7 1/2. “But it’s really not how strong you are to go out there and win a match.
 
“I believe technique beats strength any day of the week.”
 
Four state qualifiers return for Mishawaka — Walker (who placed sixth at 132 in 2021-22 and is ranked No. 2 at 132 in the preseason), seniors Chavez (No. 4 at 195) and Valdez (No. 8 at 170) and Brabender (No. 6 at 145). There’s also senior Xavier Chavez (No. 6 at 106).
 
They are are part of a large squad of 47 (45 boys and two girls).
 
“That’s about 10 more than usual,” says Sandefer. “My first year I had 30 kids so it’s come up.
 
“All 47 kids have shown they’re committed.”
 
A physical education teacher at Mishawaka, Sandefer leads athletes and others through weight training classes. Most wrestlers are in these classes, learning power movements like the bench press and squat.
 
“We do pull movements,” says Sandefer. “If you’re on a guy’s leg you want to be able to pull him in.
“We also need that leg strength.”
 
Practices at Mishawaka began Nov. 1. The first boys meet is slated for Tuesday, Nov. 29 at Northern Lakes Conference foe Warsaw.
 
Among the other competitions for the Cavemen are the Chris Traicoff Memorial Invitational at Calumet New Tech Dec. 10, a dual against crosstown rival Penn Dec. 21 at Mishawaka (Alumni Night), the 32-team Al Smith Classic at Mishawaka Dec. 29-30, the Indiana High School Wrestling Coaches Association 3A State Duals Jan. 7 at Franklin Community, the NLC Championships Jan. 14 at Wawasee, Mishawaka Sectional Jan. 28, Penn Regional Feb. 4, East Chicago Semistate Feb. 11 and IHSAA State Finals Feb. 17-18 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.

It’s not all about wrestling for Robles. He played football at Niles as a sophomore and Mishawaka as a senior. He was a middle linebacker for the 10-2 Cavemen in 2022. A shortstop/left fielder in baseball, he intends to try out for that sport in the spring. He stepped away from the diamond after eighth grade to focus on wrestling.

By Anna Kayser
If you’ve been an unfamiliar passerby in the town of Brownsburg, Ind. over the past seven years, one of the first things that might catch your eye are the purple street signs – deep purple markers adorned with a bulldog, two on each corner if you’re lucky.
 
At least, that’s what I noticed as I drove through the small – but not too small – suburb of Indianapolis en route to the fourth official practice of the 2022-23 IHSAA wrestling season, with no prior knowledge other than what was scribbled on the notepad next to me.
 
One thing I hadn’t taken note of prior to passing the “Welcome to Brownsburg” sign on Highway 139, and something that might give any other small-town Midwesterner the same familiar wave of recognition: The residents of this town about 30 minutes northwest of downtown Indy live and breathe Brownsburg High School athletics.
 
The 2021-22 Brownsburg wrestling team was nothing to snub at. The Bulldogs went 18-1 in duals and extended their program-record streak to eight consecutive Hoosier Crossroads Conference championships. Jake Hockaday led the lineup with the first state title by a freshman in school history, continuing Brownsburg’s reign of crowning one champion each year since 2016. More on him later – I promise.
 
But that was last year, and while the result is indicative of the journey to get to where they are now, it’s not the full story. What better place to begin than at the beginning – when the Bulldog wrestling program transitioned from a bottom-of-the-barrel finish to an HCC Championship in two years, to an IHSAA State Championship in four.
 
“Regardless of what it is, I have high expectations,” Brownsburg Community School Corporation Superintendent Dr. Jim Snapp said. “My experience has been if you want to have a state contending team, you [hire a coach] who has done it before.”
 
After beginning his head coaching career at Mishawaka High School – a time in which he led the program to three consecutive top-two finishes and a pair of championships in 2008 and 2010 – Darrick Snyder found himself as the subject of a coaching inquiry almost 150 miles dead south of the place where he was a Northern Indiana Conference champion and state place winner.
 
From Snyder’s point of view, there were a number of perks to coming to Brownsburg. And when his wife asked him about the wrestling team’s recent lack of success, he saw the potential to upgrade the team to something special.
 
“Yeah – but there’s no reason [for that lack of success],” he said. “All the pieces are there.”
 
Immediately, things began to shift. During Snyder’s first two seasons, the Bulldog program went 36-12 in duals and was crowned 2015 HCC Champions. Of course, that success comes not entirely from the corner but from the center of the mat itself – it’s a combination of what happens behind the scenes and the performances under the spotlight.
 
That first piece of the puzzle, the one that is encapsulated in the public eye each time the mats are rolled out: The athletes.
 
The success of that 2015 team was boasted by a pair of wrestlers that took center stage on the IHSAA State podium come February – Ty Mills (106), Brownsburg’s first finalist since Mark Meunier’s title in 1977, and Nathan Walton (170). As four-year place winners at the state tournament, they were two of four key athletes named by Snapp as being difference-makers in raising the heights of the program.
 
None was more instrumental under Snyder’s tutelage, however, than All-American and two-time NCAA Division I Championships qualifier Brayton Lee, Minnesota’s current starting 157-pounder. A leader that, without Snyder’s drive to create a pipeline from younger levels into a high school program the town could be proud of, might never have donned the purple Bulldog in the first place.
 
“[My family] knew that [Snyder] was a good coach and had a lot of success, but we weren’t that familiar with him,” Lee said. “We went to Brownsburg for a high school tournament to meet up with him when I was in middle school, and we just talked. He was just supportive and said that he would help me to become the best wrestler I can possibly be. We were really excited about Snyder, he pretty much sold us [on where the Brownsburg program would go].”
 
Not only is building the high school program a key part in escalating success, but also what feeds into it. The implementation and management of a strong program for middle school students ensures that development and love for the sport occurs at a younger age.
 
“We were fortunate enough to get some kids [like Lee] that came here because of him, and he’s worked on [building up] the middle school program – kids want to come here, kids want to stay here,” Snapp said. So, we’ve got this interaction of developing the feeder program and kids that, if they’re going to wrestle in the Indianapolis area, they [want] to come to Brownsburg.”
 
With two established wrestling academies nearby – Contender’s Wrestling Academy in Brownsburg and Red Cobra Wrestling in Avon – growth through both the school program and external coaching elevates athletes even higher.
 
Lee, a product of Red Cobra, was a good example of how development can skyrocket through that extra effort and help outside of a school program. What the Bulldogs standout star lacked early on, however, was the team aspect.
 
“It was definitely different, just because I had never been on a team before – I had just wrestled on my own,” Lee said. “I had grown up going to our very intense wrestling club and on both sides, practices were tough. I appreciated and respected that. [Snyder] was always making us do lots of tough stuff intertwined with wrestling.”
 
Prior to Lee’s first of three IHSAA state titles in 2016 – a year in which he, along with five other state placers, led the charge on Brownsburg’s IHSWCA Dual State championship and IHSAA state runner-up finishes – the Bulldogs had only crowned two individual champions in school history.
 
“We were always focused on the next day,” Lee said. “The first time I won, it was awesome, and I was grateful for it – but there was always a team aspect. I wanted to win with our team, and that idea of winning definitely pushed us. I think me winning helped bring other guys along. Knowing I was kind of a leader, knowing that my success was inspiring other guys on the Brownsburg wrestling team made me want to keep pushing.”
 
For Lee’s career specifically, the results of the drive to win as a team came quickly. His second title at 145 pounds saw seven Bulldogs on the IHSAA podium and a franchise-high three finalists – Mills and Blake Mulkey included as runners-up – to lead Brownsburg to its first IHSAA state championship in school history.
 
That influx of high-performing athletes jumpstarted Brownsburg’s rise to the top of high school wrestling in central Indiana.
 
“You put those kids together – we had a core of four, good kids – and Darrick coached up other kids around them,” Snapp said. “That started [a stretch] of us winning the conference every year for the last eight years, we’re in the strongest athletic conference in the state of Indiana. Our wrestling team has dominated. It hasn’t even been close.”
 
The second piece to the puzzle, where Snapp, the administration and coaching staff as a whole come into play, is the support Snyder continues to have behind him.
 
The best example? The wrestling room at Brownsburg High School, built during Snyder’s reign as head coach and designed by Snapp to help raise the standard of the program and accommodate the growing numbers of the extracurricular.
 
“I knew I was going to have [Snapp’s] support on just simple things,” Snyder said. “My first year here, I wanted to take a fan bus to individual state… and I was told no [by the athletic director]. I said, ‘This is a really important to the program. These guys need to watch this event, it’s incredible.’
 
“I called Jim, and every year [since], just like most teams, we get to take a team bus to state.”
 
The backing from Snapp and the administration is a means to an end in shifting the culture not just in the Brownsburg wrestling room, but in the town that loves its high school athletics.
 
“That first year, there wasn’t really anyone there for the kid that was wrestling [at state]. When you win, you want to look up and see a bunch of purple and sit with those people between rounds,” Snyder said. “We’ve really tried to change that around, anything like that.”
 
It also extends to the actual competition and helping those wrestlers reach the mats at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
 
In order to develop the athletes coming to Brownsburg or growing through school programs the Bulldogs support, the level of competition needed to continuously be raised.
 
“When I first got here, no program did any overnights or anything out of state,” Snyder said. “I went to [the athletic director] and told [them], ‘I’ve got to get out of Indianapolis’ – I was tired of wrestling the same teams over and over again, and then we got to the point that there weren’t many teams in our area that would be competitive.”
 
This upcoming season, the Bulldogs’ schedule includes the Walsh Jesuit Ironman Wrestling Tournament from and the Crown Point Invitational – Crown Point defeated Brownsburg 178-105 in the 2022 finals, setting an IHSAA record for the largest margin of victory by a team champion by over 20 points – on back-to-back weekends in December.
 
That elevation in competition level allows wrestlers to face some of their biggest challenges early and prepares them for high-pressure situations come February.
 
“I always tell [our guys] that our schedule is not meant for them to go undefeated,” Snyder said. “If you do, that’s great, but we’ve set up a schedule where we’re going to take some losses. That took administrative support to be willing to allow us to do overnights, to allow us to go out of state.”
 
Pushing athletes beyond their comfort zone to prepare them for future career hurdles is a common theme in Snyder’s coaching style, something that is on record in helping wrestlers reach their full potential.
 
And, well, maybe no one can attest to that better than a Big Ten starter.
 
“I think just his competitiveness and him pushing us every day helped me,” Lee said. “He helped push me past my comfort zone a little but more than maybe I would myself, and that’s really the main purpose of a coach. Snyder knew I wanted to be great, and he helped me move into a little bit more uncomfortable territories which is important for any athlete, especially when you’re trying to go to the next level.”

By Anna Kayser
If you’ve been an unfamiliar passerby in the town of Brownsburg, Ind. over the past seven years, one of the first things that might catch your eye are the purple street signs – deep purple markers adorned with a bulldog, two on each corner if you’re lucky.
 
At least, that’s what I noticed as I drove through the small – but not too small – suburb of Indianapolis en route to the fourth official practice of the 2022-23 IHSAA wrestling season, with no prior knowledge other than what was scribbled on the notepad next to me.
 
One thing I hadn’t taken note of prior to passing the “Welcome to Brownsburg” sign on Highway 139, and something that might give any other small-town Midwesterner the same familiar wave of recognition: The residents of this town about 30 minutes northwest of downtown Indy live and breathe Brownsburg High School athletics.
 
The 2021-22 Brownsburg wrestling team was nothing to snub at. The Bulldogs went 18-1 in duals and extended their program-record streak to eight consecutive Hoosier Crossroads Conference championships. Jake Hockaday led the lineup with the first state title by a freshman in school history, continuing Brownsburg’s reign of crowning one champion each year since 2016. More on him later – I promise.
 
But that was last year, and while the result is indicative of the journey to get to where they are now, it’s not the full story. What better place to begin than at the beginning – when the Bulldog wrestling program transitioned from a bottom-of-the-barrel finish to an HCC Championship in two years, to an IHSAA State Championship in four.
 
“Regardless of what it is, I have high expectations,” Brownsburg Community School Corporation Superintendent Dr. Jim Snapp said. “My experience has been if you want to have a state contending team, you [hire a coach] who has done it before.”
 
After beginning his head coaching career at Mishawaka High School – a time in which he led the program to three consecutive top-two finishes and a pair of championships in 2008 and 2010 – Darrick Snyder found himself as the subject of a coaching inquiry almost 150 miles dead south of the place where he was a Northern Indiana Conference champion and state place winner.
 
From Snyder’s point of view, there were a number of perks to coming to Brownsburg. And when his wife asked him about the wrestling team’s recent lack of success, he saw the potential to upgrade the team to something special.
 
“Yeah – but there’s no reason [for that lack of success],” he said. “All the pieces are there.”
 
Immediately, things began to shift. During Snyder’s first two seasons, the Bulldog program went 36-12 in duals and was crowned 2015 HCC Champions. Of course, that success comes not entirely from the corner but from the center of the mat itself – it’s a combination of what happens behind the scenes and the performances under the spotlight.
 
That first piece of the puzzle, the one that is encapsulated in the public eye each time the mats are rolled out: The athletes.
 
The success of that 2015 team was boasted by a pair of wrestlers that took center stage on the IHSAA State podium come February – Ty Mills (106), Brownsburg’s first finalist since Mark Meunier’s title in 1977, and Nathan Walton (170). As four-year place winners at the state tournament, they were two of four key athletes named by Snapp as being difference-makers in raising the heights of the program.
 
None was more instrumental under Snyder’s tutelage, however, than All-American and two-time NCAA Division I Championships qualifier Brayton Lee, Minnesota’s current starting 157-pounder. A leader that, without Snyder’s drive to create a pipeline from younger levels into a high school program the town could be proud of, might never have donned the purple Bulldog in the first place.
 
“[My family] knew that [Snyder] was a good coach and had a lot of success, but we weren’t that familiar with him,” Lee said. “We went to Brownsburg for a high school tournament to meet up with him when I was in middle school, and we just talked. He was just supportive and said that he would help me to become the best wrestler I can possibly be. We were really excited about Snyder, he pretty much sold us [on where the Brownsburg program would go].”
 
Not only is building the high school program a key part in escalating success, but also what feeds into it. The implementation and management of a strong program for middle school students ensures that development and love for the sport occurs at a younger age.
 
“We were fortunate enough to get some kids [like Lee] that came here because of him, and he’s worked on [building up] the middle school program – kids want to come here, kids want to stay here,” Snapp said. So, we’ve got this interaction of developing the feeder program and kids that, if they’re going to wrestle in the Indianapolis area, they [want] to come to Brownsburg.”
 
With two established wrestling academies nearby – Contender’s Wrestling Academy in Brownsburg and Red Cobra Wrestling in Avon – growth through both the school program and external coaching elevates athletes even higher.
 
Lee, a product of Red Cobra, was a good example of how development can skyrocket through that extra effort and help outside of a school program. What the Bulldogs standout star lacked early on, however, was the team aspect.
 
“It was definitely different, just because I had never been on a team before – I had just wrestled on my own,” Lee said. “I had grown up going to our very intense wrestling club and on both sides, practices were tough. I appreciated and respected that. [Snyder] was always making us do lots of tough stuff intertwined with wrestling.”
 
Prior to Lee’s first of three IHSAA state titles in 2016 – a year in which he, along with five other state placers, led the charge on Brownsburg’s IHSWCA Dual State championship and IHSAA state runner-up finishes – the Bulldogs had only crowned two individual champions in school history.
 
“We were always focused on the next day,” Lee said. “The first time I won, it was awesome, and I was grateful for it – but there was always a team aspect. I wanted to win with our team, and that idea of winning definitely pushed us. I think me winning helped bring other guys along. Knowing I was kind of a leader, knowing that my success was inspiring other guys on the Brownsburg wrestling team made me want to keep pushing.”
 
For Lee’s career specifically, the results of the drive to win as a team came quickly. His second title at 145 pounds saw seven Bulldogs on the IHSAA podium and a franchise-high three finalists – Mills and Blake Mulkey included as runners-up – to lead Brownsburg to its first IHSAA state championship in school history.
 
That influx of high-performing athletes jumpstarted Brownsburg’s rise to the top of high school wrestling in central Indiana.
 
“You put those kids together – we had a core of four, good kids – and Darrick coached up other kids around them,” Snapp said. “That started [a stretch] of us winning the conference every year for the last eight years, we’re in the strongest athletic conference in the state of Indiana. Our wrestling team has dominated. It hasn’t even been close.”
 
The second piece to the puzzle, where Snapp, the administration and coaching staff as a whole come into play, is the support Snyder continues to have behind him.
 
The best example? The wrestling room at Brownsburg High School, built during Snyder’s reign as head coach and designed by Snapp to help raise the standard of the program and accommodate the growing numbers of the extracurricular.
 
“I knew I was going to have [Snapp’s] support on just simple things,” Snyder said. “My first year here, I wanted to take a fan bus to individual state… and I was told no [by the athletic director]. I said, ‘This is a really important to the program. These guys need to watch this event, it’s incredible.’
 
“I called Jim, and every year [since], just like most teams, we get to take a team bus to state.”
 
The backing from Snapp and the administration is a means to an end in shifting the culture not just in the Brownsburg wrestling room, but in the town that loves its high school athletics.
 
“That first year, there wasn’t really anyone there for the kid that was wrestling [at state]. When you win, you want to look up and see a bunch of purple and sit with those people between rounds,” Snyder said. “We’ve really tried to change that around, anything like that.”
 
It also extends to the actual competition and helping those wrestlers reach the mats at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
 
In order to develop the athletes coming to Brownsburg or growing through school programs the Bulldogs support, the level of competition needed to continuously be raised.
 
“When I first got here, no program did any overnights or anything out of state,” Snyder said. “I went to [the athletic director] and told [them], ‘I’ve got to get out of Indianapolis’ – I was tired of wrestling the same teams over and over again, and then we got to the point that there weren’t many teams in our area that would be competitive.”
 
This upcoming season, the Bulldogs’ schedule includes the Walsh Jesuit Ironman Wrestling Tournament from and the Crown Point Invitational – Crown Point defeated Brownsburg 178-105 in the 2022 finals, setting an IHSAA record for the largest margin of victory by a team champion by over 20 points – on back-to-back weekends in December.
 
That elevation in competition level allows wrestlers to face some of their biggest challenges early and prepares them for high-pressure situations come February.
 
“I always tell [our guys] that our schedule is not meant for them to go undefeated,” Snyder said. “If you do, that’s great, but we’ve set up a schedule where we’re going to take some losses. That took administrative support to be willing to allow us to do overnights, to allow us to go out of state.”
 
Pushing athletes beyond their comfort zone to prepare them for future career hurdles is a common theme in Snyder’s coaching style, something that is on record in helping wrestlers reach their full potential.
 
And, well, maybe no one can attest to that better than a Big Ten starter.
 
“I think just his competitiveness and him pushing us every day helped me,” Lee said. “He helped push me past my comfort zone a little but more than maybe I would myself, and that’s really the main purpose of a coach. Snyder knew I wanted to be great, and he helped me move into a little bit more uncomfortable territories which is important for any athlete, especially when you’re trying to go to the next level.”

By Anna Kayser
If you’ve been an unfamiliar passerby in the town of Brownsburg, Ind. over the past seven years, one of the first things that might catch your eye are the purple street signs – deep purple markers adorned with a bulldog, two on each corner if you’re lucky.
 
At least, that’s what I noticed as I drove through the small – but not too small – suburb of Indianapolis en route to the fourth official practice of the 2022-23 IHSAA wrestling season, with no prior knowledge other than what was scribbled on the notepad next to me.
 
One thing I hadn’t taken note of prior to passing the “Welcome to Brownsburg” sign on Highway 139, and something that might give any other small-town Midwesterner the same familiar wave of recognition: The residents of this town about 30 minutes northwest of downtown Indy live and breathe Brownsburg High School athletics.
 
The 2021-22 Brownsburg wrestling team was nothing to snub at. The Bulldogs went 18-1 in duals and extended their program-record streak to eight consecutive Hoosier Crossroads Conference championships. Jake Hockaday led the lineup with the first state title by a freshman in school history, continuing Brownsburg’s reign of crowning one champion each year since 2016. More on him later – I promise.
 
But that was last year, and while the result is indicative of the journey to get to where they are now, it’s not the full story. What better place to begin than at the beginning – when the Bulldog wrestling program transitioned from a bottom-of-the-barrel finish to an HCC Championship in two years, to an IHSAA State Championship in four.
 
“Regardless of what it is, I have high expectations,” Brownsburg Community School Corporation Superintendent Dr. Jim Snapp said. “My experience has been if you want to have a state contending team, you [hire a coach] who has done it before.”
 
After beginning his head coaching career at Mishawaka High School – a time in which he led the program to three consecutive top-two finishes and a pair of championships in 2008 and 2010 – Darrick Snyder found himself as the subject of a coaching inquiry almost 150 miles dead south of the place where he was a Northern Indiana Conference champion and state place winner.
 
From Snyder’s point of view, there were a number of perks to coming to Brownsburg. And when his wife asked him about the wrestling team’s recent lack of success, he saw the potential to upgrade the team to something special.
 
“Yeah – but there’s no reason [for that lack of success],” he said. “All the pieces are there.”
 
Immediately, things began to shift. During Snyder’s first two seasons, the Bulldog program went 36-12 in duals and was crowned 2015 HCC Champions. Of course, that success comes not entirely from the corner but from the center of the mat itself – it’s a combination of what happens behind the scenes and the performances under the spotlight.
 
That first piece of the puzzle, the one that is encapsulated in the public eye each time the mats are rolled out: The athletes.
 
The success of that 2015 team was boasted by a pair of wrestlers that took center stage on the IHSAA State podium come February – Ty Mills (106), Brownsburg’s first finalist since Mark Meunier’s title in 1977, and Nathan Walton (170). As four-year place winners at the state tournament, they were two of four key athletes named by Snapp as being difference-makers in raising the heights of the program.
 
None was more instrumental under Snyder’s tutelage, however, than All-American and two-time NCAA Division I Championships qualifier Brayton Lee, Minnesota’s current starting 157-pounder. A leader that, without Snyder’s drive to create a pipeline from younger levels into a high school program the town could be proud of, might never have donned the purple Bulldog in the first place.
 
“[My family] knew that [Snyder] was a good coach and had a lot of success, but we weren’t that familiar with him,” Lee said. “We went to Brownsburg for a high school tournament to meet up with him when I was in middle school, and we just talked. He was just supportive and said that he would help me to become the best wrestler I can possibly be. We were really excited about Snyder, he pretty much sold us [on where the Brownsburg program would go].”
 
Not only is building the high school program a key part in escalating success, but also what feeds into it. The implementation and management of a strong program for middle school students ensures that development and love for the sport occurs at a younger age.
 
“We were fortunate enough to get some kids [like Lee] that came here because of him, and he’s worked on [building up] the middle school program – kids want to come here, kids want to stay here,” Snapp said. So, we’ve got this interaction of developing the feeder program and kids that, if they’re going to wrestle in the Indianapolis area, they [want] to come to Brownsburg.”
 
With two established wrestling academies nearby – Contender’s Wrestling Academy in Brownsburg and Red Cobra Wrestling in Avon – growth through both the school program and external coaching elevates athletes even higher.
 
Lee, a product of Red Cobra, was a good example of how development can skyrocket through that extra effort and help outside of a school program. What the Bulldogs standout star lacked early on, however, was the team aspect.
 
“It was definitely different, just because I had never been on a team before – I had just wrestled on my own,” Lee said. “I had grown up going to our very intense wrestling club and on both sides, practices were tough. I appreciated and respected that. [Snyder] was always making us do lots of tough stuff intertwined with wrestling.”
 
Prior to Lee’s first of three IHSAA state titles in 2016 – a year in which he, along with five other state placers, led the charge on Brownsburg’s IHSWCA Dual State championship and IHSAA state runner-up finishes – the Bulldogs had only crowned two individual champions in school history.
 
“We were always focused on the next day,” Lee said. “The first time I won, it was awesome, and I was grateful for it – but there was always a team aspect. I wanted to win with our team, and that idea of winning definitely pushed us. I think me winning helped bring other guys along. Knowing I was kind of a leader, knowing that my success was inspiring other guys on the Brownsburg wrestling team made me want to keep pushing.”
 
For Lee’s career specifically, the results of the drive to win as a team came quickly. His second title at 145 pounds saw seven Bulldogs on the IHSAA podium and a franchise-high three finalists – Mills and Blake Mulkey included as runners-up – to lead Brownsburg to its first IHSAA state championship in school history.
 
That influx of high-performing athletes jumpstarted Brownsburg’s rise to the top of high school wrestling in central Indiana.
 
“You put those kids together – we had a core of four, good kids – and Darrick coached up other kids around them,” Snapp said. “That started [a stretch] of us winning the conference every year for the last eight years, we’re in the strongest athletic conference in the state of Indiana. Our wrestling team has dominated. It hasn’t even been close.”
 
The second piece to the puzzle, where Snapp, the administration and coaching staff as a whole come into play, is the support Snyder continues to have behind him.
 
The best example? The wrestling room at Brownsburg High School, built during Snyder’s reign as head coach and designed by Snapp to help raise the standard of the program and accommodate the growing numbers of the extracurricular.
 
“I knew I was going to have [Snapp’s] support on just simple things,” Snyder said. “My first year here, I wanted to take a fan bus to individual state… and I was told no [by the athletic director]. I said, ‘This is a really important to the program. These guys need to watch this event, it’s incredible.’
 
“I called Jim, and every year [since], just like most teams, we get to take a team bus to state.”
 
The backing from Snapp and the administration is a means to an end in shifting the culture not just in the Brownsburg wrestling room, but in the town that loves its high school athletics.
 
“That first year, there wasn’t really anyone there for the kid that was wrestling [at state]. When you win, you want to look up and see a bunch of purple and sit with those people between rounds,” Snyder said. “We’ve really tried to change that around, anything like that.”
 
It also extends to the actual competition and helping those wrestlers reach the mats at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
 
In order to develop the athletes coming to Brownsburg or growing through school programs the Bulldogs support, the level of competition needed to continuously be raised.
 
“When I first got here, no program did any overnights or anything out of state,” Snyder said. “I went to [the athletic director] and told [them], ‘I’ve got to get out of Indianapolis’ – I was tired of wrestling the same teams over and over again, and then we got to the point that there weren’t many teams in our area that would be competitive.”
 
This upcoming season, the Bulldogs’ schedule includes the Walsh Jesuit Ironman Wrestling Tournament from and the Crown Point Invitational – Crown Point defeated Brownsburg 178-105 in the 2022 finals, setting an IHSAA record for the largest margin of victory by a team champion by over 20 points – on back-to-back weekends in December.
 
That elevation in competition level allows wrestlers to face some of their biggest challenges early and prepares them for high-pressure situations come February.
 
“I always tell [our guys] that our schedule is not meant for them to go undefeated,” Snyder said. “If you do, that’s great, but we’ve set up a schedule where we’re going to take some losses. That took administrative support to be willing to allow us to do overnights, to allow us to go out of state.”
 
Pushing athletes beyond their comfort zone to prepare them for future career hurdles is a common theme in Snyder’s coaching style, something that is on record in helping wrestlers reach their full potential.
 
And, well, maybe no one can attest to that better than a Big Ten starter.
 
“I think just his competitiveness and him pushing us every day helped me,” Lee said. “He helped push me past my comfort zone a little but more than maybe I would myself, and that’s really the main purpose of a coach. Snyder knew I wanted to be great, and he helped me move into a little bit more uncomfortable territories which is important for any athlete, especially when you’re trying to go to the next level.”

By Anna Kayser
If you’ve been an unfamiliar passerby in the town of Brownsburg, Ind. over the past seven years, one of the first things that might catch your eye are the purple street signs – deep purple markers adorned with a bulldog, two on each corner if you’re lucky.
 
At least, that’s what I noticed as I drove through the small – but not too small – suburb of Indianapolis en route to the fourth official practice of the 2022-23 IHSAA wrestling season, with no prior knowledge other than what was scribbled on the notepad next to me.
 
One thing I hadn’t taken note of prior to passing the “Welcome to Brownsburg” sign on Highway 139, and something that might give any other small-town Midwesterner the same familiar wave of recognition: The residents of this town about 30 minutes northwest of downtown Indy live and breathe Brownsburg High School athletics.
 
The 2021-22 Brownsburg wrestling team was nothing to snub at. The Bulldogs went 18-1 in duals and extended their program-record streak to eight consecutive Hoosier Crossroads Conference championships. Jake Hockaday led the lineup with the first state title by a freshman in school history, continuing Brownsburg’s reign of crowning one champion each year since 2016. More on him later – I promise.
 
But that was last year, and while the result is indicative of the journey to get to where they are now, it’s not the full story. What better place to begin than at the beginning – when the Bulldog wrestling program transitioned from a bottom-of-the-barrel finish to an HCC Championship in two years, to an IHSAA State Championship in four.
 
“Regardless of what it is, I have high expectations,” Brownsburg Community School Corporation Superintendent Dr. Jim Snapp said. “My experience has been if you want to have a state contending team, you [hire a coach] who has done it before.”
 
After beginning his head coaching career at Mishawaka High School – a time in which he led the program to three consecutive top-two finishes and a pair of championships in 2008 and 2010 – Darrick Snyder found himself as the subject of a coaching inquiry almost 150 miles dead south of the place where he was a Northern Indiana Conference champion and state place winner.
 
From Snyder’s point of view, there were a number of perks to coming to Brownsburg. And when his wife asked him about the wrestling team’s recent lack of success, he saw the potential to upgrade the team to something special.
 
“Yeah – but there’s no reason [for that lack of success],” he said. “All the pieces are there.”
 
Immediately, things began to shift. During Snyder’s first two seasons, the Bulldog program went 36-12 in duals and was crowned 2015 HCC Champions. Of course, that success comes not entirely from the corner but from the center of the mat itself – it’s a combination of what happens behind the scenes and the performances under the spotlight.
 
That first piece of the puzzle, the one that is encapsulated in the public eye each time the mats are rolled out: The athletes.
 
The success of that 2015 team was boasted by a pair of wrestlers that took center stage on the IHSAA State podium come February – Ty Mills (106), Brownsburg’s first finalist since Mark Meunier’s title in 1977, and Nathan Walton (170). As four-year place winners at the state tournament, they were two of four key athletes named by Snapp as being difference-makers in raising the heights of the program.
 
None was more instrumental under Snyder’s tutelage, however, than All-American and two-time NCAA Division I Championships qualifier Brayton Lee, Minnesota’s current starting 157-pounder. A leader that, without Snyder’s drive to create a pipeline from younger levels into a high school program the town could be proud of, might never have donned the purple Bulldog in the first place.
 
“[My family] knew that [Snyder] was a good coach and had a lot of success, but we weren’t that familiar with him,” Lee said. “We went to Brownsburg for a high school tournament to meet up with him when I was in middle school, and we just talked. He was just supportive and said that he would help me to become the best wrestler I can possibly be. We were really excited about Snyder, he pretty much sold us [on where the Brownsburg program would go].”
 
Not only is building the high school program a key part in escalating success, but also what feeds into it. The implementation and management of a strong program for middle school students ensures that development and love for the sport occurs at a younger age.
 
“We were fortunate enough to get some kids [like Lee] that came here because of him, and he’s worked on [building up] the middle school program – kids want to come here, kids want to stay here,” Snapp said. So, we’ve got this interaction of developing the feeder program and kids that, if they’re going to wrestle in the Indianapolis area, they [want] to come to Brownsburg.”
 
With two established wrestling academies nearby – Contender’s Wrestling Academy in Brownsburg and Red Cobra Wrestling in Avon – growth through both the school program and external coaching elevates athletes even higher.
 
Lee, a product of Red Cobra, was a good example of how development can skyrocket through that extra effort and help outside of a school program. What the Bulldogs standout star lacked early on, however, was the team aspect.
 
“It was definitely different, just because I had never been on a team before – I had just wrestled on my own,” Lee said. “I had grown up going to our very intense wrestling club and on both sides, practices were tough. I appreciated and respected that. [Snyder] was always making us do lots of tough stuff intertwined with wrestling.”
 
Prior to Lee’s first of three IHSAA state titles in 2016 – a year in which he, along with five other state placers, led the charge on Brownsburg’s IHSWCA Dual State championship and IHSAA state runner-up finishes – the Bulldogs had only crowned two individual champions in school history.
 
“We were always focused on the next day,” Lee said. “The first time I won, it was awesome, and I was grateful for it – but there was always a team aspect. I wanted to win with our team, and that idea of winning definitely pushed us. I think me winning helped bring other guys along. Knowing I was kind of a leader, knowing that my success was inspiring other guys on the Brownsburg wrestling team made me want to keep pushing.”
 
For Lee’s career specifically, the results of the drive to win as a team came quickly. His second title at 145 pounds saw seven Bulldogs on the IHSAA podium and a franchise-high three finalists – Mills and Blake Mulkey included as runners-up – to lead Brownsburg to its first IHSAA state championship in school history.
 
That influx of high-performing athletes jumpstarted Brownsburg’s rise to the top of high school wrestling in central Indiana.
 
“You put those kids together – we had a core of four, good kids – and Darrick coached up other kids around them,” Snapp said. “That started [a stretch] of us winning the conference every year for the last eight years, we’re in the strongest athletic conference in the state of Indiana. Our wrestling team has dominated. It hasn’t even been close.”
 
The second piece to the puzzle, where Snapp, the administration and coaching staff as a whole come into play, is the support Snyder continues to have behind him.
 
The best example? The wrestling room at Brownsburg High School, built during Snyder’s reign as head coach and designed by Snapp to help raise the standard of the program and accommodate the growing numbers of the extracurricular.
 
“I knew I was going to have [Snapp’s] support on just simple things,” Snyder said. “My first year here, I wanted to take a fan bus to individual state… and I was told no [by the athletic director]. I said, ‘This is a really important to the program. These guys need to watch this event, it’s incredible.’
 
“I called Jim, and every year [since], just like most teams, we get to take a team bus to state.”
 
The backing from Snapp and the administration is a means to an end in shifting the culture not just in the Brownsburg wrestling room, but in the town that loves its high school athletics.
 
“That first year, there wasn’t really anyone there for the kid that was wrestling [at state]. When you win, you want to look up and see a bunch of purple and sit with those people between rounds,” Snyder said. “We’ve really tried to change that around, anything like that.”
 
It also extends to the actual competition and helping those wrestlers reach the mats at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
 
In order to develop the athletes coming to Brownsburg or growing through school programs the Bulldogs support, the level of competition needed to continuously be raised.
 
“When I first got here, no program did any overnights or anything out of state,” Snyder said. “I went to [the athletic director] and told [them], ‘I’ve got to get out of Indianapolis’ – I was tired of wrestling the same teams over and over again, and then we got to the point that there weren’t many teams in our area that would be competitive.”
 
This upcoming season, the Bulldogs’ schedule includes the Walsh Jesuit Ironman Wrestling Tournament from and the Crown Point Invitational – Crown Point defeated Brownsburg 178-105 in the 2022 finals, setting an IHSAA record for the largest margin of victory by a team champion by over 20 points – on back-to-back weekends in December.
 
That elevation in competition level allows wrestlers to face some of their biggest challenges early and prepares them for high-pressure situations come February.
 
“I always tell [our guys] that our schedule is not meant for them to go undefeated,” Snyder said. “If you do, that’s great, but we’ve set up a schedule where we’re going to take some losses. That took administrative support to be willing to allow us to do overnights, to allow us to go out of state.”
 
Pushing athletes beyond their comfort zone to prepare them for future career hurdles is a common theme in Snyder’s coaching style, something that is on record in helping wrestlers reach their full potential.
 
And, well, maybe no one can attest to that better than a Big Ten starter.
 
“I think just his competitiveness and him pushing us every day helped me,” Lee said. “He helped push me past my comfort zone a little but more than maybe I would myself, and that’s really the main purpose of a coach. Snyder knew I wanted to be great, and he helped me move into a little bit more uncomfortable territories which is important for any athlete, especially when you’re trying to go to the next level.”

By Anna Kayser
If you’ve been an unfamiliar passerby in the town of Brownsburg, Ind. over the past seven years, one of the first things that might catch your eye are the purple street signs – deep purple markers adorned with a bulldog, two on each corner if you’re lucky.
 
At least, that’s what I noticed as I drove through the small – but not too small – suburb of Indianapolis en route to the fourth official practice of the 2022-23 IHSAA wrestling season, with no prior knowledge other than what was scribbled on the notepad next to me.
 
One thing I hadn’t taken note of prior to passing the “Welcome to Brownsburg” sign on Highway 139, and something that might give any other small-town Midwesterner the same familiar wave of recognition: The residents of this town about 30 minutes northwest of downtown Indy live and breathe Brownsburg High School athletics.
 
The 2021-22 Brownsburg wrestling team was nothing to snub at. The Bulldogs went 18-1 in duals and extended their program-record streak to eight consecutive Hoosier Crossroads Conference championships. Jake Hockaday led the lineup with the first state title by a freshman in school history, continuing Brownsburg’s reign of crowning one champion each year since 2016. More on him later – I promise.
 
But that was last year, and while the result is indicative of the journey to get to where they are now, it’s not the full story. What better place to begin than at the beginning – when the Bulldog wrestling program transitioned from a bottom-of-the-barrel finish to an HCC Championship in two years, to an IHSAA State Championship in four.
 
“Regardless of what it is, I have high expectations,” Brownsburg Community School Corporation Superintendent Dr. Jim Snapp said. “My experience has been if you want to have a state contending team, you [hire a coach] who has done it before.”
 
After beginning his head coaching career at Mishawaka High School – a time in which he led the program to three consecutive top-two finishes and a pair of championships in 2008 and 2010 – Darrick Snyder found himself as the subject of a coaching inquiry almost 150 miles dead south of the place where he was a Northern Indiana Conference champion and state place winner.
 
From Snyder’s point of view, there were a number of perks to coming to Brownsburg. And when his wife asked him about the wrestling team’s recent lack of success, he saw the potential to upgrade the team to something special.
 
“Yeah – but there’s no reason [for that lack of success],” he said. “All the pieces are there.”
 
Immediately, things began to shift. During Snyder’s first two seasons, the Bulldog program went 36-12 in duals and was crowned 2015 HCC Champions. Of course, that success comes not entirely from the corner but from the center of the mat itself – it’s a combination of what happens behind the scenes and the performances under the spotlight.
 
That first piece of the puzzle, the one that is encapsulated in the public eye each time the mats are rolled out: The athletes.
 
The success of that 2015 team was boasted by a pair of wrestlers that took center stage on the IHSAA State podium come February – Ty Mills (106), Brownsburg’s first finalist since Mark Meunier’s title in 1977, and Nathan Walton (170). As four-year place winners at the state tournament, they were two of four key athletes named by Snapp as being difference-makers in raising the heights of the program.
 
None was more instrumental under Snyder’s tutelage, however, than All-American and two-time NCAA Division I Championships qualifier Brayton Lee, Minnesota’s current starting 157-pounder. A leader that, without Snyder’s drive to create a pipeline from younger levels into a high school program the town could be proud of, might never have donned the purple Bulldog in the first place.
 
“[My family] knew that [Snyder] was a good coach and had a lot of success, but we weren’t that familiar with him,” Lee said. “We went to Brownsburg for a high school tournament to meet up with him when I was in middle school, and we just talked. He was just supportive and said that he would help me to become the best wrestler I can possibly be. We were really excited about Snyder, he pretty much sold us [on where the Brownsburg program would go].”
 
Not only is building the high school program a key part in escalating success, but also what feeds into it. The implementation and management of a strong program for middle school students ensures that development and love for the sport occurs at a younger age.
 
“We were fortunate enough to get some kids [like Lee] that came here because of him, and he’s worked on [building up] the middle school program – kids want to come here, kids want to stay here,” Snapp said. So, we’ve got this interaction of developing the feeder program and kids that, if they’re going to wrestle in the Indianapolis area, they [want] to come to Brownsburg.”
 
With two established wrestling academies nearby – Contender’s Wrestling Academy in Brownsburg and Red Cobra Wrestling in Avon – growth through both the school program and external coaching elevates athletes even higher.
 
Lee, a product of Red Cobra, was a good example of how development can skyrocket through that extra effort and help outside of a school program. What the Bulldogs standout star lacked early on, however, was the team aspect.
 
“It was definitely different, just because I had never been on a team before – I had just wrestled on my own,” Lee said. “I had grown up going to our very intense wrestling club and on both sides, practices were tough. I appreciated and respected that. [Snyder] was always making us do lots of tough stuff intertwined with wrestling.”
 
Prior to Lee’s first of three IHSAA state titles in 2016 – a year in which he, along with five other state placers, led the charge on Brownsburg’s IHSWCA Dual State championship and IHSAA state runner-up finishes – the Bulldogs had only crowned two individual champions in school history.
 
“We were always focused on the next day,” Lee said. “The first time I won, it was awesome, and I was grateful for it – but there was always a team aspect. I wanted to win with our team, and that idea of winning definitely pushed us. I think me winning helped bring other guys along. Knowing I was kind of a leader, knowing that my success was inspiring other guys on the Brownsburg wrestling team made me want to keep pushing.”
 
For Lee’s career specifically, the results of the drive to win as a team came quickly. His second title at 145 pounds saw seven Bulldogs on the IHSAA podium and a franchise-high three finalists – Mills and Blake Mulkey included as runners-up – to lead Brownsburg to its first IHSAA state championship in school history.
 
That influx of high-performing athletes jumpstarted Brownsburg’s rise to the top of high school wrestling in central Indiana.
 
“You put those kids together – we had a core of four, good kids – and Darrick coached up other kids around them,” Snapp said. “That started [a stretch] of us winning the conference every year for the last eight years, we’re in the strongest athletic conference in the state of Indiana. Our wrestling team has dominated. It hasn’t even been close.”
 
The second piece to the puzzle, where Snapp, the administration and coaching staff as a whole come into play, is the support Snyder continues to have behind him.
 
The best example? The wrestling room at Brownsburg High School, built during Snyder’s reign as head coach and designed by Snapp to help raise the standard of the program and accommodate the growing numbers of the extracurricular.
 
“I knew I was going to have [Snapp’s] support on just simple things,” Snyder said. “My first year here, I wanted to take a fan bus to individual state… and I was told no [by the athletic director]. I said, ‘This is a really important to the program. These guys need to watch this event, it’s incredible.’
 
“I called Jim, and every year [since], just like most teams, we get to take a team bus to state.”
 
The backing from Snapp and the administration is a means to an end in shifting the culture not just in the Brownsburg wrestling room, but in the town that loves its high school athletics.
 
“That first year, there wasn’t really anyone there for the kid that was wrestling [at state]. When you win, you want to look up and see a bunch of purple and sit with those people between rounds,” Snyder said. “We’ve really tried to change that around, anything like that.”
 
It also extends to the actual competition and helping those wrestlers reach the mats at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
 
In order to develop the athletes coming to Brownsburg or growing through school programs the Bulldogs support, the level of competition needed to continuously be raised.
 
“When I first got here, no program did any overnights or anything out of state,” Snyder said. “I went to [the athletic director] and told [them], ‘I’ve got to get out of Indianapolis’ – I was tired of wrestling the same teams over and over again, and then we got to the point that there weren’t many teams in our area that would be competitive.”
 
This upcoming season, the Bulldogs’ schedule includes the Walsh Jesuit Ironman Wrestling Tournament from and the Crown Point Invitational – Crown Point defeated Brownsburg 178-105 in the 2022 finals, setting an IHSAA record for the largest margin of victory by a team champion by over 20 points – on back-to-back weekends in December.
 
That elevation in competition level allows wrestlers to face some of their biggest challenges early and prepares them for high-pressure situations come February.
 
“I always tell [our guys] that our schedule is not meant for them to go undefeated,” Snyder said. “If you do, that’s great, but we’ve set up a schedule where we’re going to take some losses. That took administrative support to be willing to allow us to do overnights, to allow us to go out of state.”
 
Pushing athletes beyond their comfort zone to prepare them for future career hurdles is a common theme in Snyder’s coaching style, something that is on record in helping wrestlers reach their full potential.
 
And, well, maybe no one can attest to that better than a Big Ten starter.
 
“I think just his competitiveness and him pushing us every day helped me,” Lee said. “He helped push me past my comfort zone a little but more than maybe I would myself, and that’s really the main purpose of a coach. Snyder knew I wanted to be great, and he helped me move into a little bit more uncomfortable territories which is important for any athlete, especially when you’re trying to go to the next level.”

By Anna Kayser
If you’ve been an unfamiliar passerby in the town of Brownsburg, Ind. over the past seven years, one of the first things that might catch your eye are the purple street signs – deep purple markers adorned with a bulldog, two on each corner if you’re lucky.
 
At least, that’s what I noticed as I drove through the small – but not too small – suburb of Indianapolis en route to the fourth official practice of the 2022-23 IHSAA wrestling season, with no prior knowledge other than what was scribbled on the notepad next to me.
 
One thing I hadn’t taken note of prior to passing the “Welcome to Brownsburg” sign on Highway 139, and something that might give any other small-town Midwesterner the same familiar wave of recognition: The residents of this town about 30 minutes northwest of downtown Indy live and breathe Brownsburg High School athletics.
 
The 2021-22 Brownsburg wrestling team was nothing to snub at. The Bulldogs went 18-1 in duals and extended their program-record streak to eight consecutive Hoosier Crossroads Conference championships. Jake Hockaday led the lineup with the first state title by a freshman in school history, continuing Brownsburg’s reign of crowning one champion each year since 2016. More on him later – I promise.
 
But that was last year, and while the result is indicative of the journey to get to where they are now, it’s not the full story. What better place to begin than at the beginning – when the Bulldog wrestling program transitioned from a bottom-of-the-barrel finish to an HCC Championship in two years, to an IHSAA State Championship in four.
 
“Regardless of what it is, I have high expectations,” Brownsburg Community School Corporation Superintendent Dr. Jim Snapp said. “My experience has been if you want to have a state contending team, you [hire a coach] who has done it before.”
 
After beginning his head coaching career at Mishawaka High School – a time in which he led the program to three consecutive top-two finishes and a pair of championships in 2008 and 2010 – Darrick Snyder found himself as the subject of a coaching inquiry almost 150 miles dead south of the place where he was a Northern Indiana Conference champion and state place winner.
 
From Snyder’s point of view, there were a number of perks to coming to Brownsburg. And when his wife asked him about the wrestling team’s recent lack of success, he saw the potential to upgrade the team to something special.
 
“Yeah – but there’s no reason [for that lack of success],” he said. “All the pieces are there.”
 
Immediately, things began to shift. During Snyder’s first two seasons, the Bulldog program went 36-12 in duals and was crowned 2015 HCC Champions. Of course, that success comes not entirely from the corner but from the center of the mat itself – it’s a combination of what happens behind the scenes and the performances under the spotlight.
 
That first piece of the puzzle, the one that is encapsulated in the public eye each time the mats are rolled out: The athletes.
 
The success of that 2015 team was boasted by a pair of wrestlers that took center stage on the IHSAA State podium come February – Ty Mills (106), Brownsburg’s first finalist since Mark Meunier’s title in 1977, and Nathan Walton (170). As four-year place winners at the state tournament, they were two of four key athletes named by Snapp as being difference-makers in raising the heights of the program.
 
None was more instrumental under Snyder’s tutelage, however, than All-American and two-time NCAA Division I Championships qualifier Brayton Lee, Minnesota’s current starting 157-pounder. A leader that, without Snyder’s drive to create a pipeline from younger levels into a high school program the town could be proud of, might never have donned the purple Bulldog in the first place.
 
“[My family] knew that [Snyder] was a good coach and had a lot of success, but we weren’t that familiar with him,” Lee said. “We went to Brownsburg for a high school tournament to meet up with him when I was in middle school, and we just talked. He was just supportive and said that he would help me to become the best wrestler I can possibly be. We were really excited about Snyder, he pretty much sold us [on where the Brownsburg program would go].”
 
Not only is building the high school program a key part in escalating success, but also what feeds into it. The implementation and management of a strong program for middle school students ensures that development and love for the sport occurs at a younger age.
 
“We were fortunate enough to get some kids [like Lee] that came here because of him, and he’s worked on [building up] the middle school program – kids want to come here, kids want to stay here,” Snapp said. So, we’ve got this interaction of developing the feeder program and kids that, if they’re going to wrestle in the Indianapolis area, they [want] to come to Brownsburg.”
 
With two established wrestling academies nearby – Contender’s Wrestling Academy in Brownsburg and Red Cobra Wrestling in Avon – growth through both the school program and external coaching elevates athletes even higher.
 
Lee, a product of Red Cobra, was a good example of how development can skyrocket through that extra effort and help outside of a school program. What the Bulldogs standout star lacked early on, however, was the team aspect.
 
“It was definitely different, just because I had never been on a team before – I had just wrestled on my own,” Lee said. “I had grown up going to our very intense wrestling club and on both sides, practices were tough. I appreciated and respected that. [Snyder] was always making us do lots of tough stuff intertwined with wrestling.”
 
Prior to Lee’s first of three IHSAA state titles in 2016 – a year in which he, along with five other state placers, led the charge on Brownsburg’s IHSWCA Dual State championship and IHSAA state runner-up finishes – the Bulldogs had only crowned two individual champions in school history.
 
“We were always focused on the next day,” Lee said. “The first time I won, it was awesome, and I was grateful for it – but there was always a team aspect. I wanted to win with our team, and that idea of winning definitely pushed us. I think me winning helped bring other guys along. Knowing I was kind of a leader, knowing that my success was inspiring other guys on the Brownsburg wrestling team made me want to keep pushing.”
 
For Lee’s career specifically, the results of the drive to win as a team came quickly. His second title at 145 pounds saw seven Bulldogs on the IHSAA podium and a franchise-high three finalists – Mills and Blake Mulkey included as runners-up – to lead Brownsburg to its first IHSAA state championship in school history.
 
That influx of high-performing athletes jumpstarted Brownsburg’s rise to the top of high school wrestling in central Indiana.
 
“You put those kids together – we had a core of four, good kids – and Darrick coached up other kids around them,” Snapp said. “That started [a stretch] of us winning the conference every year for the last eight years, we’re in the strongest athletic conference in the state of Indiana. Our wrestling team has dominated. It hasn’t even been close.”
 
The second piece to the puzzle, where Snapp, the administration and coaching staff as a whole come into play, is the support Snyder continues to have behind him.
 
The best example? The wrestling room at Brownsburg High School, built during Snyder’s reign as head coach and designed by Snapp to help raise the standard of the program and accommodate the growing numbers of the extracurricular.
 
“I knew I was going to have [Snapp’s] support on just simple things,” Snyder said. “My first year here, I wanted to take a fan bus to individual state… and I was told no [by the athletic director]. I said, ‘This is a really important to the program. These guys need to watch this event, it’s incredible.’
 
“I called Jim, and every year [since], just like most teams, we get to take a team bus to state.”
 
The backing from Snapp and the administration is a means to an end in shifting the culture not just in the Brownsburg wrestling room, but in the town that loves its high school athletics.
 
“That first year, there wasn’t really anyone there for the kid that was wrestling [at state]. When you win, you want to look up and see a bunch of purple and sit with those people between rounds,” Snyder said. “We’ve really tried to change that around, anything like that.”
 
It also extends to the actual competition and helping those wrestlers reach the mats at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
 
In order to develop the athletes coming to Brownsburg or growing through school programs the Bulldogs support, the level of competition needed to continuously be raised.
 
“When I first got here, no program did any overnights or anything out of state,” Snyder said. “I went to [the athletic director] and told [them], ‘I’ve got to get out of Indianapolis’ – I was tired of wrestling the same teams over and over again, and then we got to the point that there weren’t many teams in our area that would be competitive.”
 
This upcoming season, the Bulldogs’ schedule includes the Walsh Jesuit Ironman Wrestling Tournament from and the Crown Point Invitational – Crown Point defeated Brownsburg 178-105 in the 2022 finals, setting an IHSAA record for the largest margin of victory by a team champion by over 20 points – on back-to-back weekends in December.
 
That elevation in competition level allows wrestlers to face some of their biggest challenges early and prepares them for high-pressure situations come February.
 
“I always tell [our guys] that our schedule is not meant for them to go undefeated,” Snyder said. “If you do, that’s great, but we’ve set up a schedule where we’re going to take some losses. That took administrative support to be willing to allow us to do overnights, to allow us to go out of state.”
 
Pushing athletes beyond their comfort zone to prepare them for future career hurdles is a common theme in Snyder’s coaching style, something that is on record in helping wrestlers reach their full potential.
 
And, well, maybe no one can attest to that better than a Big Ten starter.
 
“I think just his competitiveness and him pushing us every day helped me,” Lee said. “He helped push me past my comfort zone a little but more than maybe I would myself, and that’s really the main purpose of a coach. Snyder knew I wanted to be great, and he helped me move into a little bit more uncomfortable territories which is important for any athlete, especially when you’re trying to go to the next level.”

By Anna Kayser
If you’ve been an unfamiliar passerby in the town of Brownsburg, Ind. over the past seven years, one of the first things that might catch your eye are the purple street signs – deep purple markers adorned with a bulldog, two on each corner if you’re lucky.
 
At least, that’s what I noticed as I drove through the small – but not too small – suburb of Indianapolis en route to the fourth official practice of the 2022-23 IHSAA wrestling season, with no prior knowledge other than what was scribbled on the notepad next to me.
 
One thing I hadn’t taken note of prior to passing the “Welcome to Brownsburg” sign on Highway 139, and something that might give any other small-town Midwesterner the same familiar wave of recognition: The residents of this town about 30 minutes northwest of downtown Indy live and breathe Brownsburg High School athletics.
 
The 2021-22 Brownsburg wrestling team was nothing to snub at. The Bulldogs went 18-1 in duals and extended their program-record streak to eight consecutive Hoosier Crossroads Conference championships. Jake Hockaday led the lineup with the first state title by a freshman in school history, continuing Brownsburg’s reign of crowning one champion each year since 2016. More on him later – I promise.
 
But that was last year, and while the result is indicative of the journey to get to where they are now, it’s not the full story. What better place to begin than at the beginning – when the Bulldog wrestling program transitioned from a bottom-of-the-barrel finish to an HCC Championship in two years, to an IHSAA State Championship in four.
 
“Regardless of what it is, I have high expectations,” Brownsburg Community School Corporation Superintendent Dr. Jim Snapp said. “My experience has been if you want to have a state contending team, you [hire a coach] who has done it before.”
 
After beginning his head coaching career at Mishawaka High School – a time in which he led the program to three consecutive top-two finishes and a pair of championships in 2008 and 2010 – Darrick Snyder found himself as the subject of a coaching inquiry almost 150 miles dead south of the place where he was a Northern Indiana Conference champion and state place winner.
 
From Snyder’s point of view, there were a number of perks to coming to Brownsburg. And when his wife asked him about the wrestling team’s recent lack of success, he saw the potential to upgrade the team to something special.
 
“Yeah – but there’s no reason [for that lack of success],” he said. “All the pieces are there.”
 
Immediately, things began to shift. During Snyder’s first two seasons, the Bulldog program went 36-12 in duals and was crowned 2015 HCC Champions. Of course, that success comes not entirely from the corner but from the center of the mat itself – it’s a combination of what happens behind the scenes and the performances under the spotlight.
 
That first piece of the puzzle, the one that is encapsulated in the public eye each time the mats are rolled out: The athletes.
 
The success of that 2015 team was boasted by a pair of wrestlers that took center stage on the IHSAA State podium come February – Ty Mills (106), Brownsburg’s first finalist since Mark Meunier’s title in 1977, and Nathan Walton (170). As four-year place winners at the state tournament, they were two of four key athletes named by Snapp as being difference-makers in raising the heights of the program.
 
None was more instrumental under Snyder’s tutelage, however, than All-American and two-time NCAA Division I Championships qualifier Brayton Lee, Minnesota’s current starting 157-pounder. A leader that, without Snyder’s drive to create a pipeline from younger levels into a high school program the town could be proud of, might never have donned the purple Bulldog in the first place.
 
“[My family] knew that [Snyder] was a good coach and had a lot of success, but we weren’t that familiar with him,” Lee said. “We went to Brownsburg for a high school tournament to meet up with him when I was in middle school, and we just talked. He was just supportive and said that he would help me to become the best wrestler I can possibly be. We were really excited about Snyder, he pretty much sold us [on where the Brownsburg program would go].”
 
Not only is building the high school program a key part in escalating success, but also what feeds into it. The implementation and management of a strong program for middle school students ensures that development and love for the sport occurs at a younger age.
 
“We were fortunate enough to get some kids [like Lee] that came here because of him, and he’s worked on [building up] the middle school program – kids want to come here, kids want to stay here,” Snapp said. So, we’ve got this interaction of developing the feeder program and kids that, if they’re going to wrestle in the Indianapolis area, they [want] to come to Brownsburg.”
 
With two established wrestling academies nearby – Contender’s Wrestling Academy in Brownsburg and Red Cobra Wrestling in Avon – growth through both the school program and external coaching elevates athletes even higher.
 
Lee, a product of Red Cobra, was a good example of how development can skyrocket through that extra effort and help outside of a school program. What the Bulldogs standout star lacked early on, however, was the team aspect.
 
“It was definitely different, just because I had never been on a team before – I had just wrestled on my own,” Lee said. “I had grown up going to our very intense wrestling club and on both sides, practices were tough. I appreciated and respected that. [Snyder] was always making us do lots of tough stuff intertwined with wrestling.”
 
Prior to Lee’s first of three IHSAA state titles in 2016 – a year in which he, along with five other state placers, led the charge on Brownsburg’s IHSWCA Dual State championship and IHSAA state runner-up finishes – the Bulldogs had only crowned two individual champions in school history.
 
“We were always focused on the next day,” Lee said. “The first time I won, it was awesome, and I was grateful for it – but there was always a team aspect. I wanted to win with our team, and that idea of winning definitely pushed us. I think me winning helped bring other guys along. Knowing I was kind of a leader, knowing that my success was inspiring other guys on the Brownsburg wrestling team made me want to keep pushing.”
 
For Lee’s career specifically, the results of the drive to win as a team came quickly. His second title at 145 pounds saw seven Bulldogs on the IHSAA podium and a franchise-high three finalists – Mills and Blake Mulkey included as runners-up – to lead Brownsburg to its first IHSAA state championship in school history.
 
That influx of high-performing athletes jumpstarted Brownsburg’s rise to the top of high school wrestling in central Indiana.
 
“You put those kids together – we had a core of four, good kids – and Darrick coached up other kids around them,” Snapp said. “That started [a stretch] of us winning the conference every year for the last eight years, we’re in the strongest athletic conference in the state of Indiana. Our wrestling team has dominated. It hasn’t even been close.”
 
The second piece to the puzzle, where Snapp, the administration and coaching staff as a whole come into play, is the support Snyder continues to have behind him.
 
The best example? The wrestling room at Brownsburg High School, built during Snyder’s reign as head coach and designed by Snapp to help raise the standard of the program and accommodate the growing numbers of the extracurricular.
 
“I knew I was going to have [Snapp’s] support on just simple things,” Snyder said. “My first year here, I wanted to take a fan bus to individual state… and I was told no [by the athletic director]. I said, ‘This is a really important to the program. These guys need to watch this event, it’s incredible.’
 
“I called Jim, and every year [since], just like most teams, we get to take a team bus to state.”
 
The backing from Snapp and the administration is a means to an end in shifting the culture not just in the Brownsburg wrestling room, but in the town that loves its high school athletics.
 
“That first year, there wasn’t really anyone there for the kid that was wrestling [at state]. When you win, you want to look up and see a bunch of purple and sit with those people between rounds,” Snyder said. “We’ve really tried to change that around, anything like that.”
 
It also extends to the actual competition and helping those wrestlers reach the mats at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
 
In order to develop the athletes coming to Brownsburg or growing through school programs the Bulldogs support, the level of competition needed to continuously be raised.
 
“When I first got here, no program did any overnights or anything out of state,” Snyder said. “I went to [the athletic director] and told [them], ‘I’ve got to get out of Indianapolis’ – I was tired of wrestling the same teams over and over again, and then we got to the point that there weren’t many teams in our area that would be competitive.”
 
This upcoming season, the Bulldogs’ schedule includes the Walsh Jesuit Ironman Wrestling Tournament from and the Crown Point Invitational – Crown Point defeated Brownsburg 178-105 in the 2022 finals, setting an IHSAA record for the largest margin of victory by a team champion by over 20 points – on back-to-back weekends in December.
 
That elevation in competition level allows wrestlers to face some of their biggest challenges early and prepares them for high-pressure situations come February.
 
“I always tell [our guys] that our schedule is not meant for them to go undefeated,” Snyder said. “If you do, that’s great, but we’ve set up a schedule where we’re going to take some losses. That took administrative support to be willing to allow us to do overnights, to allow us to go out of state.”
 
Pushing athletes beyond their comfort zone to prepare them for future career hurdles is a common theme in Snyder’s coaching style, something that is on record in helping wrestlers reach their full potential.
 
And, well, maybe no one can attest to that better than a Big Ten starter.
 
“I think just his competitiveness and him pushing us every day helped me,” Lee said. “He helped push me past my comfort zone a little but more than maybe I would myself, and that’s really the main purpose of a coach. Snyder knew I wanted to be great, and he helped me move into a little bit more uncomfortable territories which is important for any athlete, especially when you’re trying to go to the next level.”

By: Blaze Lowery
 
Silas Allred
Finally getting to show the nation what he is truly made of, two-time Indiana State Champion, Silas Allred of Shenandoah is ready to scrap. Currently ranked 17th in the nation at 197lbs on FloWrestling, Allred has found his home away from home at Nebraska. Nebraska, also ranked 17th in the nation by the NCAA, is starting to become a home for Indiana-native wrestlers.
 
Allred’s goal is to go out and compete to the best of his ability. More effort and heart will translate into his wrestling. Letting it fly and knowing he has earned the right to compete at the Big Ten level is what motivates him day by day. “Knowing what you are doing it for is a superpower,” says Allred referring to his reason why he wrestles. A majority of wrestlers look at the wins and losses when at the end of the day it is truly about getting better. Allred highlights how wrestling has so many parallels to life. He finds greater purpose in trying to be the best version of himself he can possibly be, not only for himself, but for God. 
 
Coming into the Nebraska room with multiple All American was an eye-opener for Allred. Figuring out his First and secondary attacks were only the beginning. Being able to hand fight for seven minutes, grinding in ties, and being intentional with his hand placement are traits he had to sharpen in order to take that next step. Allred wants his teammates to be champions on the mat and in life. Being intentional with every move he makes, Silas Allred will be on nation’s radar in the coming months. 
 
Andrew Wilson
Indiana State place-winner, Andrew Wilson of Cathedral, is finding his place at Gardner-Webb. Wilson, excited about the season, is looking to compete at 174lbs for the Bulldogs this season. Wilson, a smaller 174-pounder, believes his technique will outweigh the odds.
 
Gardner-Webb placed fourth in their conference last season, and are looking to capitalize with the amount of returners they have from last season. Wilson’s goal for the Bulldogs is to be a top three team in the All-Southern Conference. Being on a Christian campus, Wilson incorporates Jesus into everything he and his team do. He recently became a Young Life leader and helps lead his team in bible study before practice. 
 
Training and focusing on getting better each day are what Wilson did to compete at the next level. Wilson continues to represent the Irish and Indiana and impress his fans every season. 
 
Brayton Lee
Fine-tuning his skills, continuing to perfect his craft, and getting better every day, three-time Indiana State Champion, Brayton Lee of Brownsburg is ready to be a showstopper for the Gophers of Minnesota this season. Bouncing back from a season-ending injury, Lee gained a new perspective for the sport of wrestling and why he does it. Grateful for the opportunity to compete with some of the best in the nation, he cherishes what the sport has done for him and he is hungry to get back to the national tournament once more.
 
Lee is really focusing on different ways to improve his mind and body. Creating offense and angles in the practice room have helped him find different ways to score. He focuses on being “thoughtful and reflective,” so he does not hold anything back in competition. “If you only live for the seven minutes in a match but hate everything else, it’s not going to work,” says Lee. Finding a love for the sport of wrestling is what makes a champion. 
 
The Gophers, ranked 12th in the nation, are bringing back nearly everyone in their lineup from last season, meaning they could make a run and contend for an NCAA title, no question. Lee intends to push that line, as he is ranked 5th in the nation by FloWrestling. With intentions to wrestle after college, this is just the beginning of the legacy that is…. Brayton Lee. 
 

By: Blaze Lowery
 
Jordan Slivka & Carson Brewer
 
Ohio University is home to a few Indiana State Champions that have been making a name for themselves as Bobcats. Two-time State Champion, Jordan Slivka of Cathedral, is coming off his best collegiate season yet. Finishing his last season with a 25-7 record at 157lbs, He found himself in Detroit for the DI NCAA Championships. Slivka is bumping up to the 165lbs weight class this season and was an honorable mention in FloWrestling’s 2022-2023 NCAA DI rankings. “It’s really cool knowing that I am still believed in and looked at even when moving up a weight class,” states Slivka. 
 
Slivka reminisces on his time wrestling at the nationals saying he was unable to hear the whistle when he started his pigtail match. The crowd’s roars fuel him, as he is “dying to compete” for the Bobcats this season. His goal is to do what he needs to do to get his team a MAC Championship title. Individually, his is goal is to compete to the best of his ability every single match. “All to gain and nothing to lose,” Slivka is on his path to find himself back at the NCAA Championships. Being a great wrestler at the next level comes naturally, “if you’re willing to buckle down on work ethic and show yourself how good you could be,” says Slivka.
 
Indiana State Champion and FloNationals place-winner, Carson Brewer of Avon, is also making waves in the MAC. For the first time in his collegiate career, he is having a healthy, injury-free preseason. Starting the preseason off strong is a huge factor for success at the next level, Brewer believes it is his time to win a MAC Championship title. Wrestling at 184lbs for the Bobcats, there is no one in his conference that he has not beaten already, making this goal much more feasible. 
 
In his transition from high school to collegiate wrestling, Brewer’s biggest adjustment was to not exert himself so quickly into the match. Slowing his wrestling down has only made him more efficient and tactical. Brewer highlights how Ohio is bringing back everyone in their previous lineup, making a MAC Team Championship title a feasible goal for the Bobcats. “Doing the right things off the mat is what will make you successful in collegiate wrestling,” says Brewer. 
 
Slivka and Brewer have big plans for Ohio this season and will continue to put on for Indiana wrestling. 

Lucas Davison
 
Last season, the nation got to watch Indiana State Champion, Lucas Davison of Chesterton, gain All-American status at the 2022 DI NCAA Championships. Moving up to heavyweight, although a big adjustment, put him at 6th in that nation. Davison states that “establishing pace” in his matches since moving up has led to his success in the post season. Adjusting his style of wrestling to accommodate for the heavyweight transition forced Davison to clean up his attacks.
 
Davison also acknowledges how remarkable it was to see what it takes to become a National Champion, referring to his teammate Ryan Deakin. “Now it’s a matter of following his footsteps,” stated Davison. Northwestern is bringing back all four of their All-American’s from last season, making Davison’s goal of being a top 3 team in the nation much more achievable. 
 
Competing year round is an essential ingredient Davison attributes his successful career too. With freestyle being a key reason behind his recruitment, wrestling in the offseason propelled him to Big Ten recruitment. Competition is opportunity and coaches love to see guys that are willing to put it all out their year-round. Davison is ready to take advantage of every opportunity that steps on the line this season. 
 

By: Blaze Lowery
 
Jordan Slivka & Carson Brewer
 
Ohio University is home to a few Indiana State Champions that have been making a name for themselves as Bobcats. Two-time State Champion, Jordan Slivka of Cathedral, is coming off his best collegiate season yet. Finishing his last season with a 25-7 record at 157lbs, He found himself in Detroit for the DI NCAA Championships. Slivka is bumping up to the 165lbs weight class this season and was an honorable mention in FloWrestling’s 2022-2023 NCAA DI rankings. “It’s really cool knowing that I am still believed in and looked at even when moving up a weight class,” states Slivka. 
 
Slivka reminisces on his time wrestling at the nationals saying he was unable to hear the whistle when he started his pigtail match. The crowd’s roars fuel him, as he is “dying to compete” for the Bobcats this season. His goal is to do what he needs to do to get his team a MAC Championship title. Individually, his is goal is to compete to the best of his ability every single match. “All to gain and nothing to lose,” Slivka is on his path to find himself back at the NCAA Championships. Being a great wrestler at the next level comes naturally, “if you’re willing to buckle down on work ethic and show yourself how good you could be,” says Slivka.
 
Indiana State Champion and FloNationals place-winner, Carson Brewer of Avon, is also making waves in the MAC. For the first time in his collegiate career, he is having a healthy, injury-free preseason. Starting the preseason off strong is a huge factor for success at the next level, Brewer believes it is his time to win a MAC Championship title. Wrestling at 184lbs for the Bobcats, there is no one in his conference that he has not beaten already, making this goal much more feasible. 
 
In his transition from high school to collegiate wrestling, Brewer’s biggest adjustment was to not exert himself so quickly into the match. Slowing his wrestling down has only made him more efficient and tactical. Brewer highlights how Ohio is bringing back everyone in their previous lineup, making a MAC Team Championship title a feasible goal for the Bobcats. “Doing the right things off the mat is what will make you successful in collegiate wrestling,” says Brewer. 
 
Slivka and Brewer have big plans for Ohio this season and will continue to put on for Indiana wrestling. 

Lucas Davison
 
Last season, the nation got to watch Indiana State Champion, Lucas Davison of Chesterton, gain All-American status at the 2022 DI NCAA Championships. Moving up to heavyweight, although a big adjustment, put him at 6th in that nation. Davison states that “establishing pace” in his matches since moving up has led to his success in the post season. Adjusting his style of wrestling to accommodate for the heavyweight transition forced Davison to clean up his attacks.
 
Davison also acknowledges how remarkable it was to see what it takes to become a National Champion, referring to his teammate Ryan Deakin. “Now it’s a matter of following his footsteps,” stated Davison. Northwestern is bringing back all four of their All-American’s from last season, making Davison’s goal of being a top 3 team in the nation much more achievable. 
 
Competing year round is an essential ingredient Davison attributes his successful career too. With freestyle being a key reason behind his recruitment, wrestling in the offseason propelled him to Big Ten recruitment. Competition is opportunity and coaches love to see guys that are willing to put it all out their year-round. Davison is ready to take advantage of every opportunity that steps on the line this season. 
 

The season is starting, Mike and Joe discuss a variety of topics on the upcoming wrestling season.

By: Blaze Lowery
 
Admittance into a military academy is something that every wrestler should be considering. These institutions are adding structure and grit to some of Indiana’s finest talents on and off the mat. Combining passion with real change, these athletes are up from sunup to sundown with zero complaints. To put it in simpler terms, these gentlemen are taking the road less traveled.
 
West Point
Out on the east coast, Christian Hunt of Yorktown is representing Indiana for his 5th season as a mule rider. West Point has been a place for Hunt to really figure it all out. He states how he enjoys the leadership opportunities and military obligations that come with attending the academy. Hunt also forfeits his summers to training and getting out into the field.
 
Wrestling-wise, Hunt states how he came in ready to go, paying homage to his home state being so tough. The transition from high school to college for him was working on his top and bottom. West Point is not a place for the weak, as Hunt highlights how since he got put on a 6 A.M. to 9 P.M. schedule since arriving at the academy.
 
Some advice he has for young Indiana athletes thinking about attending a military academy is to expose yourself to national talent as much as you possibly can. Going to large tournaments like Super 32, Fargo, etc. will only increase your chances to compete and compete hard at the next level. “Be ready to serve something bigger than yourself,” states Hunt. Wrestling can only take you so far, but why not do so and make a difference as well.
 
Recent commitment: Reid Schroeder of Southrdige
 
The Citadel
Where structure rules all, The Citadel is where a few Indiana finalists now reside. State Champion Hayden Watson of Center Grove talks commitment and what it takes to really be a bulldog. “They break you down to build you up,” Watson says. Upon his arrival, he has come to realize how tough it is to manage wrestling, school, and duties. He likes the idea of taking advantage of opportunity and how structure has really taken him to that next level.
 
Watson finds himself thriving in the wrestling environment down in Charleston. The training is consistent, and the drilling is much more explosive. His focal point in his shift in wrestling style since coming to the Citadel was having to be a bit more conservative. He advises anyone that is interested in coming to the Citadel to look forward to practicing every day like himself and follow the schedule to succeed.
 
Others on the roster: Brodie Porter from Eastern
 
Coast Guard
As a top 15 DIII university in the country, the U.S. Coast Guard Academy is making their mark as a place for opportunity. Three-time state qualifier, Brendan Mattingly of Carmel is taking advantage of those opportunities and has already been around the world since arriving at Coast Guard. In addition to the benefits of being an officer, Mattingly gets to pursue his passion for wrestling. With the pandemic throwing a kink in his journey, Mattingly is looking to continue to embrace the grind and becoming the best wrestler he can be.
 
 
The wrestling room over at Coast Guard is always packed. The team is forced to have split practices because of how many guys are on the roster. Some would gripe and groan, but Mattingly looks at it as another opportunity to refine his craft with numerous different looks. His coaches push him to hand fight harder and be a selective shot taker. He compares collegiate wrestling with chess in how calculated one must be in every situation. A single mistake could make or break one’s chances to win the dance. Mattingly continues to put in the work, but also puts his career first.
 
Air Force
Air Force is home to a few of Indiana state champions and place winners. Two-time state champion, Alec Viduya of Roncalli, advises anyone who is thinking about attending Air Force to never lose sight of their passion. Viduya states, “Just remember what made you come here because you can get lost in the little things.” The transition from high school to a military academy can be treacherous, but well worth the squeeze. Everyone Viduya wrestles is no off-go, which was one of the big eye-openers for him. Even in his practice room, he finds it harder to hand fight, setting up his shots, and finishing those shots with scrambling being much more common.
 
Grades are important when trying to get into the academy. There is no time for procrastination says state champion Drake Buchanan of Center Grove. Time management is something that is stressed more so than anything. Keeping his head down and grinding each day, Buchanan sheds light on how he had to adjust a bit now that practices are harder, and schedules are more packed. Some tweaks he has made on the mat are mostly from top and bottom with college rules being a bit different, it’s a “different ballgame.”
 
Three-time state place winner, Aiden Warren of Perry Meridian, also speaks on how tough the transition from high school to military academy can truly be. Fresh off shoulder surgery, Warren looks to get back into the groove and potentially crack the lineup at 184-pound weight class. “Don’t get discouraged, it’s a long process,” states Warren when referring to recruitment. He also advises that there is nothing wrong with reaching out to a coach if you’re interested in a program, even at the collegiate level. The courage to reach out to a coach is one thing but doing what needs to be done in the classroom will solidify one’s case to wrestle at the next level.
 
 

In the season debut, Rex Brewer and Dane Fuelling start the look ahead to the upcoming wrestling season, and among their guests included Jesse Gaskill 

Winning is easy, well not that easy, but winning consistently is much, much harder. One of our more controversial articles of state week is "who do you want in your corner?" This was conjured up when we wanted to know which coaches had the most success on Friday night. After that we moved to the quarter-finals and of course semi-finals and the championship match. With our system of one and done on Friday the data is easy to decipher on which coaches have the most success. The numbers are staggering for certain coaches. We also understand fully that this isn't just a one man show, many of the top head coaches will divide and conquer and have top assistants in the corner for specific individuals. 
 
Take the data as you want, but it is always a great conversation starter during this week.
 
Click here for all of the data
Current coaches with 10+ state qualifiers from 1992-2019
Coach Qualifiers Placers Friday % Current School Sean McGinley 114 88 77.19% Indianapolis Cathedral Darrick Snyder 97 72 74.23% Brownsburg Chris Cooper 36 26 72.22% Columbus East Maurice Swain 17 12 70.59% Center Grove Branden Lorek 30 21 70.00% Crown Point Joshua Holden 19 13 68.42% Greenfield-Central Matt Schoettle 34 23 67.65% Perry Meridian David Maldonado 84 56 66.67% Merrillville Jim Tonte 111 70 63.06% Franklin Community Greg Schaefer 84 52 61.90% Evansville Mater Dei Frank Bumgardner 12 7 58.33% Wawasee Bill Flatt 23 13 56.52% South Bend Riley Tony Abbott 32 18 56.25% Cowan Dan Briggs 22 12 54.55% Carroll (Fort Wayne) Ed Pendoski 74 40 54.05% Carmel Gabe Cook 10 5 50.00% Terre Haute South Mike Runyon 20 10 50.00% Bloomington South Randy Kearby 34 17 50.00% Wabash Phil Smith 10 5 50.00% Westfield Bob Harmon 57 28 49.12% Castle Chad Shepherd 25 12 48.00% Western Brandon Sisson 17 8 47.06% Floyd Central Jim Pickard 43 20 46.51% Goshen Eric Myers 26 12 46.15% Jay County Lou Silverman 37 17 45.95% North Central Louie Kuzdas 27 12 44.44% LaPorte Clint Gard 16 7 43.75% Rochester Scott Ferguson 38 16 42.11% Evansville Reitz Brad Harper 72 29 40.28% Penn Dan Mikesell 15 6 40.00% Mooresville Danny Struck 20 8 40.00% Jeffersonville James Linn 10 4 40.00% New Haven Larry Mattingly 33 13 39.39% Evansville Memorial Andy Hobbs 41 16 39.02% Peru Tony Currie 13 5 38.46% Adams Central Dean Branstetter 13 5 38.46% Attica Jamie Welliever 13 5 38.46% Southmont Brett Smith 11 4 36.36% Prairie Heights Doug Smoker 20 7 35.00% Eastside Dave Cloud 25 8 32.00% Pendleton Heights Andrew King 26 8 30.77% Oak Hill Tim Alcorn 10 3 30.00% Mount Vernon (Posey) Blane Culp 14 4 28.57% Columbia City Jim Wadkins 21 6 28.57% Calumet Doug Deters 13 3 23.08% Franklin County Steven Sandefer 13 3 23.08% Mishawaka Sam Riesen 10 2 20.00% East Noble Nick Kraus 16 3 18.75% Garrett Tom Miller 18 2 11.11% Lafayette Jefferson  
All coaches with 10+ state qualifiers from 1992-2019
Coach Qualifiers Placers Friday % Wiley Craft 11 10 90.91% Todd Kendrick 13 11 84.62% Wade McClurg 17 14 82.35% Travis Walls 26 21 80.77% Dan Gelarden 15 12 80.00% Brett Crousore 39 31 79.49% Nick Petrov 24 19 79.17% Sean McGinley 114 88 77.19% Perry Summitt 13 10 76.92% Brian Weaver 12 9 75.00% Darrick Snyder 97 72 74.23% Justin Smith 11 8 72.73% Rod Wartman 11 8 72.73% Chris Cooper 36 26 72.22% Maurice Swain 17 12 70.59% Keith Grant 10 7 70.00% Branden Lorek 30 21 70.00% Al Smith 20 14 70.00% Alan Goddard 10 7 70.00% Joshua Holden 19 13 68.42% Mike Atwood 19 13 68.42% Paul Nicodemus 19 13 68.42% Mike Goebel 102 69 67.65% Matt Schoettle 34 23 67.65% David Maldonado 84 56 66.67% Paul Voigt 15 10 66.67% Kevin Blundell 12 8 66.67% Robert Emerick 27 18 66.67% Duboris Dickerson 12 8 66.67% Bill Kelly 26 17 65.38% Lance Ellis 17 11 64.71% Zach Errett 28 18 64.29% Lance Rhodes 28 18 64.29% Chad Red 25 16 64.00% Kevin Troy 30 19 63.33% Matthew Behling 19 12 63.16% Jim Tonte 111 70 63.06% Brian Seltzer 40 25 62.50% Greg Schaefer 84 52 61.90% Jack Grimaldi 13 8 61.54% Russel Feigert 39 24 61.54% Rob Willman 18 11 61.11% Bob Jarrett 10 6 60.00% John Kopnisky 10 6 60.00% Kevin King 15 9 60.00% Brent Faurote 107 64 59.81% Dave Thompson 24 14 58.33% Frank Bumgardner 12 7 58.33% Royce Deckard 64 37 57.81% Steve Balash 47 27 57.45% Bob Read 21 12 57.14% Keith Hoffar 28 16 57.14% Kyle Poyer 28 16 57.14% Trent McCormick 100 57 57.00% Bob Hasseman 67 38 56.72% Bill Flatt 23 13 56.52% Bobby Howard 16 9 56.25% Tony Abbott 32 18 56.25% Lance Beehler 18 10 55.56% Danny Williams 20 11 55.00% Larry Tharp 20 11 55.00% Dan Briggs 22 12 54.55% Jim Nicholson 11 6 54.55% Clarence Warthan 22 12 54.55% John Cook 11 6 54.55% Jamie Wingler 11 6 54.55% Jason Warthan 11 6 54.55% Ed Pendoski 74 40 54.05% Israel Blevins 37 20 54.05% Jake Harreld 13 7 53.85% Mike Ester 26 14 53.85% Chris Joll 60 32 53.33% Bob Brennan 15 8 53.33% Scott Vlink 72 38 52.78% Jared Williams 40 21 52.50% Rex Peckinpaugh 67 35 52.24% Andy Simon 33 17 51.52% Mark Kerrn 35 18 51.43% Leroy Vega 43 22 51.16% Gabe Cook 10 5 50.00% Mark Bruner 12 6 50.00% Mark Kirchgassner 12 6 50.00% Mike Runyon 20 10 50.00% Randy Kearby 34 17 50.00% Phil Smith 10 5 50.00% Jim Ledbetter 28 14 50.00% Todd Sacksteder 20 10 50.00% Scott Dehart 14 7 50.00% Christopher Kern 10 5 50.00% Bob Harmon 57 28 49.12% Henry Wilk 37 18 48.65% Chad Shepherd 25 12 48.00% Dennis Lewis 25 12 48.00% T. Howard Jones Jr. 21 10 47.62% Terry O'Neill 19 9 47.37% Brandon Sisson 17 8 47.06% Ryan Wells 15 7 46.67% Jim Pickard 43 20 46.51% Cale Hoover 26 12 46.15% Chris Campbell 13 6 46.15% Eric Myers 26 12 46.15% Rod Williams 13 6 46.15% Lou Silverman 37 17 45.95% Tony Boley 22 10 45.45% Louie Kuzdas 27 12 44.44% Scott Schwarz 25 11 44.00% Clint Gard 16 7 43.75% Rick Stenftenagel 14 6 42.86% Eric Highley 19 8 42.11% Scott Ferguson 38 16 42.11% Ed Fox 12 5 41.67% David Caple 12 5 41.67% Mark Scott 17 7 41.18% Al Hartman 32 13 40.63% Brad Harper 72 29 40.28% Scott Raypole 15 6 40.00% Dan Mikesell 15 6 40.00% Danny Struck 20 8 40.00% Ryan Landis 10 4 40.00% Mark Line 20 8 40.00% James Binkley 10 4 40.00% James Linn 10 4 40.00% Gene Backes 10 4 40.00% Murray Miller 10 4 40.00% Steve Wewe 10 4 40.00% Kevin Taylor 10 4 40.00% Larry Mattingly 33 13 39.39% Steve Pugliese 23 9 39.13% Andy Hobbs 41 16 39.02% Tony Currie 13 5 38.46% Dean Branstetter 13 5 38.46% Jamie Welliever 13 5 38.46% Greg Gastineau 13 5 38.46% Steve VanderAa 16 6 37.50% Brett Smith 11 4 36.36% Gary Fox 11 4 36.36% Gary Schliessman 11 4 36.36% Tony Grater 11 4 36.36% Tony Starks 11 4 36.36% Derek Bocock 14 5 35.71% Matt Koontz 14 5 35.71% Jim HIttler 14 5 35.71% Doug Smoker 20 7 35.00% Paul Gunsett 20 7 35.00% Barry Humble 18 6 33.33% Josh Dommer 15 5 33.33% Dave Cloud 25 8 32.00% David Errett 16 5 31.25% Robert Freije 16 5 31.25% Andrew King 26 8 30.77% Randy Pursley 13 4 30.77% Chuck Fleshman 10 3 30.00% Tim Alcorn 10 3 30.00% John Bennett 10 3 30.00% Lonnie Chamberlain 10 3 30.00% Blane Culp 14 4 28.57% Jim Wadkins 21 6 28.57% George Gardner 15 4 26.67% Eric Burres 12 3 25.00% Doug Deters 13 3 23.08% Ken Houston 13 3 23.08% Steven Sandefer 13 3 23.08% Nicholas Eckert 13 3 23.08% Kevin Wilkinson 10 2 20.00% Sam Riesen 10 2 20.00% Nick Kraus 16 3 18.75% Denny Schwartz 16 3 18.75% Scott VanDerAa 15 2 13.33% Tom Miller 18 2 11.11% Tim Sloffer 12 1 8.33% Doug Schultz 13 1 7.69%

By: Blaze Lowery
 
Admittance into a military academy is something that every wrestler should be considering. These institutions are adding structure and grit to some of Indiana’s finest talents on and off the mat. Combining passion with real change, these athletes are up from sunup to sundown with zero complaints. To put it in simpler terms, these gentlemen are taking the road less traveled.
 
West Point
Out on the east coast, Christian Hunt of Yorktown is representing Indiana for his 5th season as a mule rider. West Point has been a place for Hunt to really figure it all out. He states how he enjoys the leadership opportunities and military obligations that come with attending the academy. Hunt also forfeits his summers to training and getting out into the field.
 
Wrestling-wise, Hunt states how he came in ready to go, paying homage to his home state being so tough. The transition from high school to college for him was working on his top and bottom. West Point is not a place for the weak, as Hunt highlights how since he got put on a 6 A.M. to 9 P.M. schedule since arriving at the academy.
 
Some advice he has for young Indiana athletes thinking about attending a military academy is to expose yourself to national talent as much as you possibly can. Going to large tournaments like Super 32, Fargo, etc. will only increase your chances to compete and compete hard at the next level. “Be ready to serve something bigger than yourself,” states Hunt. Wrestling can only take you so far, but why not do so and make a difference as well.
 
Recent commitment: Reid Schroeder of Southrdige
 
The Citadel
Where structure rules all, The Citadel is where a few Indiana finalists now reside. State Champion Hayden Watson of Center Grove talks commitment and what it takes to really be a bulldog. “They break you down to build you up,” Watson says. Upon his arrival, he has come to realize how tough it is to manage wrestling, school, and duties. He likes the idea of taking advantage of opportunity and how structure has really taken him to that next level.
 
Watson finds himself thriving in the wrestling environment down in Charleston. The training is consistent, and the drilling is much more explosive. His focal point in his shift in wrestling style since coming to the Citadel was having to be a bit more conservative. He advises anyone that is interested in coming to the Citadel to look forward to practicing every day like himself and follow the schedule to succeed.
 
Others on the roster: Brodie Porter from Eastern
 
Coast Guard
As a top 15 DIII university in the country, the U.S. Coast Guard Academy is making their mark as a place for opportunity. Three-time state qualifier, Brendan Mattingly of Carmel is taking advantage of those opportunities and has already been around the world since arriving at Coast Guard. In addition to the benefits of being an officer, Mattingly gets to pursue his passion for wrestling. With the pandemic throwing a kink in his journey, Mattingly is looking to continue to embrace the grind and becoming the best wrestler he can be.
 
 
The wrestling room over at Coast Guard is always packed. The team is forced to have split practices because of how many guys are on the roster. Some would gripe and groan, but Mattingly looks at it as another opportunity to refine his craft with numerous different looks. His coaches push him to hand fight harder and be a selective shot taker. He compares collegiate wrestling with chess in how calculated one must be in every situation. A single mistake could make or break one’s chances to win the dance. Mattingly continues to put in the work, but also puts his career first.
 
Air Force
Air Force is home to a few of Indiana state champions and place winners. Two-time state champion, Alec Viduya of Roncalli, advises anyone who is thinking about attending Air Force to never lose sight of their passion. Viduya states, “Just remember what made you come here because you can get lost in the little things.” The transition from high school to a military academy can be treacherous, but well worth the squeeze. Everyone Viduya wrestles is no off-go, which was one of the big eye-openers for him. Even in his practice room, he finds it harder to hand fight, setting up his shots, and finishing those shots with scrambling being much more common.
 
Grades are important when trying to get into the academy. There is no time for procrastination says state champion Drake Buchanan of Center Grove. Time management is something that is stressed more so than anything. Keeping his head down and grinding each day, Buchanan sheds light on how he had to adjust a bit now that practices are harder, and schedules are more packed. Some tweaks he has made on the mat are mostly from top and bottom with college rules being a bit different, it’s a “different ballgame.”
 
Three-time state place winner, Aiden Warren of Perry Meridian, also speaks on how tough the transition from high school to military academy can truly be. Fresh off shoulder surgery, Warren looks to get back into the groove and potentially crack the lineup at 184-pound weight class. “Don’t get discouraged, it’s a long process,” states Warren when referring to recruitment. He also advises that there is nothing wrong with reaching out to a coach if you’re interested in a program, even at the collegiate level. The courage to reach out to a coach is one thing but doing what needs to be done in the classroom will solidify one’s case to wrestle at the next level.
 
 

By: Blaze Lowery
 
Admittance into a military academy is something that every wrestler should be considering. These institutions are adding structure and grit to some of Indiana’s finest talents on and off the mat. Combining passion with real change, these athletes are up from sunup to sundown with zero complaints. To put it in simpler terms, these gentlemen are taking the road less traveled.
 
West Point
Out on the east coast, Christian Hunt of Yorktown is representing Indiana for his 5th season as a mule rider. West Point has been a place for Hunt to really figure it all out. He states how he enjoys the leadership opportunities and military obligations that come with attending the academy. Hunt also forfeits his summers to training and getting out into the field.
 
Wrestling-wise, Hunt states how he came in ready to go, paying homage to his home state being so tough. The transition from high school to college for him was working on his top and bottom. West Point is not a place for the weak, as Hunt highlights how since he got put on a 6 A.M. to 9 P.M. schedule since arriving at the academy.
 
Some advice he has for young Indiana athletes thinking about attending a military academy is to expose yourself to national talent as much as you possibly can. Going to large tournaments like Super 32, Fargo, etc. will only increase your chances to compete and compete hard at the next level. “Be ready to serve something bigger than yourself,” states Hunt. Wrestling can only take you so far, but why not do so and make a difference as well.
 
Recent commitment: Reid Schroeder of Southrdige
 
The Citadel
Where structure rules all, The Citadel is where a few Indiana finalists now reside. State Champion Hayden Watson of Center Grove talks commitment and what it takes to really be a bulldog. “They break you down to build you up,” Watson says. Upon his arrival, he has come to realize how tough it is to manage wrestling, school, and duties. He likes the idea of taking advantage of opportunity and how structure has really taken him to that next level.
 
Watson finds himself thriving in the wrestling environment down in Charleston. The training is consistent, and the drilling is much more explosive. His focal point in his shift in wrestling style since coming to the Citadel was having to be a bit more conservative. He advises anyone that is interested in coming to the Citadel to look forward to practicing every day like himself and follow the schedule to succeed.
 
Others on the roster: Brodie Porter from Eastern
 
Coast Guard
As a top 15 DIII university in the country, the U.S. Coast Guard Academy is making their mark as a place for opportunity. Three-time state qualifier, Brendan Mattingly of Carmel is taking advantage of those opportunities and has already been around the world since arriving at Coast Guard. In addition to the benefits of being an officer, Mattingly gets to pursue his passion for wrestling. With the pandemic throwing a kink in his journey, Mattingly is looking to continue to embrace the grind and becoming the best wrestler he can be.
 
 
The wrestling room over at Coast Guard is always packed. The team is forced to have split practices because of how many guys are on the roster. Some would gripe and groan, but Mattingly looks at it as another opportunity to refine his craft with numerous different looks. His coaches push him to hand fight harder and be a selective shot taker. He compares collegiate wrestling with chess in how calculated one must be in every situation. A single mistake could make or break one’s chances to win the dance. Mattingly continues to put in the work, but also puts his career first.
 
Air Force
Air Force is home to a few of Indiana state champions and place winners. Two-time state champion, Alec Viduya of Roncalli, advises anyone who is thinking about attending Air Force to never lose sight of their passion. Viduya states, “Just remember what made you come here because you can get lost in the little things.” The transition from high school to a military academy can be treacherous, but well worth the squeeze. Everyone Viduya wrestles is no off-go, which was one of the big eye-openers for him. Even in his practice room, he finds it harder to hand fight, setting up his shots, and finishing those shots with scrambling being much more common.
 
Grades are important when trying to get into the academy. There is no time for procrastination says state champion Drake Buchanan of Center Grove. Time management is something that is stressed more so than anything. Keeping his head down and grinding each day, Buchanan sheds light on how he had to adjust a bit now that practices are harder, and schedules are more packed. Some tweaks he has made on the mat are mostly from top and bottom with college rules being a bit different, it’s a “different ballgame.”
 
Three-time state place winner, Aiden Warren of Perry Meridian, also speaks on how tough the transition from high school to military academy can truly be. Fresh off shoulder surgery, Warren looks to get back into the groove and potentially crack the lineup at 184-pound weight class. “Don’t get discouraged, it’s a long process,” states Warren when referring to recruitment. He also advises that there is nothing wrong with reaching out to a coach if you’re interested in a program, even at the collegiate level. The courage to reach out to a coach is one thing but doing what needs to be done in the classroom will solidify one’s case to wrestle at the next level.
 
 

By: Blaze Lowery
 
Admittance into a military academy is something that every wrestler should be considering. These institutions are adding structure and grit to some of Indiana’s finest talents on and off the mat. Combining passion with real change, these athletes are up from sunup to sundown with zero complaints. To put it in simpler terms, these gentlemen are taking the road less traveled.
 
West Point
Out on the east coast, Christian Hunt of Yorktown is representing Indiana for his 5th season as a mule rider. West Point has been a place for Hunt to really figure it all out. He states how he enjoys the leadership opportunities and military obligations that come with attending the academy. Hunt also forfeits his summers to training and getting out into the field.
 
Wrestling-wise, Hunt states how he came in ready to go, paying homage to his home state being so tough. The transition from high school to college for him was working on his top and bottom. West Point is not a place for the weak, as Hunt highlights how since he got put on a 6 A.M. to 9 P.M. schedule since arriving at the academy.
 
Some advice he has for young Indiana athletes thinking about attending a military academy is to expose yourself to national talent as much as you possibly can. Going to large tournaments like Super 32, Fargo, etc. will only increase your chances to compete and compete hard at the next level. “Be ready to serve something bigger than yourself,” states Hunt. Wrestling can only take you so far, but why not do so and make a difference as well.
 
Recent commitment: Reid Schroeder of Southrdige
 
The Citadel
Where structure rules all, The Citadel is where a few Indiana finalists now reside. State Champion Hayden Watson of Center Grove talks commitment and what it takes to really be a bulldog. “They break you down to build you up,” Watson says. Upon his arrival, he has come to realize how tough it is to manage wrestling, school, and duties. He likes the idea of taking advantage of opportunity and how structure has really taken him to that next level.
 
Watson finds himself thriving in the wrestling environment down in Charleston. The training is consistent, and the drilling is much more explosive. His focal point in his shift in wrestling style since coming to the Citadel was having to be a bit more conservative. He advises anyone that is interested in coming to the Citadel to look forward to practicing every day like himself and follow the schedule to succeed.
 
Others on the roster: Brodie Porter from Eastern
 
Coast Guard
As a top 15 DIII university in the country, the U.S. Coast Guard Academy is making their mark as a place for opportunity. Three-time state qualifier, Brendan Mattingly of Carmel is taking advantage of those opportunities and has already been around the world since arriving at Coast Guard. In addition to the benefits of being an officer, Mattingly gets to pursue his passion for wrestling. With the pandemic throwing a kink in his journey, Mattingly is looking to continue to embrace the grind and becoming the best wrestler he can be.
 
 
The wrestling room over at Coast Guard is always packed. The team is forced to have split practices because of how many guys are on the roster. Some would gripe and groan, but Mattingly looks at it as another opportunity to refine his craft with numerous different looks. His coaches push him to hand fight harder and be a selective shot taker. He compares collegiate wrestling with chess in how calculated one must be in every situation. A single mistake could make or break one’s chances to win the dance. Mattingly continues to put in the work, but also puts his career first.
 
Air Force
Air Force is home to a few of Indiana state champions and place winners. Two-time state champion, Alec Viduya of Roncalli, advises anyone who is thinking about attending Air Force to never lose sight of their passion. Viduya states, “Just remember what made you come here because you can get lost in the little things.” The transition from high school to a military academy can be treacherous, but well worth the squeeze. Everyone Viduya wrestles is no off-go, which was one of the big eye-openers for him. Even in his practice room, he finds it harder to hand fight, setting up his shots, and finishing those shots with scrambling being much more common.
 
Grades are important when trying to get into the academy. There is no time for procrastination says state champion Drake Buchanan of Center Grove. Time management is something that is stressed more so than anything. Keeping his head down and grinding each day, Buchanan sheds light on how he had to adjust a bit now that practices are harder, and schedules are more packed. Some tweaks he has made on the mat are mostly from top and bottom with college rules being a bit different, it’s a “different ballgame.”
 
Three-time state place winner, Aiden Warren of Perry Meridian, also speaks on how tough the transition from high school to military academy can truly be. Fresh off shoulder surgery, Warren looks to get back into the groove and potentially crack the lineup at 184-pound weight class. “Don’t get discouraged, it’s a long process,” states Warren when referring to recruitment. He also advises that there is nothing wrong with reaching out to a coach if you’re interested in a program, even at the collegiate level. The courage to reach out to a coach is one thing but doing what needs to be done in the classroom will solidify one’s case to wrestle at the next level.
 
 

Rex Brewer and Dane Fuelling interview local coaches, referees, and more to get their thoughts on the upcoming season.

By: Blaze Lowery
 
Admittance into a military academy is something that every wrestler should be considering. These institutions are adding structure and grit to some of Indiana’s finest talents on and off the mat. Combining passion with real change, these athletes are up from sunup to sundown with zero complaints. To put it in simpler terms, these gentlemen are taking the road less traveled.
 
West Point
Out on the east coast, Christian Hunt of Yorktown is representing Indiana for his 5th season as a mule rider. West Point has been a place for Hunt to really figure it all out. He states how he enjoys the leadership opportunities and military obligations that come with attending the academy. Hunt also forfeits his summers to training and getting out into the field.
 
Wrestling-wise, Hunt states how he came in ready to go, paying homage to his home state being so tough. The transition from high school to college for him was working on his top and bottom. West Point is not a place for the weak, as Hunt highlights how since he got put on a 6 A.M. to 9 P.M. schedule since arriving at the academy.
 
Some advice he has for young Indiana athletes thinking about attending a military academy is to expose yourself to national talent as much as you possibly can. Going to large tournaments like Super 32, Fargo, etc. will only increase your chances to compete and compete hard at the next level. “Be ready to serve something bigger than yourself,” states Hunt. Wrestling can only take you so far, but why not do so and make a difference as well.
 
Recent commitment: Reid Schroeder of Southrdige
 
The Citadel
Where structure rules all, The Citadel is where a few Indiana finalists now reside. State Champion Hayden Watson of Center Grove talks commitment and what it takes to really be a bulldog. “They break you down to build you up,” Watson says. Upon his arrival, he has come to realize how tough it is to manage wrestling, school, and duties. He likes the idea of taking advantage of opportunity and how structure has really taken him to that next level.
 
Watson finds himself thriving in the wrestling environment down in Charleston. The training is consistent, and the drilling is much more explosive. His focal point in his shift in wrestling style since coming to the Citadel was having to be a bit more conservative. He advises anyone that is interested in coming to the Citadel to look forward to practicing every day like himself and follow the schedule to succeed.
 
Others on the roster: Brodie Porter from Eastern
 
Coast Guard
As a top 15 DIII university in the country, the U.S. Coast Guard Academy is making their mark as a place for opportunity. Three-time state qualifier, Brendan Mattingly of Carmel is taking advantage of those opportunities and has already been around the world since arriving at Coast Guard. In addition to the benefits of being an officer, Mattingly gets to pursue his passion for wrestling. With the pandemic throwing a kink in his journey, Mattingly is looking to continue to embrace the grind and becoming the best wrestler he can be.
 
 
The wrestling room over at Coast Guard is always packed. The team is forced to have split practices because of how many guys are on the roster. Some would gripe and groan, but Mattingly looks at it as another opportunity to refine his craft with numerous different looks. His coaches push him to hand fight harder and be a selective shot taker. He compares collegiate wrestling with chess in how calculated one must be in every situation. A single mistake could make or break one’s chances to win the dance. Mattingly continues to put in the work, but also puts his career first.
 
Air Force
Air Force is home to a few of Indiana state champions and place winners. Two-time state champion, Alec Viduya of Roncalli, advises anyone who is thinking about attending Air Force to never lose sight of their passion. Viduya states, “Just remember what made you come here because you can get lost in the little things.” The transition from high school to a military academy can be treacherous, but well worth the squeeze. Everyone Viduya wrestles is no off-go, which was one of the big eye-openers for him. Even in his practice room, he finds it harder to hand fight, setting up his shots, and finishing those shots with scrambling being much more common.
 
Grades are important when trying to get into the academy. There is no time for procrastination says state champion Drake Buchanan of Center Grove. Time management is something that is stressed more so than anything. Keeping his head down and grinding each day, Buchanan sheds light on how he had to adjust a bit now that practices are harder, and schedules are more packed. Some tweaks he has made on the mat are mostly from top and bottom with college rules being a bit different, it’s a “different ballgame.”
 
Three-time state place winner, Aiden Warren of Perry Meridian, also speaks on how tough the transition from high school to military academy can truly be. Fresh off shoulder surgery, Warren looks to get back into the groove and potentially crack the lineup at 184-pound weight class. “Don’t get discouraged, it’s a long process,” states Warren when referring to recruitment. He also advises that there is nothing wrong with reaching out to a coach if you’re interested in a program, even at the collegiate level. The courage to reach out to a coach is one thing but doing what needs to be done in the classroom will solidify one’s case to wrestle at the next level.
 
 

In the season debut, Rex Brewer and Dane Fuelling start the look ahead to the upcoming wrestling season, and among their guests included Jesse Gaskill 

Rex Brewer and Dane Fuelling interview local coaches, referees, and more to get their thoughts on the upcoming season.

In the season debut, Rex Brewer and Dane Fuelling start the look ahead to the upcoming wrestling season, and among their guests included Jesse Gaskill 

Indiana Tech:
 
From a year of experience to Fargo All-Americans, Indiana Tech is a place where women’s wrestling is beginning to thrive. Having a roster of 53 athletes, the Warriors are looking to be a top five team at this year’s National Duals Tournament. Head Coach Paul Rademacher has brought in an underrated freshman class and is on the hunt to have seven All-American’s this season.
 
Notable Freshman Recruits:
Riley Dempewolf of McCutcheon, 4x Indiana State Champion, 2x Junior Duals All-American
Makayla Young of Bellefontaine Chieftain (OH), World Team Member
Adriana Sanchez of Purdue Polytechnic, State Runner-up
Cydney Bassett of Purdue Polytechnic, State Runner-up
Andrea Hernandez of Bellmont, State Runner-up
Trinity Coyne of Bellmont, State Runner-up
Haley Thompson of Columbia City, State Runner-up
 
With a recruiting class this stacked, it puts some pressure on the current lineup that Rademacher has been working with for the past few years. One of the biggest impacts in the room has been how large the Warrior’s roster has become. Having 53 athletes on a team with the ability to only take 12 to the NAIA Championships, makes for some great competition internally. Rademacher believes his recruiting class is “under the radar,” due to the pandemic not allowing these women to compete at the national level.
 
Another goal of Rademacher’s is to finish as a top eight team at the NAIA National Tournament this season, a legitimate goal with these returning starters and captains.
 
Returning All-Americans:
Tehani Soares of Shadow Ridge (NV), 4th place
Sam Snow of Los Alamitos (CA), 4th place
Elly Kuzma of Carlson (MI), 7th place
 
These few have been setting the example of what it takes to get to that next level that Rademacher is talking about. The Warriors have been putting in time in the offseason to really take advantage of the big strides they took last season. With a big dual win over Campbellsville, a new confidence has lit a fire in the room says Rademacher. With workout plans and some structure this offseason, they will likely exceed their goals.
 
Rademacher is more than ecstatic that the IHSAA is recognizing women’s wrestling as an emerging sport. He believes that opportunity to wrestle in college is something that every female wrestler should take advantage of, even if it’s not in Fort Wayne.
 
The Warriors are getting bigger and better by the year, and it does not look like they are slowing down anytime soon.
 
Trine:
Trine University hires on new head coach, Theresa Rankin, to tackle the 2022–2023 season for the Lightning. Rankin, being a seasoned veteran and All-American, came in this June and is already seeing growth in the room. With a small team, they will have more than enough one-on-one time to make something spark. The Lightning brought on three freshman this offseason and are excited to see what the future holds for them.
 
Freshman Recruits:
Charissa Fauber (West Lafayette, IN)
Emma Seiler (Auburn, IN)
Keira Wilson (Elkhart, IN)
 
Fauber, coming off a shoulder injury, is a firecracker on the mat says Rankin. Placing second in freestyle at the 2021 ISWA State Finals, she will a great asset for Trine in the coming years. Rankin, also excited about Seiler and Wilson, is really trying to get her newcomers to soak in everything about wrestling so they are better prepared when competition begins.
 
Speaking of competition, Riley Morrison (TX) qualified for nationals as a sophomore last season and is sharpening her skillset for a potential podium finish. Also coming back for their junior season is Michelle Sanchez (IL). Rankin believes Sanchez could potentially make it to nationals this year with the amount of talent she brings to the table. Lastly, Ashton Francis (NY) could also find herself at nationals if she focuses on her craft.
 
Although this team is young, Rankin is ready to strengthen weaknesses and take the Lightening to the next level.
 
Alara Boyd:
Being one of, if not, the best female wrestler to ever come out of Indiana, Alara Boyd of Yorktown continues to make history and could see herself with another National Collegiate Women’s Wrestling title this season. Being a three-time National Collegiate Women’s Championships finalist, Boyd has proven time and time again that she is able to compete with the best. Staying at 143lbs this season, Boyd is “staying consistent” with her training and lifestyle to stay at the top. Boyd highlights how important the little things are when trying to compete for national titles. Simple things like eating right and going to bed at a decent hour are sacrifices she is willing to make to win.
 
Boyd is well known around the state of Indiana, but left to attend McKendree University, ranked #2 in the 2021-2022 NWCA’s women’s coaches’ rankings. When she joined the Bearcats, Boyd was pushed out of her comfort zone a bit. She is a firm believer that people grown when they are uncomfortable, which is why she has enjoyed her time at McKendree. A challenge she has had to face since enrolled is having to prioritize her time. Having to juggle wrestling and school, it is tough to stay on top of everything, especially when wrestling all around the world. Attributing her success to her parents, Boyd is grateful for the support she receives.
 
“Keep Going,” is Boyd’s ask of all young female wrestlers. She dreams of seeing women’s wrestling sanctioned in Indiana and the only way for that to happen is to keep growing the sport.
 
Boyd will continue to dominate and will wrestle in the NWCA All-Star Classic on November 22nd on FloWrestling. Be sure to tune in and support Boyd on her journey to greatness.

Indiana Tech:
 
From a year of experience to Fargo All-Americans, Indiana Tech is a place where women’s wrestling is beginning to thrive. Having a roster of 53 athletes, the Warriors are looking to be a top five team at this year’s National Duals Tournament. Head Coach Paul Rademacher has brought in an underrated freshman class and is on the hunt to have seven All-American’s this season.
 
Notable Freshman Recruits:
Riley Dempewolf of McCutcheon, 4x Indiana State Champion, 2x Junior Duals All-American
Makayla Young of Bellefontaine Chieftain (OH), World Team Member
Adriana Sanchez of Purdue Polytechnic, State Runner-up
Cydney Bassett of Purdue Polytechnic, State Runner-up
Andrea Hernandez of Bellmont, State Runner-up
Trinity Coyne of Bellmont, State Runner-up
Haley Thompson of Columbia City, State Runner-up
 
With a recruiting class this stacked, it puts some pressure on the current lineup that Rademacher has been working with for the past few years. One of the biggest impacts in the room has been how large the Warrior’s roster has become. Having 53 athletes on a team with the ability to only take 12 to the NAIA Championships, makes for some great competition internally. Rademacher believes his recruiting class is “under the radar,” due to the pandemic not allowing these women to compete at the national level.
 
Another goal of Rademacher’s is to finish as a top eight team at the NAIA National Tournament this season, a legitimate goal with these returning starters and captains.
 
Returning All-Americans:
Tehani Soares of Shadow Ridge (NV), 4th place
Sam Snow of Los Alamitos (CA), 4th place
Elly Kuzma of Carlson (MI), 7th place
 
These few have been setting the example of what it takes to get to that next level that Rademacher is talking about. The Warriors have been putting in time in the offseason to really take advantage of the big strides they took last season. With a big dual win over Campbellsville, a new confidence has lit a fire in the room says Rademacher. With workout plans and some structure this offseason, they will likely exceed their goals.
 
Rademacher is more than ecstatic that the IHSAA is recognizing women’s wrestling as an emerging sport. He believes that opportunity to wrestle in college is something that every female wrestler should take advantage of, even if it’s not in Fort Wayne.
 
The Warriors are getting bigger and better by the year, and it does not look like they are slowing down anytime soon.
 
Trine:
Trine University hires on new head coach, Theresa Rankin, to tackle the 2022–2023 season for the Lightning. Rankin, being a seasoned veteran and All-American, came in this June and is already seeing growth in the room. With a small team, they will have more than enough one-on-one time to make something spark. The Lightning brought on three freshman this offseason and are excited to see what the future holds for them.
 
Freshman Recruits:
Charissa Fauber (West Lafayette, IN)
Emma Seiler (Auburn, IN)
Keira Wilson (Elkhart, IN)
 
Fauber, coming off a shoulder injury, is a firecracker on the mat says Rankin. Placing second in freestyle at the 2021 ISWA State Finals, she will a great asset for Trine in the coming years. Rankin, also excited about Seiler and Wilson, is really trying to get her newcomers to soak in everything about wrestling so they are better prepared when competition begins.
 
Speaking of competition, Riley Morrison (TX) qualified for nationals as a sophomore last season and is sharpening her skillset for a potential podium finish. Also coming back for their junior season is Michelle Sanchez (IL). Rankin believes Sanchez could potentially make it to nationals this year with the amount of talent she brings to the table. Lastly, Ashton Francis (NY) could also find herself at nationals if she focuses on her craft.
 
Although this team is young, Rankin is ready to strengthen weaknesses and take the Lightening to the next level.
 
Alara Boyd:
Being one of, if not, the best female wrestler to ever come out of Indiana, Alara Boyd of Yorktown continues to make history and could see herself with another National Collegiate Women’s Wrestling title this season. Being a three-time National Collegiate Women’s Championships finalist, Boyd has proven time and time again that she is able to compete with the best. Staying at 143lbs this season, Boyd is “staying consistent” with her training and lifestyle to stay at the top. Boyd highlights how important the little things are when trying to compete for national titles. Simple things like eating right and going to bed at a decent hour are sacrifices she is willing to make to win.
 
Boyd is well known around the state of Indiana, but left to attend McKendree University, ranked #2 in the 2021-2022 NWCA’s women’s coaches’ rankings. When she joined the Bearcats, Boyd was pushed out of her comfort zone a bit. She is a firm believer that people grown when they are uncomfortable, which is why she has enjoyed her time at McKendree. A challenge she has had to face since enrolled is having to prioritize her time. Having to juggle wrestling and school, it is tough to stay on top of everything, especially when wrestling all around the world. Attributing her success to her parents, Boyd is grateful for the support she receives.
 
“Keep Going,” is Boyd’s ask of all young female wrestlers. She dreams of seeing women’s wrestling sanctioned in Indiana and the only way for that to happen is to keep growing the sport.
 
Boyd will continue to dominate and will wrestle in the NWCA All-Star Classic on November 22nd on FloWrestling. Be sure to tune in and support Boyd on her journey to greatness.