regionfather10

Leroy Vega vs Greg Schaefer met 3 years in a row on Saturday. 1995 freshman Schaefer wins in semis, 1996 Vega hip toss in final seconds to win in the quarters. 1997 Vega wins in title match. Schaefer wins as freshman and again as a senior. Vega wins his final 2 years. They would go on to wrestle each other in college and sit in opposite corners as coaches. Two of Indiana's best! If someone has a video of any of these matches please post!

https://bigten.org/news/2020/2/11/wrestling-michigan-and-penn-state-share-wrestler-of-the-week-honor.aspx Congrats to Mason Parris and Nick Lee for earning the Big Ten Wrestler of the Week! 7 times our state has claimed the honor with Dillon Lydy and Graham Rooks each earning it twice along with Parris, Nick Lee and Brayton Lee. It's nice to see our state being recognized for our accomplishments. Let's keep it going and do some damage at Big Tens and NCAA's!!!

Where did Cantu change his commitment from?

Steven "Bam" Lawrence

Portage High School graduate Steven "Bam" Lawrence has signed his letter of intent to wrestle at NAIA powerhouse Grand View (Iowa). After finishing as a 2x JUCO All-American at Ellsworth (Iowa) he will look to continue his career with the 7x defending national champion Vikings. Thanks for representing Indiana and Portage proudly and wishing you continued success!

Listening to the mat 2 announcer is like listening to my drunk uncle get everyone's name wrong....Irritating!!

Kris Rumph was a takedown machine tonight! Was glad to see him and his quickness back in offensive mode. Very impressive weekend!

Vega throwing Schaefer to his back for the win in the quarterfinals '96 trailing with 8 seconds left in the match avenging a loss in the semis the year before

I feel aside from the uniforms, we are seeing the result of the increased number of youth wrestling programs that have stemmed from the great wrestlers and programs this state has produced in the last 10-20 years.

Don't forget Jason Tsirtsis returning for his senior year at ASU.

Porter County Portage Leroy Vega 2x state champ 3x NCAA all-American (U of Minnesota) Honorable mention Chesterton Keith Davison 2x state champ 2x NCAA all-American (U of Wisconsin) Portage Sean McMurray 3x state champ Fred Joseph 2x state champ Andrew Bradbury 1x state runner up 2x NAIA champ (Lindenwood) Valparaiso Eric Douglas 2x state runner-up 1x NCAA all-American (Purdue) Jason Cook 1x state champ 2x state runner-up

Congratulations Gaige! You have and continue to make Portage wrestling proud.

Gaige Torres definitely needs to be mentioned. 2x runner-up with losses to Chad Redd and Brock Hudkins. Nothing to be ashamed of. Who knows how he would have done his sophomore year if it wasn't for the controversial dq illegal slam at semi state. Great career.

Vega and Shaefer in 97 wasn't about their accolades but more about their personal rivalry. In 95 Vega beat the number one ranked kid Smiley in the quarters and was beaten by the freshman Shaefer in the semis. In 96 they met Saturday morning with Shaefer leading Vega threw him to his back for 5 with seconds to go in the match for the win. I don't think I ever heard Market Square Arena so loud. Then in 97 to both meet undefeated in the finals I can remember the crowd coming to their feet as they entered the mat. A great rivalry that continued into college with both gaining victories over each other. Fair to say if it wasn't for each other Vega would've been a 3x champ and Shaefer a 4x.

Good luck this weekend Crimson Wave. Congratulations for setting the foundation of what I am sure will be a national contender in years to come.