New Washington's Josh Sampson

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WRESTLING WEDNESDAY: New Wash?s Sampson a standout on mat, in classroom

By KEVIN HARRIS

Kevin.Harris@newsandtribune.com

 

Josh Sampson is not just an average wrestler at New Washington High School.

 

In fact, Sampson has built quite a successful resume on the mat at New Washington.

 

Along with his athletic prowess, he is a standout in the classroom and has expressed his faith to hundreds of Christians throughout Southern Indiana.

 

?When you build yourself on solid ethical and moral foundations, success will follow you and those who you inspire will do the same,? Mustang head wrestling coach Jeremy Campbell said. ?The virtues of discipline and courage and reverence are three great keys to helping you overcome any obstacle in life. Josh understands this and he applies it to all that he does.?

 

Sampson has had a perfect start to his senior season. He improved his record to 20-0 after winning all three of his matches last Saturday in the Salem Invitational.

 

Sampson?s top accomplishment this year was capturing the 145-pound division title in last month?s Jeff Classic. It was the first time in New Washington history that a Mustang has claimed a championship in the prestigious Jeffersonville tournament.

 

?That was a huge accomplishment,? Sampson said. ?This year, I came in with a new goal and I wanted to win that tournament. That was very important to me.

 

?I thought that was kind of a pitfall that I needed to get through. The last two seasons, my first loss of the season had come in the Jeff Classic. But this year after it was over, I was still undefeated and that was a good feeling.?

 

Campbell says Sampson?s 2009-10 campaign has been a huge positive for his program and the school as a whole.

 

?I think Sampson?s season is wonderful for him, the team and the school,? Campbell said. ?He knows that he is a piece of the team and he strives to be the strongest. With that, he earns the respect of peer and coach alike.?

 

The Jeff Classic crown is one of several accomplishments Sampson has had in his prep career. Last season, Sampson went 45-3 and won his first-ever regional title. His 45 victories set the single-season wins record at NWHS, and he is on pace to break that record this year.

 

But as far as Sampson is concerned, he still has more goals to accomplish.

 

The first goal is to be the first undefeated regular-season wrestler in Mustang history, and if Sampson remains on his current hot streak, he has a legitimate chance at that feat.

 

?I?ve been wrestling well,? Sampson said. ?Right now, I?m focusing on learning new moves and perfecting my technique in areas where I think I?m flawed. I watch all of my matches on videotape and try to scout myself just to see where I can improve.?

 

The second goal is to win his first-ever sectional title. Sampson came close to achieving that goal in last year?s sectional, but got pinned by Floyd Central?s Ian Emerson in the 152-pound final in the last 30 seconds of the match. It was the only time in Sampson?s career that he has lost by a fall.

 

Sampson is motivated to redeem himself at sectional this year.

 

?That is something I want to grab,? Sampson said. ?I want to have a sectional championship when I graduate.?

 

Finally, Sampson has his sights set on accomplishing another first ? qualifying for the IHSAA State Finals. The main challenge for Sampson to reach this goal is to overcome his nerves.

 

?The big thing is not to have my nerves get the best of me,? Sampson said. ?Last year, I learned that I?m qualified to wrestle in the high level matches. This year, it?s just putting that to practice and making sure I can go the distance. My conditioning is very important and I work on it every day. My strength and my technique, it?s all got to be perfected in order to get there.

 

?Right now, I think that I have a chance. But I?ve got to improve in order to meet my goal.?

 

Campbell believes that his star grappler has as good of an opportunity as anyone to make state because of his work ethic and preparation methods.

 

?Any coach will tell you that qualifying a wrestler for the state finals is tough. It is a lot of preparation year-round,? Campbell said. ?The coaches do this to help limit chance being a factor when the tournament time arrives. That being said, it is up to the individual to ultimately prove he is the best when it counts, and Josh?s chances of that are as good as anyone?s in the state.?

 

In helping his chances of advancing to state, Sampson has dropped a weight class this season from 152 to 145. At 145, which he wrestled at his sophomore year, Sampson thinks he can be more competitive with the opposition.

 

?At 152, I felt strong, I was confident and I was quick,? Sampson said. ?This year, I?m very happy with my conditioning and I?m happy with my speed. But where I wanted to improve is I wanted to have a lot of strength over my opponents. So I decided to go the extra mile, cut down on my weight and monitor my weight even more closely.

 

?In essence, it was just to become more competitive.?

 

Along with his success as an athlete, Sampson is equally impressive as a student.

 

He currently ranks 12th in his class with a 3.78 grade-point average. This year, Sampson is taking classes at Prosser School of Technology in New Albany in computer programming with a focus on Internet Web development. He is working toward his Web master certification. Sampson is a member of the National Honor Society at New Washington and the National Technical Honor Society at Prosser.

 

Sampson prides himself on being a top-notch student.

 

?I want to go to college and wrestle in college,? said Sampson, who has received interest from the University of Indianapolis, Wabash, Trine and Manchester. ?But what I?ve come to find out is that it doesn?t matter how good of a wrestler you are. Colleges don?t want someone that they are going to give a scholarship to and then they flunk out. School is first and foremost about your education.?

 

Sampson?s relationship with God is very important to him and his family. In the past few years, he has tried to help other people get closer to God by being a youth minister at his church, Unity Missionary Baptist Church in Charlestown. Sampson?s father, John, is the church?s pastor.

 

Josh has been a youth minister since he was 15 years old and has given sermons at Unity and other area churches.

 

?Basically, I try to follow the will of the Lord,? Sampson said. ?When everything is all said and done, wrestling is wrestling and those goals will be with me. But when I look at the end of my life, I want to say I did something for the Lord and that I did something for other people to help other people. I think those things will eventually have a greater impact than my wrestling ever did.?

 

Campbell thinks being a standout student and a youth minister has helped Sampson become a better wrestler.

 

?Being a youth minister, you need to have a good understanding of what you are trying to accomplish, and being able to do that during the teen years is quite challenging,? Campbell said. ?I feel that everything that Josh has done has contributed to his success on the mat. He brings great credit upon himself and his family?s good name.?

 

Sampson?s duties as a wrestler, a student and a youth minister create a very hectic schedule for him from time to time.

 

But this summer, Sampson got a chance to take a break from that slate and have some fun. He went on a trip with the Team Indiana wrestling team to Japan.

 

Sampson enhanced his wrestling skills by competing in seven matches, one against a college team. In the meantime, he experienced a new culture and augmented his love of traveling.

 

?It was really amazing,? Sampson said. ?I believed all of my opponents except for one had won national titles in their careers. I actually won a few matches. But for the most part, I got my butt kicked and I think that was probably good for me.

 

?The culture shock was great. I really enjoyed it. I would recommend the trip to anybody. The food was also really, really good. I love sushi.?

 

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