Ross County wrestling on the rise
CHILLICOTHE, Ohio — As the winter sports calendar starts to come to an end, the area has a great collection of wrestling talent that appears prepared to make some noise. The sport of wrestling has grown at several area schools over this past decade, but in recent years the elite level of individuals representing Ross County appears to be on the rise. This is sure to make for an exciting postseason for us to follow.
A major postseason focus this winter will be on the Chillicothe program. Seniors Mike Hicks and Trevor Banks are preparing for some more success. Last year, Hicks captured a Sectional title in Division I. He is a two-time District qualifier, and is currently 23-9 on the season. As for Banks, he is also a returning Division I Sectional Champion and is posting some remarkable numbers this season. As the calendar turns to February here in his senior season, he sits at 32-1, and he has captured individual titles at the GMVWA Championships (65 teams), at Lakewood, at Nelsonville York, at Licking Heights, and at Miami Trace.
鈥淭he sport of wrestling is growing in the youth age group,鈥� said Chillicothe head coach Mike Peck. Our Little Cavs Program has 40 students, and every weekend the youth level events are packed with over 300 kids.鈥�
Coach Peck is also excited to see how the sport is gaining momentum with our local girls.鈥� Also, with wrestling adding females as an official sport, we have noticed a large increase in females competing weekly,鈥� said Peck.
Equally excited for some success, the Unioto program has a pair of seniors in Matt Griffin and Layton Vennon looking to put a great finish on their careers. Unioto head coach Kyle Lawson is excited about his individuals growing in the sport, is proud of the improvements in the program, and likes the growth he is seeing in the overall sport in this area.
鈥淎s far as wrestling goes in the area, we believe that it is growing,鈥� said Coach Lawson. 鈥淭here are also more opportunities than ever for kids to wrestle and compete at every level. We are really starting to see youth numbers beginning to rise with hopes that brings up numbers in junior high and high school. One thing that we really like is that the coaches from the area are really starting to work together and make southeast Ohio wrestling come on strong.鈥�
For Griffin, he has been a two-time League champ and District qualifier and has high hopes of adding to his accomplishments. Vennon has also been a mainstay in the District tournament throughout his career, and in talking to him, it is obvious that he is excited to finish strong and hopes to help grow the sport for the future.
鈥淚 am proud of going to the Districts every year of high school so far and placing sixth at Districts last year,鈥� said Vennon. 鈥淚鈥檃m definitely happy with my record so far this year at 24-3. My favorite part about wrestling is how it teaches hard work and pushes you to new limits you didn’t know were in reach. I also really enjoy helping the young kids and teaching the sport to them and trying to build the future of it.鈥�
Another program which has enjoyed some success in terms of individuals making some noise in the SVC and postseason is Paint Valley. The Bearcats have had plenty of SVC champions and have made some trips to the OHSAA Wrestling State Tournament.
This year, senior Dakota Tennant is looking to finish off a great career. Last season as a junior, Tennant was 17-6. This year, he is already off to a 24-6 start and is excited for some postseason opportunities.
鈥淚 love wrestling because it鈥檚 a sport where you control your success on the mat,鈥� said Tennant who at the time of this article鈥檚 deadline (late January) was just one win shy of career win number 50. 鈥淵ou can鈥檛 blame anyone else for your failure.鈥�
Another small-school program extremely proud of its growth is Huntington. Head coach Mark DePugh has a lot of pride in the fact they consistently fill every weight class. He is excited to think about where the program has been and where it is going.
鈥淗untington wrestling began in the fall of 2014 in the basement of the elementary building,鈥� said Coach DePugh. 鈥淲restling was completely new to Huntington Township, but it has since grown into a flourishing program recognized throughout central and southeast Ohio. We are now reaping some benefits of our youth program at the junior high and high school levels, and it will just keep getting better.鈥�
The evidence for this claim is clear when you consider that last year Huntington鈥漵 junior high wrestlers won the SVC Championship as a team while the varsity team finished second in the league. This year the solid senior trio of Bryce Kohn, Jesse Lett, and Quinton Puckett have all won individual titles during various events during the season. They are leading a charge that has Huntington sitting at 53-11 at the end of January as the team is preparing for the League championship and postseason.
As I researched and talked to several wrestling people throughout the last month here in Ross County, the common theme that continues to come up is growth. Several schools are excited about youth programs. They are seeing a benefit of this in junior high wrestling. More and more schools are excited about increased facilities for the sport. The passion and commitment of so many people make it easy to understand why wrestling has grown so much in recent years and it certainly paints an exciting picture of the sport for the years to come.
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