BY CHRIS FORTUNE
Seven members of the EHS wrestling team will compete at sub-state this weekend after qualifying at regionals. Six from the boys team and one from the girls team will be going.
Wrestling coach Gus Andrews said it would be nice to see all of his wrestlers win after dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic and a shortened season this year.
“We got the talent, we got the grit, we got the technique, we got the heart, we got the mindset to get there,” he said. “It just depends on who shows up.”
Andrews said he is not overly worried about match results though as his team heads into regionals. It is more important to him that they are able to perform without any regrets.
“Wins and losses don’t mean anything to me,” he said. “I know it does to them, but I don’t want them to have any regrets because they held something back or they were reserved in a certain situation.”
Senior Cael Lynch took first last week at regionals. He said he had plenty of nerves and believed it was due to worrying about the competition. However, he realized his experience was more important than worrying about who is in front of him.
“These past couple weeks, I’ve realized that I’ve wrestled for 14 years, and I’ve had 13 and a half years to be nervous about a match,” he said. “At the same time, this is my 14th year training and I’m not gonna let 14 years of experience be wasted in four weeks.”
Lynch said he is focusing on everything he has practiced over the last 14 years and using that experience to prepare for the last two weeks of postseason wrestling. As he prepares for sub-state, he wants to perfect some of his wrestling mechanics.
“I get close on a lot of shots, but I’m not always finishing them and I want to be more dominant on top,” he said. “Just maintaining good position and forcing them to have to wrestle me.”
Senior Holden Andrews also placed first at regionals. He said that being relentless and persistent were key for him at regionals.
“What motivates me is the hard work I put in,” he said. “Might as well go out there and give it everything I’ve got because if I wasn’t, it would just be a waste of my own time and everyone else's time that’s helped me.”
Holden said he has grown to be more confident and focused since his freshman year.
“I got more focused, I got my mind right, and took a more winning mentality,” he said. “I used to wrestle like I was scared to lose and now I push that more aside and now I just wrestle to wrestle.”
Senior Will Schreiner placed second at regionals and said his teammates motivate him when he takes the mat.
“I’ve been with most of them since we started our first kids club in Eudora,” he said. “I just want to be with them and help them get better and finish the season strong with them.”
Schreiner said he felt like he did a solid job at regionals and has been more energetic this year. He attributed his success to not having to focus on shedding weight as much this year. He said avoiding sugar is one of the key components of his diet.
“I haven’t been cutting as much weight as the past three years, and I think that’s made me a lot more energetic on the mat,” he said. “That helps me a lot, especially when I’m eating the right stuff.”
Junior Dayton Fraser took third at regionals and his motivation to take the mat comes from wanting to prove something to himself.
“I do it to prove something to me,” he said. “Going through some tough practices and always getting better.”
Fraser was not happy with how he performed at regionals and said it was a wake-up call before the state tournament.
“I was kinda disappointed with how I wrestled, but I took a lot away from it,” he said. “My mindset is going to be a lot better and I’m gonna be a completely different wrestler than I was last week.”
Senior Dakota Whitaker took fourth at regionals and is looking to continue his success by being quick on his feet.
“Very dominant on my feet,” he said. “I got the takedown almost every match, even if I ended up losing. I would like to keep that up and stay faster than everybody else.”
Junior Mac Douglas placed fourth at regionals. As a sophomore, Douglas was on junior varsity and he strived to make varsity his junior year.
“I’ve been wrestling since kindergarten basically,” he said. “Last year, I wasn’t even varsity, I was JV, and so I really pushed myself this year to take varsity and step up.”
Douglas said he works out more and focuses more on cooking and eating healthy foods at home to get ready for the wrestling season.
“I mostly avoid sugars and artificial stuff,” he said. “I try to eat veggies and plenty of lean meat.”
Freshman Kyleigh Musick took third at regionals and is the only member of the girls team wrestling at sub-state today.
Gus Andrews has been impressed with the team’s work ethic and the way the team has been able to push themselves in practice.
“They got the right mentality for sure,” he said. “They’re not short on hard work ethics, I know that. That’s probably one of the hardest working groups of kids I’ve ever had.”
Gus Andrews believes what the wrestlers learned in practice and competing will follow them outside of high school.
“I know that they’re not going to be shy of a winning mentality when they leave the brick and mortar of this building when they graduate,” he said.
The girls sub-state tournament at Garnett-Anderson County High School will begin today at 3 p.m.
The boys sub-state tournament at Chanute High School will begin Saturday.
Reach reporter Chris Fortune at eudoratimes@gmail.com.
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