As many of you may know the ultimate dream in high school wrestling is to wrestle at the state finals and to do it...BENEATH THE LIGHTS.  What some of you may not realize is how hard these wrestlers work just to qualify for the state finals.  The amount of work, time, and dedication, physically and mentally, that these young men go through is nothing short of amazing.  It takes extreme perserverance that most of us would not be able to sustain.

The Reitz Wrestling Team would like to take the time to honor and tell you about four very talented young men.

These four young men just had the opportunity to wrestle at the famed two day Indiana State Wrestling Tournament last weekend.

The first of these young men, Mr. Alex Johns, completed his season with an almost perfect 51-1.  Alex wrestled his way easily to the second day of competition by defeating Christian Golden, a senior from Indianapolis Arlington, by decision of 4-0.  The first round of wrestling on day two, Alex faced Carlo Martinez, a senior from Merrillville.  In usual fashion, Alex took to the mat with confidence and came ready to wrestle. The result, a win, by fall in the time of 2 minutes and 11 seconds.  Mr. Johns then was faced with his biggest match of the year against Indianapolis Cathedral's sophomore, Brandon Wright, and a chance to be in the finals.  Alex wrestled a very solid match but was defeated by Wright who escaped late in the match to win 4-3.  It was an awesome match to watch and Alex never gave up even in the last seconds to try to pull out the win.  Mr. Johns then went on to wrestle in the consolation round for third and fourth and again he was faced by an equal competitor. Justin Brooks, a junior from Warsaw with only one loss on the season himself.  Alex wrestled to his full potential in this match and pulled out a big win by a decision of 6-4 for third place. We look forward to watching this talented wrestler one more year and I have complete confidence that he will do just as well or better. Your 2008, 112 pound third place finisher, Alex Joooohhnnnnsss.

The next outstanding wrestler is our 125 pounder, Mr. Nathan Jones.  Nathan, in his senior year, had a terrific season and finished the year with a strong record of 49-2 and a seventh place title at 125 in the State of Indiana.  Nathan had smooth sailing on the first day of competition with an easy victory over South Vermillion's junior, Wade Bohannon. He took  a 9-1 major decision to move onto the second day of the competition.  Nathan's first match of day two was a fierce competitor, Will Sheets, a junior from Bellmont. Nathan wrestled hard and his heart never gave up but in the end Sheets out manned Nathan to win 17-7, ending a perfect season and a perfect dream.  Nathan took his first loss hard, but came prepared for the consolation round where he faced a senior from Perry Meridian, Brian Vest.    Vest proved to be a challenge, but Nathan stuck with him in a tight match of 1-1 through most of the third period.  Vest then pulled a fast takedown in the last seconds to defeat Nathan with a close 3-1 decision.  Nathan once again sucked up his pride and went on to prove himself against Warren Central's junior Nick Odom. Nathan was back to his old self, completely dominating Odom for a 9-1 decision, giving Nathan some closure to his final high school match and locking up seventh place in the state of Indiana at 125lbs.  It has been exhilarating to watch this confident young man in his wrestling career and we look forward to seeing what Nathan accomplishes in the world.

The third young man on the list has had an amazing wrestling career, from freshman to senior.  Mr. Connor Houchins is the type of wrestler that every coach wants to have to in their room, but few will ever have the opportunity.  Connor had an outstanding season against a very stacked weight class.  Connor worked hard in the wrestling room, drilling, running, jumping rope, conditioning when most wrestlers had already gone home. This gave him confidence on the mat, where he beat wrestler after wrestler, ultimately earning himself a fourth place ranking in the state. He had one a goal in mind, to be a state champ, and he worked hard at that goal every day. Although he came up short in his dream, Connor will always be considered one of the best 145 pound wrestlers to ever put the coveted superman R singlet on for the Reitz Panthers.  Connor had a very tough weight class and his first match was against George Markou, a senior form Peru who was the number two ranked wrestler.  Connor wrestled hard through the first period. The second period he chose down and shortly into the match, Connor got caught by Markou and was defeated by a quickly called fall.  Connor ended a great season with a very impressive record of 45-7.  Everyone has enjoyed watching this young man wrestle over the years and we look forward to seeing him excel in life. 

The final wrestler is not one to forget.  His career has been a great one to watch not only because of his talent as a wrestler but because, at heavyweight, Mr Zachary "Moose" Campbell has always liked to keep it exciting for the fans with many close wins.  The first day of the tournament was a great match against a Junior from Plymouth High, Justin Deurloo.  Deurloo was a strong little wrestler, scoring the first takedown of the match, but Moose was better, defeating him by a decision of 6-5. He moved on to day two of the tournament increasing his record to 41-1.  Saturday would prove to be a more difficult day for Zach when he faced Adam Chalfant, a junior from Winchester with the same record of 41-1.  This match was a very hard fought match. Tied 2-2 through the three regulation periods , the match went into overtime, not uncommon for Moose.  Moose started the overtime period pressuring his weary opponent, attempting takedown after takedown.  Then in a scramble situation, Moose locked up a cradle and turned his opponent to his back, the referee began to count nearfall, but Chalfant immediately kicked out. A split second later Moose locked up a second cradle, almost surely securing a 2 point takedown. Chalfant then broke Zach's grip and swiftly scrambled around behind where the referee awarded him the 2 point takedown.  Unfortunately, the ref decided not to award Moose those winning points although Coaches Ferguson and Miller argued diligently. It is heartbreaking when a great wrestler loses his dreams to a questionable call.  Moose overcame this defeat in the consolation round by winning two more matches.  The first consolation round was against another decorated wrestler with a similar record of 42-2, Derick Minick, a senior from Fountain Central.  Moose provided another thrilling match winning 2-1 in sudden death overtime setting him up to wrestle in the consolation round for the fifth place.  Craig Fitzgerald, a junior from Glenn, was Mooses next opponent.  Fitzgerald with a record of 44-3 was Moose's last opponent of his great high school career. He was not about to let it end badly, and Moose did what he does best, defeating Fitzgerald by 4-3 with a late escape in the final overtime.  Although Moose's family, friends and fans would have probably preferred a win not in overtime, it was fitting that Zach ended his last match of his high school career with a great and nail biting win, placing him 5th at 285 pounds.  We are all going to miss this exciting young man with his charismatic attitude and only positive things are to come in Zach's future.  

Reitz Wrestling could not be more proud of these young men.  Each one of them worked hard and although others may not fully appreciate what they have accomplished, to the Reitz Wrestling family they have proved themselves to be champions in wrestling and in heart.  Congratulations Alex, Nathan, Connor, and Zach on your Amazing Seasons!  You have earned one great big HOORAH!

You can see the entire state results by clicking on this link