Knight wrestlers ready for season to get started
Jack Welsh, left, is back for West Holmes after qualifying for state last season and having the chance to wrestle there ripped away by COVID-19. He sets his sights on rectifying that this season.
Last season five West Holmes Knights wrestlers were literally within 24 hours of competing at the state tournament before the season was brought to an abrupt halt by COVID-19.
The new version of the Knights' program is ready to pick up where that group left off.
As the final week of practice winds down before the 2020-21 wrestling season gets underway for the West Holmes High School and Middle School squads, expectations are, as usual, very high, and the beginning of the season can’t get here quickly enough for coaches and wrestlers alike.
“Finally, wrestling season,” Knights wrestling head coach Scott Vaughn said when asked about the upcoming season. “I am so excited to get this season rolling. With all this madness happening around us, I want so badly for these kids to get to have a wrestling season. This team is very excited to be getting going as well.”
With an experienced team featuring 11 returning varsity letter winners, Vaughn is especially pleased with the number of wrestlers on the roster: 28.
“This will be one of our biggest teams, number-wise,” Vaughn said. “We have a lot of kids that have starting-lineup experience coming back. They are ready to put their stamp on the West Holmes wrestling tradition. We will also have a few new starters filling the open spots from a rather large graduating class from last season. I fully expect this team to compete every day in the practice room and get better as the season progresses.
“We will be led by five seniors: Skylar Anderson, Colt Cox, Gavin Greer, Corbin Miller and Jack Welsh. Welsh is also our returning state qualifier, and junior Tucker Kaufman is a returning state alternate. I also want to thank all the coaches in the program dedicating extra time to be able to prepare for the season.”
Key seniors
Skylar Anderson: last year 20-19 with 13 falls on varsity, fourth at sectionals, district qualifier, third at conference. Career varsity record of 28-35 with 16 falls. He is a two-year letter winner.
Colt Cox: 13-23 on varsity and junior varsity with three falls on varsity and two falls (junior varsity), placed fourth in sectionals as a district qualifier. He is a two-year letter winner.
Gavin Greer: 28-20 with 18 falls in varsity action last year, placed second at sectionals to become a district qualifier and was second at OCC. Career varsity record of 52-55 with 35 falls, with a career varsity and junior varsity record of 58-55 with 38 falls. He is a three-year letter winner.
Corbin Miller: 16-8 with the varsity and junior varsity last year. He owns a career varsity record of 7-16 with four falls and is a one-year letter winner.
Jack Welsh: 28-10 with 10 falls on the varsity last year. Welsh placed third at districts to become a state qualifier. He was second at sectionals and a champion at the conference tournament. He boasts a career varsity record of 75-29 with 31 falls and is a three-year letter winner.
Key juniors
Hunter Eberhard: 12-12 in varsity and junior varsity action with a career varsity record of 1-6 with one fall.
Tucker Kaufman: 43-14 with 31 falls on varsity. He placed fifth at districts, making him a state alternate last year. He placed second at sectionals to become a district qualifier and was first at conference. He owns a career varsity record of 61-24 with 40 falls and is a two-year letter winner and recipient of the team’s Most Improved Award last year.
Dillon Miller: Injured all of last season, he owns a career varsity record of 10-12 with four falls. He is a one-year letter winner.
Brady Smith: 23-6 on varsity and junior varsity with two falls at the varsity level and 15 falls at junior varsity last year. He has a career varsity record of 6-4 with two falls and a career junior varsity record of 17-2 with 15 falls. Smith earned the 2019-20 Varsity “B” Team (JV) Most Valuable Wrestler Award.
Dylan Strouse: 22-16 in varsity and junior varsity action last year with 10 falls with the varsity and one fall with the junior varsity. He placed fifth at sectionals and was a district alternate and finished first at conference. Strouse has a career varsity record of 45-23 with 21 falls and is a two-year letter winner.
Noah Tish: 18-7 with the varsity and junior varsity with five varsity falls and three falls on junior varsity last year. Career varsity record of 14-9 with seven falls.
Conner Varnes: 19-12 with 13 falls on varsity and a career varsity record of 24-18 with 16 falls. He is a two-year letter winner.
Key sophomores
Collin Gardner: 16-22 with varsity and junior varsity with five varsity falls. He placed fifth at sectionals and was a district alternate while placing fourth at conference. A career varsity record of 12-18 with five falls, he is a one-year letter winner.
Mason Taylor: 21-12 on varsity and junior varsity with eight varsity falls. He owns a career varsity record of 13-11 with eight falls and is a one-year letter winner.
The incoming freshman group includes Grady Toye, who was 23-10 in middle school with 15 falls. He was fourth at OAC districts and a state qualifier while placing first at conference. He was the WHMS Coaches Award winner.
Another freshman impact kid is Logan Vansickle, who was 19-9 last year with 16 falls with WHMS. His career middle school record is 30-18 with 26 falls. He was the WHMS Most Falls Award winner.
Other newcomers are Gabe Averbukh, Kalan Bowling, Ashton Raber, Blake Strouse and Grant Miller, who was 19-9 last year with 15 falls.