By Ruthie Peckinpaugh
The time, commitment, hard work, and struggles are paying off for these five wrestlers in the state of Indiana. Every wrestler strives for one thing at the beginning of their season that these wrestlers already have achieved — to be RANKED.
Ayden Bollinger, Kaeb Stebbins, Kaid Jackson, Sam Mosier, and Reed Wicker are all wrestlers ranked top 20 in Indiana in their weight class.
All five won sectional titles on Feb. 1st and now will wrestle on Saturday, Feb. 8 at Jay County’s regionals. They also will be joined by four unranked teammates who also advanced.
The five state-ranked athletes range from seniors to freshmen, adding diversity to this year’s wrestling team.
Bollinger, a senior wrestler ranked fourth at 120 pounds, has been a big role model this year for the full team.
“I know if I focus on the little things in practice, the underclassmen will keep pushing themselves, look up to me, and keep getting better at the sport,” Bollinger said. “I just hope I do that for them.”
Bollinger uses his leadership skills to the next level which now has paid off since the wrestling team has two underclassmen among the ranked wrestlers. Mosier, who is a sophomore, is ranked eighth in the state at 132 pounds and Wicker, a freshman, is ranked 10th in the state at 106 pounds.
Mosier’s freshman season was cut short last year due to losing in the ticket round at semi-state. The outcome from last year made Sam work even harder this year to make sure he makes it to state.
His commitment to wrestling is beyond just school practices. He also makes efforts outside of practice to ensure he is prepared to wrestle anyone he faces. He goes to the Central Indiana Academy wrestling club in the summer in Indianapolis.
He also does private lessons with the head wrestling coach from CIA, Brady Eppert. He states he does all this extra work to make himself proud and place high at state.
“Just to place at state means a lot to me because it’s been a big dream for me since I was a little kid and I want to make my younger self proud because I wanted to prove to everyone that I will be successful,” Mosier said.
But being a ranked wrestler doesn’t just come with pride. There is also pressure, especially for Wicker.
He didn’t always go to Delta. He transferred this year from Blackford to pursue his wrestling career because of the training and coaches Delta has to offer.
His cutting weight and training have challenged him this season just because middle school to high school sports is a big jump in maturity level.
He says the pressure he feels comes mostly from himself but also the expectations of succeeding for the team can get overwhelming. But, he said he has a good support system around him to get him through this season.
“I believe my biggest supporters are my mom and dad but most definitely my dad since he is a parental figure and a coach in my life,” Wicker said. “My teammates and coaches have been a big support this year also, especially after transferring from a new school to Delta. The support has been unreal and I couldn’t ask for a better support system.”
Support and patience are needed for the dreadful weight-cutting. This is a big part of the wrestler’s day-to-day life during the season. It is a necessary thing but one of the biggest struggles in wrestling.
Jackson, who is ranked seventh in the state at 113 pounds, has had a big bump he has had to conquer this year with his process of weight-cutting
Jackson said his normal weight while not cutting is around 125 pounds. He said at the beginning of the season he was struggling with eating healthy and minimizing how much he eats, which made him cut “unhealthy” at the last minute before a dual or tournament.
“But as the season went on I figured out how to maintain my weight and eat smart throughout the week before a tournament,” Jackson said.
These wrestlers’ weight-cutting isn’t the only responsibility they have to deal with. They have to figure out what their future is going to look like in the next four years.
Stebbins, who is ranked number 5 in the state at the weight 175, and Bollinger, who wrestles at 120, are both seniors who are ranked top 20 in the state. They both have wrestled all four years in high school and have had successful years.
As the season is ending they need to decide what they want their future to look like.
Stebbins is a multi-sport athlete. Besides wrestling in high school, he has also been on the baseball team for four years. He said he plans to keep his baseball career going into college and is undecided about where he is going.
He believes after finishing this season, hopefully on a successful note, he will finally retire his wrestling singlets. He wants to make sure he hangs them up with pride.
On the other hand, Bollinger has plans for his wrestling career. He will attend Indiana University to wrestle at the collegiate level and be on their team.
He plans to wrestle in the weight class 125 for IU Wrestling, continuing his love for the sport.
But no matter where these wrestlers go, the impact of their careers whether they are freshmen, sophomores, juniors, or seniors will have a legacy with Delta Wrestling forever. Standing on the podium or not at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, they will always have the name Delta across their chest.
