Athletes have to be smart and strategic to be successful at any sport, but wrestling takes these skills to a whole new level. The 2024-25 boys wrestling season has just begun, but the athletes are ready to put these skills to use in a season that will bring some key changes.
One of these changes is that the boys will be competing in Class D instead of Class C, which they are hoping will be a benefit.
“There’s a lot of really good wrestlers in Class D, but we might be able to sneak a few more guys through to state, and then maybe it might help us out at state. You know, it kind of depends on each weight class, but I’m hoping it might make it just a little bit easier,” head coach Dan Krajicek said.
Even though this might make the season easier, the wrestlers know they still have to work just as hard.
“We still have to be good even if it is easier. We can’t get too cocky because, well one, it would make us look bad, and it will also mess with us mentally,” sophomore Eli Kult said.
The other change the wrestlers face is new NFHS (National Federation of State High School Associations) rules, which include new ways to get points and new in or out of bounds calls during the match, though the coaches are already adjusting practices as a result.
“Just because of some of the new rules, we’ll have to change what we are emphasizing a little bit more during practice because there’s going to be a lot more opportunities for scoring. So being able to score points and not giving up points is going to be a really big deal,” Krajicek said.
With these changes, the boys know they need strategies to get themselves ahead.
“I just can’t get down on myself, and I like to set some goals through the season because it helps me try harder to meet my goals,” sophomore Otto Henkel said.
Part of the mental challenge is the individual nature of wrestling.
“It’s a hard sport because there’s no one to rely on but yourself plus maybe cutting and losing matches might be tough for me,” Henkel said.
Even so, the wrestlers are ready to set high goals and work to achieve them.
“I’d say the success in my season is based on what goals I set for myself, how hard I work and keeping on top of my mental game; and I mean, it’s my senior year, so I wanna be successful,” senior Max Egr said.
Along with the players even the coaches have goals to accomplish by the end of the season.
“My goals are just to get better at the end of the season than we were at the start. Like, as long as we do that and kids reach their potential, that’s the only thing I can really control. Hard to you know, things happen throughout the year that you can’t you don’t have any control of, so just kind of keeping your goals, like stuff that you absolutely have control of, that’s the best thing to do,” Krajicek said.
