The varsity team has had a tough schedule this year, attending as many duels and tournaments as possible. They never back down from a hard match; they use that time to work on their skills and use what they have learned all season to try their best.
Some things coach Maddy would like to improve next season are “Chain wrestling and belief. We had a very young team this year, so much of the year was spent learning technique and learning to like good tough wrestling. Now that we have a lot of techniques under our belt, we can focus on improving our abilities to flow seamlessly from one to the next. As for belief, historically we’ve been a bit stuck behind Post Falls and Coeur d’Alene. If this season has shown us anything, we CAN compete with these guys, and flipping that switch to beating them will start with belief in ourselves and belief and trust in our teammates.”
Some athletes that stuck out to coach Maddy this year were freshman Coen Roberts, Mason Faling, Junior Emma Rivera, and Senior Hoyt Hvass.
Roberts and Faling have really shown that they are here to fight for a spot on varsity. They have been rock-solid athletes and consistently showing their dedication to the team and sport.
“Wrestling makes me mentally and physically stronger,” said Faling when asked how wrestling has impacted him. On the other hand, wrestling has given Roberts something to be proud of. In the years ahead these freshman athletes plan to work on their confidence and get better at the wrestling positions. This will help them compete in the best shape and hopefully go far.
Coach Maddy stated that Rivera has been quite the dark horse this year working harder than ever to place at state. “Wrestling has not only taught me so much but it has given me the opportunity to make connections with my teammates and meet great people,” Said Rivera.
At the state wrestling tournament, the team had six state placers. Gunnar Whitlock (11) in 6th, Emma Rivera (11) in 6th, Brice Cuthbert (11) in 5th, Jase Hendren (11) in 3rd, Joely Slyter (11) in 2nd, and lastly Hoyt Hvass (12) in 1st place for the third year in a row. Every athlete who attended state worked hard throughout the whole season and to even get a spot to compete at state is a huge accomplishment on its own.
