JOHNSTOWN — The lean times for the Northridge High School wrestling program may soon be over.
The Vikings varsity wrestling team, which has dwindled to a mere few, is about to receive an injection of talent from the middle school ranks that could turn them into a powerhouse on the mats for years to come.
The years of building from the bottom has turned coach Eric Potts’ middle school squad into one of the best in the area.
Now, the first wave of those wrestlers, who have been together since they were in the Northridge Youth Program in elementary school, are in the seventh and eighth grade and are on the verge of promising high school careers.
The Vikings have built the pipeline of talent. Now, they are about to add the last section and start loading their varsity squad with young, talented wrestlers.
“All of these kids have been wrestling together for several years,” said Potts. “These kids have been wrestling for six or seven years. The Northridge Youth Program is the strongest in the county. It has taken us from bottom two or three in most of these tournaments, to being in the top two or three. I just hope the levy passes to continue to fund our sports programs in May. Especially because we are just on the verge of realizing the benefit of all the hard work that we have done to build the wrestling program.”
Eighth-grader Jeff Maynard, who wrestles in the 98-pound class, is heading to the Middle School District Tournament at Thomas Worthington High School this Sunday, with a record of 30-2.
Rob Mickey, a seventh-grader in the 110-pound weight class, is a wealth of talent at 33-1.
“This kid wrestles year-round,” said Potts. “He goes to as many camps and clinics as he can get to. For a seventh-grader, he is one of the most dedicated wrestlers I have seen. He went out and wrestled Grade School Nationals last year with teams from all over the country. He’s not intimidated by anybody. The only match he lost, this year, was to the projected middle school state champ. He defeated him, 1-0.”
Tom Williams, a 116-pound eighth-grader, is 33-3 and was Northridge’s MVP last year.
“He wrestles all the time,” said Potts. “He was the first Northridge wrestler to go to the State Tournament for middle school.”
Shane Mulligan, an eighth-grader, also wrestles at 116. He is currently 33-2.
“Those three (Mickey, Williams and Mulligan) will actually wrestle the same weight class on Sunday,” said Potts. “We have three kids that wrestle at the same weight and they all wrestle the same. Hopefully, they will scatter into other weight classes next year. They have been the same size for three years. They go to different camps and teach each other what they learned. They push each other.”
As a matter of fact, Mickey is going to go to the District Tournament in Steubenville (instead of Thomas Worthington) just so that he does not cause his teammates in the same weight class to lose an opportunity to win a spot in the middle school regionals.
Jacob Burke is a 128-pound seventh-grader. Although he may be more comfortable in the football field, he is 30-4 as a wrestler.
“He is starting to follow around our other wrestlers and is going to other camps with them,” said Potts. “He placed fifth in the Grade School State Tournament. He is just a natural wrestler.”
Anthony Vethovec, who wrestles at 150 pounds, is 32-4 as an eighth-grader.
“He has wrestled for several years and he is very knowledgeable about the sport,” said Potts. “His biggest issue in his transition to high school will be in strength, which is how it is in the higher weight classes. It’s going to be really important to him. He is leaner and lighter than he was in sixth grade. I would not be surprised if he wrestled 150 in high school.”
Alex Blake, a first-year wrestler at 172 pounds, is an eighth-grade football standout and a naturally gifted athlete.
“When he learns more about wrestling, he will be a tough kid to beat,” said Potts. “Sometimes, it’s a good thing that they haven’t wrestled earlier because they haven’t picked up habits. He can be taught fresh. He hasn’t has a chance to learn bad habits but, he also hasn’t had a chance to learn the things that other kids know.”
These youngsters will join the current varsity wrestlers, including Anthony’s older brother, sophomore Bradley Vethovec, who wrestles at 119.
“About three or four weeks ago, his maturity level kicked in,” said Northridge varsity coach Bill Perry. “He has become a different kid. He has been working a lot harder and, I think, he we be a leader next year.”
Aaron Haught, a 93-pound freshman who wrestles in the 103 pound class, is a first-year wrestler.
“Just having some varsity experience this year helps him a lot,” said Perry. “He a 103-pounder, but he only weighed 90 pounds (at first.) He was giving up some size. There’s a real good chance he will be at the same weight next year.”
Sophomore Brad Kelly, who was hurt a couple of weeks ago, is out for the season with a torn bicep muscle. He is still running with the team to stay in shape.
The key will be hanging on to these kids as they enter high school and keeping them interested in wrestling.
“You have to keep things going on in the summer,” said Perry.
“It’s got to be fun. You can’t just go in there and work them to death or something. Maybe you get together and see a ball game and keep them together as a group.”
This new group, however, will make the transition to high school with an unusually high level of maturity and commitment.
“Even though they are more mature than anyone who has come into the program for a long time, they are still 13 and 14 year olds,” said Perry. “There’s still going to be a lot of immaturity. What they have done, so far, is on the junior high level and (high school) is going to be a bit different. They are really good wrestlers, but they are going from the top of the food chain to the bottom. They’re going to be freshmen facing juniors and seniors. There’s going to be a big maturity difference.”
“The transition to high school is easier for the lighter weights than it is for the heavier weights,” said Potts. “As far as the best six or seven wrestlers on our (middle school) team, who are out there wrestling the best kids that they can find in other programs, they are not going to get shell shocked by anything they see at the high school level.”
