Who will place? There has been a lot of speculation about the wrestlers and who will win state.

The wrestlers have been preparing for this all year and the time has finally came. Austin Belcher, Seth “Chance” Lambers, and Jack Collins all will be competing for a chance to place at state this weekend.

The state tournament will be taking place in the “Shot Center” which is in Columbus, OH. Asked a fellow wrestler DJ Melillo what he thought would occur this weekend in Columbus and he said, “I think Jack Collins is one of the best competitors we have at Elder but he has a tough draw so if he is going to place he is going to come with the same intensity he has competed with the entire season. Belcher should make his way through the tournament a with ease and most likely will win state. Lambers is a tossup. He may place may not only time will tell”.

Elder has lost so many state placing wrestlers and leaders in the class of ’18 but, that did not demoralize us. The team has filled these rolls with great young athletes like jack Roth who will be an and state alternate. What does that mean? It means if a wrestler was to miss a match or not be able to compete for some reason Roth will wrestle in their place.

Another underclassman wrestler is Bartley Thomas. “Bartley is a “wrestling phenom” here at elder and it is no surprise the work ethic he brings to practice has improved not just his performance but, all wrestlers around him. DJ Melillo said, “I can definitely see Bartley being a state winner in the upcoming years as well as a key factor in Elder wrestling history.

Wrestling here at elder has been “slept on”. Other sports at Elder like football and basketball have left the wrestling program in their shadows. Wrestling has continually proved that they should be getting the spot light due to the state winners and GCL championships. I personally can see wrestling getting much more attention in the future of Elder High school and start to bring in more money from past alums so much it might even surpass the football programs income.

The coaching staff of the wrestling team continues to come back and coach the sport they love so much that many of the coaches are Elder alums. Wrestler Nate Ficker says, “The coaching staff is great they all care about us and not just about our performance on the mat. Many coaches main goal is to develop into what we like to call the typical “Elder Man”.” I feel I could go to any coach with personal problems and they will be there for me”.