For a school of its size, Brentwood has always had a pretty big wrestling program; yet, according to Coach Abshier, for the past three years, the program has actually still been recovering from disruptions and changes caused by COVID. All that to say, this year Abshier has high expectations for the team as there are many key returning wrestlers along with 13 new freshmen and some new upperclassmen coming out for the team.
“They are meeting every expectation,” said Coach Abshier in regards to the new freshmen. “They all work hard and are brave.”
In addition to Coach Abshier, the team has Coach Hughes and Coach Lane leading the team. Things that the coaches are doing to make the team strong this season are long warm-ups, including shoulder injury prevention, going over the major positions, and playing combative games. Coach Abshier also wants wrestlers to have fun and learn to be aggressive during their matches.
Freshman Violet Abshier feels like wrestling in high school is a lot different than wrestling in middle school. She thinks that it’s fun and that the tournaments are cool. During her matches, she often feels nervous and believes she has a lot of room for improvement in “mostly everything.” She also said that she wants to “get better at shooting and taking people to the mat.” Her favorite move during a match is a double-leg and one of the moves she specifically wants to get better at is a tripod. As a wrestler, Violet wants to achieve being level-headed during her matches and being able to hear what the coaches are telling her. Wrestling is something that she would like to do in the future and it has helped her become more athletic and sportsmanlike while also learning how to deal with her emotions.
Returning wrestler, sophomore Ashlyn Wildgrube, is satisfied with her wrestling performance so far this year, particularly at the John Burroughs tournament. She won her match at the tournament even with a shortage of opponents in her weight class. Her favorite moves are the double leg and the cradle. She thinks that the team environment is good and feels like they all get along pretty well. Wildgrube also thinks she has some room for improvement. “Being quicker,” she said, “and not getting flustered during a match, and just trying to do what I work on in practice.” She also wants to keep working hard, try her best in every match, and not give up. Last year Wildgrube qualified for the state tournament and her goal for this season is to do the same, along with getting more pins throughout the season rather than points, and also to work on other moves besides the ones she’s used to.
Freshman Ian Herdlick is new to wrestling this year. At his first match at _____, he had many things going through his head. “I was really nervous,” he said. As for being on the team, he feels like it’s a big wrestling family, especially with the coaches. Although Herdlick is a beginner in wrestling, he said that many people have helped him so far and have given him good advice. Things that he said he wants to improve on are trying harder, working with different people during practice, and asking for more guidance. One of Herdlick’s main goals this season is to get first place in a wrestling tournament.
Come on out this Friday, Dec. 20th, to watch the girls wrestle at Fort Zumwalt East at 5 p.m., and on Saturday, you can catch the boys wrestle at home starting at 9 a.m.
