25.3°F  Website Login | WarrenOctober 13, 2010'Everyone is giving 110 percent'
By Brad D. Bates
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State finals preparation brings out the best in local grapplers
WARREN — It can be the longest 12 days of their lives, but the time between the individual regional meets and the individual state finals often gets the best effort from prep grapplers.
After sweating and bleeding through practices and competitions, and sacrificing much of their personal lives for the better part of four months, the days between regionals and the competition at The Palace of Auburn Hills is when a wrestler’s work comes together.
“It lets me know that all I’ve done, I put it together for this,” Berkley High senior 145-pounder Asher Parr-Besemer said after qualifying for the Division 2 finals Feb. 20 at Warren Fitzgerald.
“It also let me know that down the line, I’m going to have teammates that work just as hard — I know it because I see it every day in practice — (who) are going to be here, too.”
Parr-Besemer is one of 76 wrestlers from our coverage area who will take part in the individual finals March 4-6 at The Palace.
And being part of such traditions as the grand march at The Palace and wrestling in front of thousands ensures that those who qualified for regionals gave it their all to take the next step.
“This time I really tried, because I wanted to make it out,” Center Line High junior 285-pounder Devin Whitman said at the Fitzgerald regional after avenging a district loss from a week earlier.
“My nerves were going before the match, but I went out and did what I had to do — go to work and do what I had to do.”
And it’s the chance that they will be among the 112 wrestlers in each division who earn All-State honors that has participants pushing themselves more than ever for the two weeks between regionals and The Palace.
“We tell them that it’s going to be the hardest they’ve ever worked, but it’s going to be the best two weeks,” Macomb L’Anse Creuse North coach Steve Horne said. “You’re in a room with a bunch of kids who want to be champions, so everyone is giving 110 percent.”
Practices after the regional round are impromptu all-star training sessions geared to make sure wrestlers have left no stone unturned in their preparation.
“Having better quality guys together, you might see some different things,” Roseville High coach Major Mickens said. “The main thing is a high-intensity practice atmosphere, so you can keep the weight down, stay in shape and maintain a high level of competition.”
Extra work is nothing new for the wrestlers who have qualified.
“I love having the team together, but when you work out as a team, you have guys who are there because they want to be part of a team,” Mickens said. “The guys we have left now are the cream of the crop.
“These guys have a great attitude, and if you tell them to run through a brick wall, they will, because they trust me and our methods.”
Along with their work ethic, another common thread among the state qualifiers is confidence in their abilities.
“You look at the successful programs like Anchor Bay and Richmond, and a lot of why they are good is because they believe they are good,” Horne said. “That helped us a lot this year. Winning some tough matches early really boosted these kids’ confidence.”
A boost in confidence is what drives grapplers such as Hazel Park High sophomore 112-pounder Cody Vanderhagen to repeat appearances at The Palace.
“It feels really good making it two times in a row — going for four,” Vanderhagen said. “Hoping to place this year, though.”
Even with stakes such as All-State medals and state championships on the line, it’s more important than ever for wrestlers to remember that after all their hard work, now is the time to enjoy themselves.
“I tell them to go out and have fun,” Horne said of the advice he gives grapplers before big matches. “Practice (stinks), competing is fun. So go out and wrestle for six full minutes and have fun.”
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