WHITEHALL — Whitehall wrestling has seen a lot over the past several years as it's made a name for itself as a power program in the state. Wednesday afternoon, though, brought an opportunity no Viking has seen before.
Whitehall hosted Benzie Central in what the school called an "Assembly Dual", which took place during the school day and featured a crowd jammed full of Viking students. Whitehall earned a 42-19 victory, but in many ways the result was almost beside the point.
Viking wrestlers were able to perform in front of a packed house of classmates, and the big-time atmosphere even extended elsewhere. The pep band played, and between each match, the lights were dimmed with hype music played as Whitehall wrestlers approached the scorer's table to check in. Whitehall students got in on the fun by turning on their cell phones' flashlights while the lights were down.
"Everybody showed up," said senior heavyweight Blake Morningstar, who ended the match with an overtime win over Ryan Kincaid. "This is the first time that we've ever had this much (attendance) at anything wrestling-wise. It was an incredible atmosphere."
Morningstar was able to bounce back after Kincaid scored three near-fall points in the closing seconds of regulation. Winning the toss, he chose the neutral position and quickly scored a two-point takedown to secure the win.
The idea of an "Assembly Dual" isn't brand-new - state power Detroit Catholic Central also hosted one this week, and coach Justin Zeerip said Lowell and Grand Haven are among the programs who have staged one - but it was a first in Whitehall, and it lived up to the billing.
"I thought it was awesome," Zeerip said. "I appreciate the high school administration letting us do this. This is really fun for our kids. It was super loud. The kids got into it. It's a fun day for our wrestlers and our wrestling program."
Zeerip added that he appreciated Benzie Central coming in for the dual.
There were plenty of Viking highlights, of course, but Morningstar's overtime win and Ryan Goodrich's last-minute takedown to win his 175-pound match 4-3 over Tyrone Brouillet were among the wins that drew the biggest reaction from the student section.
"Goodrich had a great match," Zeerip said. "He hit a lot of shots in that match and the kid was pretty defensive, but I was excited for Ryan. He kept on the offensive to get that last takedown there to win the match and that was huge."
The day also featured the Whitehall debut of Gavin Craner, who transferred from Belding this year. Craner, a state runner-up a season ago, recorded a first-period pin of Michael Pfeiffer, an all-state wrestler last season, at 190 to introduce himself to his new fans with a flourish. The win also doubled as the 100th of his already accomplished career.
By all outward appearances, Craner has wasted no time buying in to the Vikings' team-first approach, drawing positive reviews from coach Zeerip as well as Morningstar.
"As soon as I moved here, everyone was very welcoming and they all took me in right away," Craner said. "It's like a big family here and I love it a lot."
"He has the same mentality as all of us," Morningstar said of his new teammate. "He came in and he went straight to work...He hasn't gotten in his head where he thinks he's better (than us). He knows he'll go out there and show his best."
With the "Assembly Dual" done and past, the Vikings will begin a more routine schedule this Saturday at a tournament in Grandville that will feature some high-level competition. It's all in service of the team's consistent goal - to wrestle on the final day of the state tournament, when the final four is contested.
"We just take it one match at a time and (we hope to) be wrestling on the last day of the state tournament," Zeerip said. "We just try to keep getting better every single day."
Reeths-Puffer preview
Defending O-K Green Conference champion Reeths-Puffer has plenty to be excited about as a new wrestling season dawns.
Coach Jared Fleming brings back a great core of star wrestlers, led by junior Ian Cook, who's already earned two all-state spots in his two years.
Regional qualifiers Jake Rozycki and Nathan Stafford are also back, eyeing their own all-state spots. Stafford, a senior, won 40-plus matches last year, and Fleming said he's put in the offseason work to succeed.
A new freshman dynamo, Hunter Eek, will make an immediate impact as well. Fleming said Eek trains with Cook and Rozycki at a Grand Rapids club, and despite his age, his bona fides are clear. Senior Nathan Reeves will be another key piece of the puzzle, wrestling at the middle weights.
"He's just a tough kid and grinds out matches," Fleming said. "He's really strong."
Those five will be the mainstays of the lineup, but many others should be major contributors as well. Corey Judd and Andrew Corradin have shown improvement after an offseason of hard work, and junior Arin Maynard is back to take up the 106-pound spot after not wrestling last year and battling injuries the year before.
Fleming also has one new face on his coaching staff, as Jace Learn is now an assistant. He has experience coaching the middle school team at Orchard View and now works at R-P.
R-P has the talent and experience to repeat as O-K Green champion, but for the third straight year, Holland should provide stiff competition. The Dutch edged out the Rockets for the top spot two years ago and finished second last season. A Dec. 13 dual meet between the teams will go a long way towards shaping the league race. The Zeeland schools should also be factors.
The Rockets always look forward to the GMAA tournament, and a Jan. 6 individual meet in Grand Haven will match them up with many area powers. The tough schedule should prepare Reeths-Puffer for a tough district in which state-ranked Rockford will be the likely favorite.
"I like to give our guys tough matches throughout the year and take some lumps so we can get through some things and become tougher, so we can peak at the end of the year and take it to some of the bigger teams," Fleming said.
Montague preview
Montague enters this season as, yet again, a young team. Coach Kris Maddox half-joked that his team can't ever seem to enter the season with a lot of experience up and down the roster.
However, the Wildcats are again looking forward to the challenge of competing, especially in a loaded West Michigan Conference that includes recent powers Whitehall, Hart and Fremont.
"When we transferred conferences we became a wrestling conference, in my opinion," Maddox said, referring to the 2022-23 WMC expansion. "When you're batting every Wednesday against teams like Whitehall, Hart, Fremont, Orchard View, Shelby, every team is battling in the conference. We're battling for that #3 or #4 spot in the conference."
Montague brings back two state qualifiers from last year in Chris Aebig and Jimmy Thommen. Aebig is aiming to become the Wildcats' first-ever four-time state qualifier. Maddox said Aebig and Thommen are training partners and do a lot to make each other better.
Theother member of the Wildcats' core returning group is Joe Winkleman, who had a strong football season and enters this wrestling campaign 10 pounds lighter than a year ago. The senior trio anchors the Montague lineup.
Much of the rest of the lineup will consist of less-experienced grapplers, but several upperclassmen have come out for the team this year after not previously wrestling, something Maddox is excited about.
Fletcher Thommen and Isaac Falk, though, do bring starting experience to the lineup, and they'll fill two of the middle weights. Brock Hunter projects as one of the lightweight wrestlers, and Maddox looks forward to having Aian Peters, who is playing basketball too, on the roster.
"A lot's up in the air right now as to who will be where and fit where," Maddox said. "We didn't get a big increase of freshmen this year, and we expected that. We have 32ish wrestlers on the team. There are a lot of kids who haven't wrestled before, but we're excited that they'll have an opportunity to compete."
Of course, Montague isn't just home to boys wrestling, as the Wildcats have built arobust girls program, helmed by Aaron Nold this year. Few teams return as much girls talent as Montague, including three-time state placers Emma Pendell and Savannah Winkleblack. Pendell, a 2022 state champion, is aiming to get back atop the podium, and Winkleblack has the talent to reach those heights as well. Ava Pelton has qualified for state twice and also returns, and Abby Thommen, who transferred last season, is back at Montague this year.
Reed Thommen (Abby's sister), Zaniya Meza and Trisha Beckman are new faces to watch for the Montague girls, who have a busy schedule this year, including an early-season trip to East Jackson and the traditional Mat Cat Holiday Classic.
"Most of the girls are spread out nicely," Maddox said of the Wildcat girls' weight classes. "It'll be neat to have a big girls squad again, with a mix of new talent and medalist talent to build the girls team."
The Wildcat boys look forward to the early-season Hemlock meet and its own holiday Mat Cat event, as well as the Randy Jacobs Duals.
"We have our individual stars, but we'll see what transpires team-wise," Maddox said. "We can be competitive as long as we get these new guys up to where they need to be."
