Brooklyn Twins Locked In After Scare
By
Chip Mundy
Special for Second Half
March 2, 2016
By Chip Mundy
Special for Second Half
BROOKLYN – A little more than a year ago, Cooper Gunnells’ greatest dream was thwarted by what turned into a horrible nightmare.
A sophomore wrestler at Brooklyn Columbia Central at the time, Gunnells dreamed of qualifying for the MHSAA Division 3 Individual Finals at The Palace.
He never got the chance in 2015, but he will be there this year as a Regional champion – and his twin brother will be there, too, in the same weight division.
In January of 2015, an illness – paired with a freak wrestling injury – turned into a nearly two-month stay in the hospital that threatened Cooper’s life.
“At first, we thought we’d lose him for a couple of weeks. Then it was, ‘Oh shoot, we’re going to lose him for the year,’ and then it was, ‘He might die.’ It suddenly put everything into perspective. Wrestling just didn’t seem that important anymore.” – Columbia Central wrestling coach Ron Guernsey
Cooper said he had a slight cold early in January, but it didn’t keep him from wrestling as it wasn’t a big deal. However, what happened in one match turned into a very big deal.
“My throat was a little dry because of the cold,” he said. “I got put in a headlock, and I think I went to pry up on this guy’s elbow to get away from him, and I felt a little rip in my throat, but I didn’t think anything of it. I just kept on wrestling.”
As the days went on, Cooper began to have trouble breathing. He noticed it during some of his matches.
“It hit me hard,” he said. “When I was wrestling one kid, I felt very fatigued. I couldn’t get my breath back. I was looking at my coach like, ‘What is going on? I’m not usually like this.’”
It also affected his sleep, and the only way he could get a decent night of sleep was to sit in a chair with his arms folded on the top of the chair to provide a little relief in his lungs.
After two trips to the emergency room – both times he was told he had mononucleosis – things got worse.
“The moment I really started to feel like something was really serious was when I started having shallow breaths and couldn’t really breathe that well,” Cooper said. “My chest really, really hurt; it hurt to the touch.
“I called my dad and told him that something was really wrong; he needed to come get me, and we needed to go to the hospital now. It was like nine or 10 o’clock at night. They hooked me up to an EKG, and they looked at me, then looked at the machine again, and said, ‘You need to get to U of M pronto.’ I didn’t know what was going on.
“All I remember from that point on is they hooked me up to a morphine bag. They started pumping me full of morphine, and I just kind of dozed off to sleep. I was there, but I wasn’t. I remember like little periods of that whole incident.”
The “rip” he had felt in his throat was actually a tear in his esophagus, so when he ate or drank, everything spilled into his lungs and chest cavity, causing an infection.
“If we had waited another day or two, from what the doctor said, the outcome wouldn’t have been very good,” said Cooper’s father, Scott Gunnells.
Cooper was in the intensive care unit as the doctors battled the infection.
“It was just a weird set of circumstances that brought it about,” Guernsey said. “Once it got into his lungs, they had to go in two different times to scrape his lungs.
“It was a big deal. They were pumping him with antibiotics, and he went from 125 pounds to 100 pounds. It was hard to even look at him.”
Cooper’s twin brother, Keenan, had a similar feeling.
“It was really scary,” Keenan said. “I didn’t even want to go to the hospital to see my brother in the condition he was in. It was hard.”
As Cooper lay in the hospital, he really was unaware of his condition or the severity of it.
“At first, when I starting coming to, I was bloated full of fluids and had chest tubes in me,” he said. “I was like, ‘What is going on?’ I had a whole bunch of IVs in my arm. The doctors came in and told me I ripped my esophagus and everything I was eating and drinking was going to my chest cavity. It made this thick mucus inside my lungs, and then the pericardium (sac around your heart), that was full of fluids, too.
“I had tubes going in my neck down into my chest area and tubes from both sides of my chest that was draining out all of the junk that was inside of me.”
He also was incubated with a breathing tube.
“The thought came to my head that I might never wrestle again, but I really wanted to wrestle.” – Cooper Gunnells
When Cooper was first released about six weeks after going into the hospital, he returned after just eight hours and stayed another week.
While in the hospital, his spirits were lifted when the Michigan State University wrestling team sent a signed shirt, and three members of the University of Michigan wrestling team visited him in the hospital.
“That was really cool,” Cooper said. “I asked them about their go-to moves and stuff like that, and they said to ‘stick to the basics.’”
A return to wrestling was going to be a big step for a young man who had dropped 20 percent of his body weight from 125 to 100 pounds, and the doctors put him on a 4,000-calorie diet – maybe the only good thing that happened to Cooper during that time.
“It was great actually,” he said. “I splurged on ice cream and chocolate milk. They had these calorie bags that they would open and pour into my chocolate milk. It’s like 1,000 calories each.”
Cooper got out of the hospital in time to see his twin brother, Keenan, nearly advance to the MHSAA Tournament. He lost by one point in his final match in the Regional.
During the season, Keenan normally wrestles at a different weight class than Cooper so both can get into the lineup, but that was not necessary when Cooper was sidelined last season. But Keenan felt like he was wrestling for his stricken brother and made some changes to honor him.
“I was wrestling for him for sure,” Keenan said. “He made me try harder. Actually, at two tournaments, I bumped up to his weight class and took first at that level. I did it for him.”
Cooper never lost his desire to get back to wrestling. He returned to the mat near the end of the WAAAM (Wrestling Amateur Athletic Association) season.
“My dad told me I couldn’t wrestle at first,” Cooper said. “He just said, ‘We’ll see where you are in a couple of months.’ It was two weeks before WAAAM ended when I wrestled in WAAAM. I was huffing and puffing; it was hard to breathe.
“Keenan took first in WAAAM and I took eighth, but it was a learning process and had to start somewhere.”
Cooper played on the soccer team last fall to help build up his cardio, and he was relentless in his work to get back in wrestling shape.
“He worked so much harder when he got out of the hospital to get back where he is now,” Keenan said. “Those late-night runs, while I’m sitting on the couch doing cookie curls – eating cookies while he’s out running and busting his butt – just to know where he’s at now, I’m so proud of him.”
Cooper said he feels like he is 100 percent in all areas except endurance.
“I would say I’m 100 percent now strength-wise, but cardio-wise no,” he said. “Those months of being in bed – I couldn’t even walk down the hallway and back.”
Cooper is back. He is seeded first at 125 pounds in Division 2, and he brings in a record of 38-3.
But there remains one unique twist to the story.
“My little brother beat me.” – Keenan Gunnells, on losing to Cooper in the Regional Semifinals two weeks ago
Although Keenan had wrestled at 130 pounds most of the season, he dropped down to 125 for the Regional in an attempt to reach The Palace.
Obviously, that set up the possibility of the twin brothers meeting each other officially for the first time. It was a situation that was tough to face, and it ended up becoming a reality in the Regional Semifinals.
Not everybody wanted the match to take place.
“I told them not to do it,” Scott Gunnells said. “I didn’t want them to wrestle, just flip a coin and save the energy for someone else. Somebody had to lose anyway, and whoever loses has to wrestle harder to get back in.”
Cooper had similar thoughts.
“I really didn’t want to wrestle him because he’s my brother,” he said.
Keenan, who likes to remind Cooper that he is 4 minutes older, was a little more for settling things on the mat.
“It was hard, but it was fun,” Keenan said. “Coach Guernsey gave us the chance not to wrestle. I could have injury-defaulted out of the match and then dropped back down, but I wanted to take first or second to move on, so why not wrestle for it? Who’s the better wrestler?
“It went to overtime, and he got the last takedown, so my little brother beat me.”
While Cooper went on to win the Regional title, Keenan regrouped and finished third to earn a spot at the Finals with a 38-10 record. And a repeat meeting could happen again.
Both are seeded high, and a rematch could take place in the Semifinals or possibly even the Final. With a championship at stake, the twin brothers have a little different outlook.
“It’s a no-mercy kind of thing,” Cooper said. “That’s what we kind of did at Regionals, but now that we’re in states, we’re going to go at it if we meet.”
Keenan would love to reverse the outcome of the last meeting, but either way, he is really pleased to be there with Cooper.
“It’s kind of neat,” Keenan said. “Say Cooper and me both make it through our brackets, we could meet in the Finals. Twins in the Finals? I’m pretty sure everyone would be watching us and not caring about the other matches that are going on.
“I really wanted to make it to state, but it makes it 10 times better to know that my brother will be there with me on the mat while I’m wrestling.”
“I learned that you can’t take life for granted.” – Cooper Gunnells
Cooper said even he is surprised to be where he is today after the terrible ordeal.
“I would have thought it was going to take way longer for me to recover,” he said. “I was like 101 pounds.”
Scott Gunnells reflects on the past year and remembers the pain and worry. He also said he will never forget the support from the community.
“They had a big spaghetti dinner last year, and people showed up who I didn’t even know,” he said. “The community was great, and the outgiving of the community and the sacrifices of the coaches will always be in my mind.
“I don’t care who wins or loses. They are both coming home and both are going to eat at the same table. It doesn’t matter to me.”
The Gunnells brothers have another year to wrestle in high school, and wrestling in college is something both would like to do.
When asked if he had any colleges in mind, Cooper gave an insightful answer.
“I want to wrestle in college and I am hoping to go to Western Michigan because they have a nursing program,” he said. “After going through everything, I think it would be cool to be able to help people.
“You can’t take life for granted. Going through the ICU and seeing some people who were much worse than me, that was pretty painful, too.”
Chip Mundy served as sports editor at the Brooklyn Exponent and Albion Recorder from 1980-86, and then as a reporter and later copy editor at the Jackson Citizen-Patriot from 1986-2011. He also co-authored Michigan Sports Trivia. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for Jackson, Washtenaw, Hillsdale, Lenawee and Monroe counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Brooklyn Columbia Central twins Cooper (left) and Keenan Gunnells wrestle during a Regional Semifinal at Williamston two weekends ago. (Middle) Cooper, below left, Keenan and their coach Ron Guernsey. (Below) Keenan Gunnells faces Alma's Alex Rosas in a third-place match at the Regional. (Top and below photos by HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
With Final Takedown, Goodrich's Phipps Arrives at Championship Destination
By
Drew Ellis
Special for MHSAA.com
March 4, 2023
DETROIT – A journey that had been 13 years in the making finally ended with a dream come true for Goodrich junior Easton Phipps.
Since he began wrestling at age 4, Phipps had been focused only on winning a state title.
At Saturday’s Division 2 Individual Finals, Phipps (41-4) had to tap into everything he had worked for to win the 190-pound championship.
After a 1-1 tie through three periods with Clio’s Jacob Marrs (37-5), the two remained tied after the sudden victory stage.
Things came down to the ultimate tiebreaker, which saw Phipps score a takedown to win.
“That state title is what was pushing me,” Phipps said. “I wanted to avenge all my teammates that didn’t get the shot to get a state title. I worked for them and the whole town. I get my picture on the wrestling room wall now.”
The junior said his championship match just came down to will power, as the two cancelled each other out in skill.
“I don’t really know what to say; the skill wasn’t there, it was just about toughness when it got into overtime,” Phipps said.
106
Champion: Brady Baker, Stevensville Lakeshore, Soph. (48-2)
Major Decision, 9-1, over Cristian Haslem, St. Clair, Fr. (46-2)
Baker had control throughout the whole match as the sophomore took home his first Finals championship.
He hit multiple takedowns and a reversal to keep Haslem from getting into the match.
“Things played out well,” Baker said. “I was getting into my attacks, scoring early and often. That’s what you have to do if you want to win.”
Baker failed to place at last year’s Finals and was motivated all season because of that. That motivation pushed him to a championship.
“It means a lot to not place last year and come in this year and win a state title,” Baker said. “It had been on my mind a lot, but there’s still bigger things to come.”
113
Champion: Malachi Kapenga, Hamilton, Soph. (48-4)
Decision 6-4 (OT) over Carter Cichocki, Lowell, Soph. (31-9)
The longest seconds of Kapenga’s life occurred as he awaited a referee’s decision at the end of the third period.
Trailing Cichocki 4-3, Kapenga managed to score an escape as the round ended, but also looked as if he may have had a takedown. Referees conferenced on whether he escaped in time, or even potentially won.
After ruling Kapenga got the escape point, he then went on to score a takedown in sudden victory to win his first Finals championship.
“I just was waiting and praying that they would at least give me one point,” Kapenga said. “I knew if I got the one point, I was at least still in the match. I was expecting a win or a loss, so getting the point, I was happy to at least be going into overtime.”
The match with Cichocki was back-and-forth, with both wrestlers holding leads during the first three rounds.
“It was a hard-fought match, and I had to be smart with my shots,” Kapenga said. “To win feels amazing. I have been working very hard toward it.”
120
Champion: Jackson Blum, Lowell, Soph. (39-3)
23-8 Technical Fall (4:52) over Tayden Miller, Mason, Sr. (37-2)
Blum was very workmanlike in winning a second championship.
The Lowell sophomore scored takedown after takedown to pick up the tech fall victory in the third period.
“There can be some built-up anxiety as you approach the match, but it’s just about getting into what you know you can do and the pressure goes away,” Blum said.
The pressure of a second consecutive title never seemed to get to Blum during the season, as he kept his focus on getting better each day.
“You feel that pressure, but you just have to block it out and do what you do in practice each day,” Blum said. “If you put in the work, the rest takes care of itself.”
126
Champion: Marcello Milani, Orchard Lake St. Mary’s, Sr. (50-0)
Decision, 3-0, over Bryce Shingelton, Linden, Sr. (45-3)
Milani had to wrestle a flawless match to get past Shingelton.
A first-round takedown got him off to a good start, and an escape in the third was the insurance point he needed to grind out the victory.
“I was just trusting in my wrestling, trusting in what I could do,” Milani said of what carried him through the match. “I have trained for this and had to trust that I did the work.”
The Orchard Lake St. Mary’s senior was able to cap off his career with a perfect 50-0 record on top of the title.
“This is something I really wanted since I was a freshman,” Milani said. “I am really glad I got to close it out this year.”
132
Champion: Grant Stahl, Mount Pleasant, Sr. (41-0)
Decision, 12-9, over Aaron Lucio, Stevensville Lakeshore, Sr. (49-2)
The long road to a Finals championship brought a lot of tough moments for Stahl, but it paid off Saturday.
The Oilers senior finished his career with a perfect season record capped by a 12-9 thriller against Lucio.
“This means everything. I had finished second and third and missed a year because of COVID,” Stahl said. “I have given everything to get this, and it feels incredible to finally get it. I wanted it so bad.”
Stahl was able to go up 8-1 thanks to a set of near-fall points early in the third period. He then had to fend off an aggressive Lucio to hang on for the championship.
“(Lucio) just shot in deep and he was sitting there, so I just reached back and hooked his arm, tilted him up and that was the difference,” Stahl said.
138
Champion: Jayden Schwartz, Charlotte, Sr. (52-2)
Decision, 11-5, over Owen Segorski, Lowell, Soph. (29-7)
Trailing 4-2 going into the third period, Jayden Schwartz knew it was time to go into overdrive.
Trusting in his stamina, Schwartz came out aggressive in the third and scored nine points to get past Segorski, a 2022 champion.
“All the work I have put in over the last few weeks, it was all for that third period,” Schwartz said. “I knew I had the stamina for the third to really push the pace.”
The top-seeded Schwartz finished with 52 wins while ending his prep career as a champion.
“This feels amazing,” Schwartz said of the title. “It hasn’t really hit me yet, but all the hard work really paid off.”
144
Champion: CJ Poole, Lowell, Sr. (31-8)
Injury Stoppage (5:00) over Louden Stradling, Gaylord, Sr. (50-1)
The final match of the night ended with unfortunate circumstances.
Tied 1-1 in the third, Poole shot in for a takedown on Stradling. The two collided heads and the impact from the shot, which finished out of the circle, left Stradling unable to continue.
Stradling suffered a head injury, and the match was ruled over and awarded to Poole.
“He’s a back-up-and-shoot kind of wrestler and I saw he was backing up and getting ready to shoot, so I shot for a double. He lowered his level and we hit heads and I was just trying to drive through on my shot,” Poole said.
The way the match ended wasn’t likely how Poole envisioned it, but he’s still grateful to be a champion.
“It still feels amazing,” Poole said of the title. “It’s been a lot of work.”
150
Champion: Trevor Swiss, Petoskey, Sr. (47-0)
Decision, 10-4, over Jack Conley, Lake Fenton, Sr. (31-3)
Swiss completed an unbeaten season, and the Petoskey senior never trailed in this match.
Going into the third period tied 4-4, Swiss picked up the pace and outscored Conley 6-0 to secure the championship.
“I knew I had to work, so I just came out knowing I needed to make something happen,” Swiss said. “I was able to capitalize when he got off-balanced, so I managed to put him on his back.”
Despite the unbeaten season, it was the Finals title that Swiss had been craving all year, fulfilling a childhood dream.
“This is what I have been dreaming of since I was in first grade,” Swiss said. “It feels amazing, and I really can’t put it into words.”
157
Champion: Cory Thomas Jr., Pontiac, Jr. (26-0)
Decision, 5-1, over Zach Jacobs, Jackson Northwest, Sr. (39-3)
After a scoreless first period, Thomas Jr. managed to ride out Jacobs in the second period to keep the match at 0-0.
In the third, Thomas Jr. knew he had put himself in position to win, which he did with an early escape and two takedowns during the closing two minutes.
“I work really hard at home, and I think that showed in being able to get those late takedowns,” Thomas Jr. said. “I was able to just keep pushing through.”
Thomas Jr. placed third at the 2021 D1 Finals at 125 pounds wrestling for Detroit Catholic Central, but being able to come back this year to win a title for Pontiac was even more rewarding.
“It’s been a crazy journey. I’m just so happy to be able to experience this,” Thomas Jr. said.
165
Champion: Philip Lamka, Fenton, Jr. (44-2)
Decision, 6-5, over Max Macklem, Goodrich, Soph. (33-5)
After placing third at last year’s Finals, Lamka wouldn’t let himself experience disappointment again.
He trailed Macklem 5-4 in the third period, but scored a late takedown to edge his opponent by one point.
“I’ve worked so hard for this all year,” Lamka said. “After last year, this is all I wanted. Coming up short in the semifinals in overtime to the eventual champ (in 2022) was hard. Coming in, I had one job to do and that was to win. I got it done.”
Following the victory, Lamka dropped to his knees and took in the moment.
“This is everything I have worked for my whole life,” Lamka said. “After coming up short before, (the emotions) just flood you.”
175
Champion: Brayden Gautreau, Gaylord, Sr. (52-1)
Decision, 3-1 (OT), over Carson Crace, Lowell, Sr. (33-6)
For Gautreau to come up with a second-consecutive championship, he needed a little more time. The senior was tied 1-1 with Crace through three periods after each scored an escape.
In OT, the past champ showed his mettle and came through with a takedown to earn the victory.
“I was on my stuff,” Gautreau said of the OT period. “(Crace) did a good job of keeping me off during most of the match. I just kept attacking, and it eventually paid off.”
Gautreau won the D2 171-pound title last year but said he never felt a lot of pressure to repeat.
“I didn’t feel a lot of the pressure. I just love wrestling, so I just love being able to compete,” Gautreau said. “You put in a lot of work for these moments, and this is where champions shine.”
215
Champion: Adam Haselius, Jackson Northwest, Sr. (50-0)
Decision, 5-1, over Joey Scaramuzzino, Croswell-Lexington, Jr. (51-4)
Haselius likes to be consistent, and he was very consistent Saturday night.
The Jackson Northwest senior claimed a second-consecutive Division 2 title after winning at 189 pounds in 2022.
“It feels great to repeat,” Haselius said. “Obviously that has been the goal since last year. It just comes down to consistency for me. Nobody that wins a state championship believes that they can’t win it again.”
Haselius never trailed, as he set the tone early with a takedown and added another in the second period before grinding out the victory in the third.
“I just wanted to keep myself in good positions,” Haselius said of the match. “Once I got the lead, I knew it was on him to bring the pressure, so I just had to wrestle smart.”
285
Champion: James Mahon, Goodrich, Soph. (14-0)
Decision, 5-4, over Aaron Holstege, Allendale, Sr. (49-1)
Battling through a labrum injury, Mahon managed to ride out Holstege for the final minute to secure a one-point victory.
“In a lot of my matches this year and last year, I’ve had to find ways to win 1-0 or win by one point,” Mahon said. “I’ve always found ways to get it done.”
Mahon trailed 4-3 in the third period, but scored a takedown with a minute left to go ahead and then worked on his top game to earn his first Finals title as a sophomore.
“I really expected this the whole year,” Mahon said. “It was never in doubt for me. Now I have to go and get two more.”
PHOTOS (Top) Goodrich’s Easton Phipps takes a champion’s photo at Ford Field. (Middle) Jackson Northwest’s Zach Jacobs, front, works to break the hold of Pontiac’s Cory Thomas Jr. on Saturday. (Click for more from High School Sports Scene.)