Crespo Enjoys Moment, on to Next Goals
March 13, 2020
By Wes Morgan
Special for Second Half
A single afternoon in middle school set Skyler Crespo down a path that would lead to four Individual Finals wrestling championships. It was the day he quit the sport.
The withdrawal was brief — only hours, really — but it happened. He ripped his headgear off and stormed out of the practice room, claiming he was done.
And for anyone who knows the Mendon senior, who is less than a week removed from becoming the 28th grappler in Michigan High School Athletic Association history to pull off the rare four-peat, it’s hard to believe.
In a combat sport where confidence is crucial, Crespo certainly hasn’t lacked any since his freshman year. He doesn’t dispute that he’s brash at times, nor does he have any desire to soften his image. After all, the approach he’s used has served him well.
Perhaps it’s because Crespo, who is slated to wrestle at Michigan State University next year, knows how it feels to be utterly humbled – and that he never wants to experience it again. That happened six years ago. And it broke him. It was an experiment conducted by Mendon head coach Caleb Stephenson, who wanted to see what the seventh grader was made of at the time.
Stephenson had two of the program’s top varsity wrestlers, Jonah Grimm and Caleb Hinkle, take turns lighting 90-pound Crespo up. In the past, these mismatched sessions were tame. This time around, Stephenson instructed his accomplished veterans, who had 40 pounds on the youngster, to show no mercy.
“I remember it vividly,” Stephenson said. “It was brutal, man. He cried and he was mentally hurting. To this day, I’m not sure if it was the right thing to do. But I felt he was ready.”
Each time Crespo was taken down, which was often, Stephenson yelled out the increasingly lopsided score. It got ugly.
“From there, we just kind of built him back up,” Stephenson said. “It was a tear-him-down-build-him-up kind of thing. I can remember (Grimm and Hinkle) looking at me like, ‘Is this ok? Are you sure you want us to just go pound this kid again? And the answer was yes. It might have been after that moment that there was real trust. We had a special bond that fostered his great career and a friendship. It has been amazing.”
“There were a lot of times I wanted to quit and didn’t want to practice anymore,” Crespo admitted. “I give a lot of credit to Caleb to make sure I was always on the right track, doing the right things and always pushing me. And, obviously, my parents didn’t let me quit.”
Two years later, Grimm and Hinkle were at The Palace of Auburn Hills when Crespo won his first Division 4 Finals championship at 125 pounds as a freshman.
It was the culmination of a year where there were several signals that Crespo had what it took to make history.
“I don’t think people realize how difficult it was his freshman year to win,” Stephenson said. “He had to go through the state runner-up in the District Final, the returning state champ in the Regional Final and the same kid again in the state Finals — a three-time finalist. Bursting on the scene is exactly what he did, and that’s what we expected him to do.”
Behind the scenes, Crespo put in the work. Stephenson said he could count on one hand how many times Crespo missed an offseason workout over seven years.
“He was always the one in the room with me,” Stephenson said. “He was the stalwart. He was the backbone. He was the kid that always said yes.”
Winning a 135-pound title as a sophomore, a 4-2 decision over Onaway’s Matthew Grant, got everyone’s attention, but the whispers from doubters ended up being louder to Crespo than the cheers.
“I always kind of had a chip on my shoulder,” Crespo said. “I never thought I got as much respect as I deserved. I always had the mentality that people didn’t believe in me, and I wanted to prove everyone wrong. I used that swagger to help me wrestle better.”
As a junior, he closed out the season with a dominating performance in the 140-pound finals with a 13-0 major decision against Bad Axe’s Ryan Wehner. Last week, Crespo completed his mission with an 11-0 major decision versus Clinton’s Kent McCombs in the 145-pound championship match. During his last two championship runs, Crespo bonused his way through the MHSAA Tournament.
“The more I think about it, the more I can appreciate it,” said Crespo, who finished his high school career with a 211-5 record, a couple of days after the MHSAA Finals. “Anything less than four was going to be a disappointment.”
“Hopefully it creates a standard for people. I think people don’t realize how good of a coach Caleb Stephenson is, really, and how much credit he deserves in all this. I’ll remember the relationship we have as people, not just because of wrestling. He’s just a genuine and good person.”
Even though Crespo fully expected to accomplish his goal, when it happened, it was a bit surreal as he celebrated with his family who had sacrificed a lot to help him get there, and the coaches who had ridden the emotional ride with him.
“It felt pretty good,” Crespo said. “I got to finally relax and feel a little satisfied, I guess.”
“It was really emotional,” Stephenson said. I can’t fathom how special it is. I don’t even know how to explain it to others. This kid has taken me on a really amazing journey. I’m appreciative to him for that. There are only 28 coaches who have gotten to do this, too. I feel special to have been with him. Skyler listened to everything. He soaked it all in. He is incredible like that, and it’s going to be profitable for him at the next level, too.”
A couple of days later, though, Crespo was back to being, well, Crespo, with new goals concerning the BIG Ten and NCAA.
“He texted me (Tuesday) and said, ‘I’m not satisfied,’” Stephenson said. “That’s just who he is.”
Wes Morgan has reported for the Kalamazoo Gazette, ESPN and ESPNChicago.com, 247Sports and Blue & Gold Illustrated over the last 12 years and is the publisher of JoeInsider.com. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Berrien, Cass, St. Joseph and Branch counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Mendon's Skyler Crespo takes control during his semifinal win over Leslie's Grant Weber. (Middle) Crespo leads wrestlers onto the Ford Field mats as one of the flag bearers at the Individual Finals. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
D2 Preview: Red Arrows on Target Again
February 26, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Arguably, no team has been a bigger title favorite from start to finish in MHSAA wrestling this season than two-time Division 2 reigning champion Lowell.
The Red Arrows need only three more wins to make good again on those high expectations.
But that's easier said than done, especially with rival St. Johns back in the mix after a year away from Finals competition.
Below is a look at all eight teams competing in Division 2, listed by seed. Quarterfinal matches begin at 6 p.m. Friday, with Semifinals at noon Saturday and the championship match at 3:30 p.m. All matches this weekend will be streamed live on a subscription basis on MHSAA.TV. For results throughout, check the MHSAA Wrestling page.
The MHSAA Wrestling Finals are presented by the Michigan Army National Guard.
#1 Lowell
Record/rank: 20-3, No. 1
League finish: First in Ottawa-Kent Conference White.
Coach: R.J. Boudro, second season (49-5)
Championship history: Five MHSAA championships (most recent 2015), six runner-up finishes.
Individual Finals qualifiers: 103 Jeff Leach (28-8) fr.; 125 Lucas Hall (25-0) sr.; 125 Sam Russell (24-11) jr.; 130 Avry Mutschler (33-6) fr.; 140 Zeth Dean (27-4) sr.; 145 Bryce Dempsey (28-11) jr.; 160 David Kruse (19-1) soph.; 160 Keigan Yuhas (35-7) soph.; 171 Danny Kruse (30-2) sr.; 189 Max Dean (30-0) sr.; 215 Eli Boulton (25-13) jr.
Outlook: Lowell has wrestled in four straight championship matches and won two straight titles, and has been the unquestioned favorite all season. Hall and Zeth Dean are reigning MHSAA individual champions – Hall has won two titles in a row – and Danny Kruse and Russell also placed last season. A total of 16 wrestlers have at least 20 wins, including four reserves.
#2 St. Johns
Record/rank: 26-4, No. 3
League finish: Tied for first in Capital Area Activities Conference Red.
Coach: Derek Phillips, fourth season (87-13)
Championship history: Four MHSAA championships (most recent 2013), one runner-up finish.
Individual Finals qualifiers: 103 Brendan Zelenka (32-4) soph.; 112 Emilio Sanchez (37-10) jr.; 125 James Whitaker (15-6) fr.; 135 Trent Lashuay (39-9) jr.; 140 Ian Parker (42-2) sr.; 152 Brett Fedewa (45-4) jr.;160 Lucas McFarland (34-5) jr.; 285 Jake Gnegy (42-2) sr.
Outlook: St. Johns is back after missing the Quarterfinals last season despite entering the postseason ranked No. 1, and the Redwings will be plenty motivated to make a sixth championship match in seven seasons. St. Johns defeated No. 7 Eaton Rapids and No. 2 DeWitt on the way to CMU. Parker is the reigning champion at 125 and was runner-up at 103 as a freshman, and Lashuay, Gnegy and senior Derek Droste also placed in 2015.
#3 Gaylord
Record/rank: 41-1, No. 4
League finish: First in Big North Conference.
Coach: Jerry La Joie, 22nd season (600-128-2)
Championship history: Has never finished among the top two teams in Finals competition.
Individual Finals qualifiers: 103 Derek Giallombardo (52-3) soph.; 112 Trevor Giallombardo (51-5) sr.; 119 Dominic La Joie (56-0) jr.; 130 Jon Martin (53-3) sr.; 140 Brady Schulz (27-13) soph.; 171 Nate Nutter (44-13) sr.
Outlook: Gaylord made its second Quarterfinal in a row by beating No. 9 Flint Kearsley among others after locking up a ninth-straight league title. Dominic La Joie is a two-time individual champion, winning 103 as a freshman and 112 last winter, and Trevor Giallombardo was the runner-up at 103 and Martin a placer at 125 in 2015. Gaylord as a team has more than 40 wins for the second time on Jerry La Joie and first time since 2003-04 after suffering its only loss last season in the Semifinal to eventual champion Lowell.
#4 Goodrich
Record/rank: 33-4, No. 5
League finish: First in Genesee Area Conference Red.
Coach: Ken Sirignano, sixth season (record N/A)
Championship history: Division 3 champions 2008 and 2009, runners-up 1997 and 1999.
Individual Finals qualifiers: 103 Caleb Teague (41-9) fr.; 119 Dominic Edwards (33-19) fr.; 135 Nathan Ellis (46-3) sr.; 135 Cody Orcutt (36-16) jr.; 152 Honour Kline 39-12) fr.; 160 Nick Foglio (33-17) sr.; 171 John Penfold (44-6) sr., 285 Blake Coffell (26-24) fr.
Outlook: Goodrich is making its first trip to Finals weekend since its last championship season of 2009, and also its first trip in Division 2. Ellis and Penfold were individual placers last season and are among four seniors in a lineup that could be scary the next three seasons; eight freshmen start, including four Individual Finals qualifiers.
#5 Allegan
Record/rank: 30-5, unranked
League finish: First in Wolverine Conference.
Coach: Murray Rose, 29th season (748-157-2)
Championship history: Two MHSAA championships (most recent 2007 in Division 2), two runner-up finishes.
Individual Finals qualifiers: 103 Davynn Schneider (45-8) jr.; 112 Jake Orr (31-13) soph.; 130 Ricky Jefferson (34-17) jr.; 135 Joey Orr (44-5) sr.; 160 Trey Boerman (45-8) sr.; 171 Levi Sabin (39-8) sr.; 189 Austin Farrell (46-10) sr.
Outlook: Allegan is back in Division 2 after a time in Division 3 and making its eighth straight trip to the Quarterfinals. A group of six seniors fill every weight but one from 140-215, and Sabin, Farrell and junior Chase Beard were individual placers last season in Division 3 – with Schneider, Jefferson and Orr also among returning qualifiers for next weekend.
#6 Warren Woods Tower
Record/rank: 26-6, No. 6
League finish: Third in Macomb Area Conference Red.
Co-coaches: Greg Mayer, 16th season (301-232)
Championship history: Has never finished among the top two teams in Finals competition.
Individual Finals qualifiers: 103 David Stepanian (39-7) fr.; 103 Chaise Mayer (47-5) fr.; 112 Elijuh Weaver (53-1) jr.; 135 Joe Schindler (40-10) jr.; 140 Nico Martini (32-13) jr.; 152 Jajuan Lovejoy (40-18) soph.
Outlook: Warren Woods Tower is back at Finals weekend for the second time in three seasons and with its most wins under Mayer. Eight underclassmen and only one senior starter make for some exciting possibilities in the future as well. Part of having that much youth is having no returning individual placers from a year ago, but the Titans have gained valuable experience wrestling in a strong league and with assistant Russell Correll serving as a co-coach with Mayer.
#7 Dearborn Heights Annapolis
Record/rank: 38-3, unranked
League finish: Second in Western Wayne Athletic Conference Red.
Coach: Vic McGuire, 24th season (548-183)
Championship history: Has never finished among the top two teams in Finals competition.
Individual Finals qualifiers: 125 Justin Manuel (51-6) sr.; 130 David Knapp (49-9) sr.; 145 Dustin Gross (51-3) soph.; 189 Jon Cox (54-1) sr.; 215 Gregory Johnson (48-8) sr.
Outlook: Annapolis is returning to the Quarterfinals for the first time since back-to-back trips in 2009 and 2010 after keeping two District and one Regional opponent to 20 or fewer points. Gross was an Individual Finals placer last season as a freshman and he adds high-pressure experience to an already-veteran lineup including eight seniors and two juniors.
#8 Sturgis
Record/rank: 27-7, unranked
League finish: Second in Wolverine Conference.
Coach: Bryan Boughton, ninth season (242-122)
Championship history: Has never finished among the top two teams in Finals competition.
Individual Finals qualifiers: 160 Luke Carver (48-2) sr.; 215 Anthony Neal (31-4) sr.; 285 Jake Stevens (30-3) sr.
Outlook: Sturgis has won four District titles under Boughton, but this is the first trip to the Quarterfinals in program history. The Trojans defeated annual power Stevensville Lakeshore by three in the Regional Semifinal as part of this run, and are setting up nicely to continue contending with only six seniors in the starting lineup. Carver and Neal were both Regional runners-up.
PHOTO: Gaylord and Lowell met during MHSAA Team Finals weekend in 2015 and could face off again this weekend in Division 2. (Click to see more at HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)