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D4 Preview: Crespo Aims for 4-Time Glory
March 4, 2020
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
For the second straight season, Division 4 has a chance to contribute to MHSAA wrestling history with a candidate to join the elite list of four-time champions.
Mendon senior Skyler Crespo is one of three contenders this weekend hoping to become the 27th in state history for win four MHSAA Individual Finals titles, and after Hudson’s Jordan Hamdan represented Division 4 in doing so a year ago. Bronson senior Ben Modert will be wrestling for his third title, while Carson City-Crystal senior Jamison Ward and Clinton sophomore Logan Badge are reigning champs as well.
But after those four, only a few more in Division 4 have reached the final matches of the season in the past – making for a lot of opportunities for new faces to make themselves known in front of a Ford Field audience.
Below, we look at 10 contenders to watch in Division 4, plus list all of the top seeds heading into this weekend. Surely we missed a few who will end up among the biggest headliners Saturday – but come back to Second Half early Sunday as we’ll interview and report on all 56 champions.
The “Grand March” on Friday begins at 11 a.m., with five rounds wrestled throughout the day including the semifinals at 7:30 p.m. Wrestling picks back up with consolation rounds at 9 a.m. Saturday, and concludes with the championship matches that afternoon at 3:30 p.m.
Follow all matches on a subscription basis live on MHSAA.tv, and click here for results at MHSAA.com.
112 Bronson Marry, Hudson sophomore (34-6) – Last season’s runner-up at 103 is the top seed at 112 and has won 21 of his last 22 matches including both last weekend in helping the Tigers to the team runner-up finish in Division 4. He’s 67-15 over his first two seasons.
119 Ben Modert, Bronson senior (50-2) – Modert won at 103 two seasons ago and 112 last year, when he didn’t give up a point over four Individual Finals matches, and he also finished fifth at 103 as a freshman. His two losses this winter both were one-point decisions.
130 Caden Natale, Hudson junior (36-5) – After just missing a first championship last season with a double-overtime loss in the final at 119, Natale is seeded first at this weight. He has 24 wins by pin and four by technical fall. He also finished third at 103 as a freshman.
130 Jacob Shelby, Manchester (48-1) – The two-time Finals placer is looking to leave with a championship after finishing eighth at 119 as a sophomore and runner-up last season at this weight with a 2-0 loss to Jamison Ward (see below) in the championship match. Shelby defeated Natale at Team Finals last weekend, and his lone loss was a one-point decision.
135 Jamison Ward, Carson City-Crystal senior (49-0) – After winning the championship last year at 130, Ward now stands 97-1 over the last two seasons and went over 200 career victories earlier this winter. He’s the top seed at this weight and also took fourth at 119 as a sophomore and second at 103 as a freshman.
140 Matthew Grant, Onaway senior (24-1) – The 2018 runner-up at 135 fell back to sixth at that weight last season. But Grant is back up as the top seed at 140 this weekend, and his only loss this season came to an out-of-state opponent.
145 Skyler Crespo, Mendon senior (49-1) – As noted, Crespo will be one of three this weekend aspiring to a fourth individual championship after winning 125 as a freshman, 135 as a sophomore and 140 last year. He also went over 200 career wins this winter, with his lone loss to an out-of-state opponent. He will wrestle next for Michigan State.
171 Brock Nelson, LeRoy Pine River (19-0) senior – Last season’s runner-up at this weight will look to end his high school career with a first title as well. He was fifth at 135 as a freshman and third at 145 as a sophomore.
171 Brayden Randolph, Clinton junior (51-4) – After falling by just two points in last season’s 160 final, Randolph has stormed back to earn the first seed at this weight. He’s 144-11 over his first three seasons and took third at 160 as a freshman. He and Logan Badge (below) are among representatives from the first-time team champion Redskins.
189 Logan Badge, Clinton sophomore (33-0) – Last season’s champion at 215 is lighter by a weight and the top seed at 189. He is up to 68-2 individually over his first two high school seasons, and this winter he has 19 wins by pin and two more by tech fall.
Additional No. 1 seeds: 103 Manus Bennett, Marlette freshman (41-2); 125 Jaron Johnson, Carson City-Crystal junior (38-0); 152 Thomas Potter, Springport senior (42-1); 160 Trenton Holden, Grass Lake junior (42-1); 215 Camden Orr, New Lothrop junior (40-3); 285 Emmett Bingaman, Mendon senior (46-2).
PHOTO: Mendon’s Skyler Crespo (left) works for control during last season’s Division 4 championship match at 140 pounds. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
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Blahas Building Lasting Owosso Legacy
February 5, 2020
By Tim Robinson
Special for Second Half
Owosso seniors Hunter and Colton Blaha, born 11 months apart, have been competing with each other nearly every day of their lives.
“We’ve been competing forever,” said Colton, the younger of the brothers, with a laugh. “Sprinting down the road so you can get to the house first.”
Hunter agreed.
“We’re always competing, no matter what it is,” he said. “Board games, chores. It doesn’t matter.”
The Blaha brothers have channeled that competitiveness into a work ethic and sense of community that has helped lift the Owosso High School sports programs in which they’ve competed.
Both played football (Hunter at quarterback, Colton at running back), while Hunter plays basketball and runs track and Colton is an all-state wrestler who plays baseball in the spring.
Most of the programs they have played for have not had recent success. The brothers endured part of a 43-game losing streak in football, Hunter’s basketball team recently snapped a 30-game losing streak, and the Owosso baseball team has struggled in recent years.
And, to the Blahas, that doesn’t matter.
Competing does.
“I honestly don’t care what our record is,” Colton Blaha said. “We always had a close bond with the kids in our grade, and that means more than anything. It means more than any record we could have had in wins or losses.”
Trojans athletic director Dallas Lintner, who also is an assistant football coach, said what sets the Blahas apart is that selflessness – a willingness to help build a program despite an outward lack of success.
“What’s refreshing to see at the high school level is that they’re competitive, but they’re classy,” Lintner said. “They mean a lot to us at Owosso High School. They mean a lot to our community particularly with the relationships they’ve built with middle-school kids, with elementary school kids. They really do it all for us.”
Both Blahas have worked, assisting the coaches in their sports, with younger athletes at all levels to help them feel a part of the program.
“When we got here, the senior leadership was horrible,” Hunter Blaha said. “We got treated horribly by the upperclassmen, and that plays a big part in a program, having a bond and a relationship with the younger kids. We set that as a goal in the eighth grade, because we knew how important it was to our program if we got the youth program going at a young level and got them going at the same pace.”
And so Owosso football players at lower levels have seen the Blahas at their games or matches the last four years. Both attend youth level games and interact with future Owosso athletes as much as their schedules allow.
“They’re like rock stars to those kids,” football coach Devin Pringle said. “We do things at elementary schools like reading to kids, and we take the Blahas. They’re like NFL stars to those kids. They wrestle with them, give them high-fives, talk about grades.”
At one point during the football season, Hunter became involved with a troubled elementary school student as part of a class in social tolerance.
“I was chosen to help this kid,” he said. “My idea was to bring him to a game, come see a coin toss, maybe get him a signed football.”
Which he did. The youngster got to do all three and went home with a lasting memory.
“It was an awesome experience,” Hunter said. “I could tell he was really happy that he got the chance to do that.”
Another thing that makes the Blahas stand out, their coaches said, is their commitment to their hometown.
“A lot of kids transferred out of here to play on better sports teams,” Colton Blaha said. “My mom has always taught us to make a name for ourselves, and I feel that Hunter and I have both done that here. We’ve done the best we can to try to change the sports programs around, and we hope the kids under us have picked up on that.”
Naturally, coaching and commitment by those younger players is critical, but there are signs of a turnaround in Owosso football. The Trojans varsity won two games last season and lost three more by a single point. The rest of the teams in the program all had winning records.
“We knew coming in it would take some time to get a new culture established,” Pringle said. “When it happens, it’s because these young men decided to stay.”
After his freshman year of football, Hunter Blaha was promoted to varsity. As a sophomore, he was a unanimous choice as a team captain and started at quarterback.
Colton finished third at 160 pounds at last year’s Division 2 Individual Wrestling Finals, a rise fueled by the competitive fires built during his youth.
“We used to have basement wrestling tournaments, and he used to kick my butt,” Colton said of Hunter. “I used to get so mad at him.”
The boys wrestled and sometimes fought at school, too.
“I always beat him,” Hunter said. “I remember one day I stopped and he came up to me and said, ‘I’m not going to let you whip my (butt) any more. It’s just not going to happen. That’s the day he started wrestling, and he’s been working his tail off ever since. It’s pushed me to work harder and get some goals in mind.”
As for the rivalry, “a year later, (Colton) started whipping my butt,” Hunter said, smiling. “It’s escalated from there.”
Both Blahas plan to compete in college, Hunter in football and Colton in wrestling. Both plan to become teachers, and Pringle has a not-so-subtle plan for Hunter.
“Colton is amazing in his own right,” Pringle said. “But Hunter, when he gets that degree, he’ll be head football coach at Owosso someday. We’re getting a new weight room, and I tell him, ‘I’ll have this ready for you when you take over.’ He’ll be a kid who impacts hundreds of kids before he’s done.”
But first, there’s a senior year to complete.
“It feels like it came up way too fast,” Hunter said. “It feels like yesterday I started at quarterback my sophomore year. I kind of get emotional about it. I don’t like talking about it. Most kids are ready to get out of here, to get their lives going. But I’ve been here since I was 6 years old, and it’s all I’ve ever known, playing with these kids.”
Colton Blaha is known as an athlete who’s the first to arrive at practice and the last to leave, almost to a fault.
“I have him in a fourth-hour class, and he always wants to get in a couple of extra sets,” Pringle said, chuckling. “He always leaves the room last, and sometimes I’m late for lunch because of it.”
A few lost minutes of lunch, though, has been a small price to pay.
“I know they’re going to do great things,” Lintner said. “They’re going to be great husbands. They’re going to be great fathers. They’re going to be great college athletes no matter what university they choose. We’re super proud of them, and as an educator, I’ve been fortunate to be with them the last four years of their journey.”
Asked what the most important thing is that they've gained through athletics, both brothers pause for several seconds before answering.
“Hard work can take you anywhere,” Colton said. “Always. Through hard work, you go through a lot of ups and downs, a lot of lefts and rights, but if you keep working hard, keep your head balanced, you can go anywhere.”
“Being a family, definitely,” Hunter said. “That’s what it’s all about. Life’s not always about football and athletics. You want to make your friendships and talk about these memories 20 years down the road.”
But the Blahas have done more than make memories. They’ve made an impact, one that will be felt ‘years down the road.’
PHOTOS: (Top) Colton, left, and brother Hunter Blaha. (Middle) Colton, left, begins his third-place match during last season’s Division 2 Individual Finals at Ford Field. (Middle photo by HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)