For the first time in his career, Cristian Haslem is heading to the Division 2 Individual Wrestling Finals with teammates.

After being the lone member of the St. Clair wrestling team to qualify in each of the past two seasons, the 120-pound junior will be joined this Friday and Saturday at Ford Field by Zachary Drugach (113), Nathan Postma (157), Caleb Kuretich (175) and David Alley (190).

“I’m really excited,” Haslem said. “I just let them know to treat it like any other match, really. Just don’t make it bigger than it is.”

It’s the biggest contingent of Finals qualifiers for the Saints in program history, so it’s only fitting that Haslem is part of it. While the current version of the program is still less than 20 years old, Haslem already has cemented himself as one of its all-time greats.

His two runner-up finishes – at 106 as a freshman and 113 as a sophomore – are the highest any Saints wrestler has ever stood on the Finals podium, and his two all-state finishes tie him with Colton Pfaendtner for the most in school history. They’re also the only two St. Clair wrestlers to earn all-state honors.

Haslem set the freshman (46-2) and sophomore (49-1) records for wins, and at 132-3 over his career, he’s already moved to second all-time behind Pfaendtner (180). 

So, as he looks to take the next step this weekend and become the first Finals champion in school history, he’s hoping to follow his own advice.

“I feel a lot more confident about this year,” Haslem said. “The last two years, I wasn’t used to the big stage. I feel like I just have to treat it like any other match.”

Haslem enters the weekend at 37-0 and seeded second at 120 pounds behind sophomore Devan Garcia of Battle Creek Harper Creek.

The two know each other well, as Garcia defeated Haslem in the 113-pound Final a year ago.

Haslem admits that a rematch Saturday night has long been on his mind, but he’s well aware there’s work to do in order to get there.

He opens the tournament Friday with Jack Hayes of Bay City John Glenn, and his potential opponents on the way to the Final include unbeaten Joshua Ledford of Zeeland East.

“I’ve definitely just been trying to think about the next match, and not thinking about that rematch,” Haslem said. “Otherwise, I know it will mess with my matches before it. But of course, I’m excited for that match.”

St. Clair coach Jake Scillian has watched Haslem remain focused all season, and while he knows being this close to the finish line will make that more difficult, he has faith in his star to remain in the moment.

“We just kind of take it one match at a time, one opponent at a time,” Scillian said. “I think this year is going to be the hardest, because I know he’s foaming at the mouth to get that title. But he knows that he’s really going to have to focus for each match.”

Getting so close two years in a row has driven Haslem to another level this season. He’s unbeaten on the mat, with wins over top-tier wrestlers such as Traverse City West’s Matthew Quigley – a runner-up at 113 in Division 1 a year ago – and Yale’s Landon Sopha, a three-time placer in Division 3. 

Scillian said Haslem has put everything into his training, attending Team Donahoe sessions in Flint at least once per week to train with former Davison star and NCAA national champion Paul Donahoe. That’s on top of his St. Clair practices and attending every open mat session Scillian has held.

“After two heartbreaks, he definitely put it into overdrive this year,” Scillian said. “He wrestles 365 days a year. His parents hired a strength trainer; he’s been lifting like crazy.”

Haslem’s work is geared not only toward winning a title this weekend, but also securing a place on a collegiate roster. Of course, a win Saturday could go a long way in helping that.

“I think it would make a big difference for college coaches,” Haslem said. “I feel like it’d be helpful to show them I can compete on big stages and do what it takes to win.”

He’s already proven quite a bit. As a freshman, he surprised himself with his run, only to have to wrestle the Final with a broken finger suffered in the semis. Getting to the Final as a sophomore was more of an expectation, but he went down early against Garcia and couldn’t claw back. 

He’s also helped elevate St. Clair wrestling. In trying to find better competition for Haslem to wrestle, Scillian has challenged his entire team to raise its level – and the Saints have responded.

“It’s kind of cool to see the trajectory of both of them,” Scillian said. “Cristian came in and he’s this super-talented kid, so the issue was, ‘What do we do with a kid that’s at a higher level?’ We’ve always tried to raise the ceiling, and have everyone else raise theirs, too. We kind of used Cristian as a catalyst for that. … I have a ton of respect for the Haslems for keeping Cristian here. He could have gone to any school. It kind of shows that our program is on the right trajectory, and it can happen to anyone who puts the work in. You don’t have to be from a certain school to win.”

Haslem is happy to be that catalyst and have his teammates joining him in the Grand March. Now he’s ready to take the next step and elevate himself, and the program, again.

“It would be awesome,” Haslem said. “I think it would just help bring a lot of kids out, and just put our school on the map for wrestling.”

Paul Costanzo served as a sportswriter at The Port Huron Times Herald from 2006-15, including three years as lead sportswriter, and prior to that as sports editor at the Hillsdale Daily News from 2005-06. He can be reached at paulcostanzo3@gmail.com with story ideas for Genesee, Lapeer, St. Clair, Sanilac, Huron, Tuscola, Saginaw, Bay, Arenac, Midland and Gladwin counties.

PHOTOS (Top) St. Clair’s Cristian Haslem, right, has his hand raised in victory after a match this season. (Middle) Haslem, left, wraps up and lifts an opponent off the mat. (Photos courtesy of the St. Clair wrestling program.)