Newberry Finalists Relish Title Opportunity
By
John Vrancic
Special for MHSAA.com
February 22, 2018
MUNISING — In 1988, the MHSAA Team Wrestling Finals were reunified with both peninsulas competing for the same championships.
But before 2008, Upper and Lower Peninsula wrestlers still competed for separate individual titles – making for far less matchups between the U.P.’s best and their counterparts from downstate, unless a U.P. team made a championship run.
For the last decade, the Upper Peninsula’s best have embraced the opportunity to represent their schools and extend their seasons by taking part in the unified MHSAA Individual Finals tournament after their teams had been eliminated in earlier rounds.
Four Newberry wrestlers were fortunate enough to advance to the Division 4 Individual Regional tournament at Charlevoix on Feb. 17 after the Indians were eliminated by St. Ignace 54-21 in the Team District on Feb. 7.
“It was hard, especially being a senior,” Newberry’s Alex Henry said after taking a 4-3 decision from Munising senior Christian Cole in the 160-pound Individual District Final on Feb. 10 at Munising. “It would have been nice to get through as a team, although I thought our team did pretty well this year.”
This was the first District title for Henry, who plans to wrestle at Alma College next season.
“I will definitely look forward to that, but now I’ve got to focus on the next step,” he added.
He did just that, placing third in the Regional. He will now move on to the MHSAA Individual Finals, March 2-3 at Ford Field in Detroit.
Senior teammate Cameron Symonds also is heading to Detroit after placing second in the Regional.
“There was a feeling of disappointment when our team got eliminated, but having a chance to wrestle in the individual tournament takes a little bit of the sting off it,” Symonds said after pinning Onaway junior Coty Inonetz with 1.1 seconds left in the 152-pound District Final for his third straight District title. “We just didn’t show up to wrestle that day.
“You’ve got to come prepared. Last year I went to the Regional (at Rogers City) as a top seed and didn’t make it to the state tournament. You have to take it one match at a time.”
Nathan Magnusson, the team’s third senior, reached the 135-pound final and earned a trip to Detroit despite dropping a 4-0 Regional championship decision to Onaway sophomore Matt Grant.
“Wrestling is bit of an individual sport, yet you’re also trying to help your team,” said Magnusson, who will enroll at Central Michigan University this fall. “It’s nice to have a second chance. Although, I wish we also could have gone to a Regional as a team.”
Junior Devin Racicot was among four Bark River-Harris grapplers to advance to the Individual Regional. None, however, qualified for next weekend’s Finals.
BR-H edged Munising 36-33 in its District opener Feb. 8 at Manistique. The Broncos were then eliminated on the 11th tie-breaker (43-42) by the host Emeralds.
“It was depressing at first, coming so close and not be going on as a team,” said Racicot, who was pinned 3:39 into the 215-pound District Final by Charlevoix junior Maximus Hinkle. “There was about a 15 to 20-minute wait to find out if we were going. It would have been nice, but we’re proud we accomplished that much. (Manistique) basically had four kids at the beginning of the season, then their numbers moved up to about 10. They came a long way this year.”
With none of their wrestlers graduating this spring, it appears the Broncos have much to look forward to next season.
“With this being my first year of high school wrestling, I was pleased to be moving on to the (individual) Regional,” said Racicot. “We just hope to come back with the same kids. If we do, I think we can do well next year.”
PHOTOS: Newberry's Cameron Symonds (left) wrestles under the spotlight at the Upper Peninsula championship tournament at Marquette High School. (Middle) Finals qualifier Alex Henry locks up an opponent during a home meet. (Below) Newberry's Nate Magnusson (top) works to keep position during a match earlier this season. (Photos by Tammy Henry.)
Thrush Thrives in Farwell's Mat Return
February 6, 2019
By Jeff Chaney
Special for Second Half
Jay Thrush admitted once he bought the new shoes, he knew he was back.
Thrush was a promising wrestler at Farwell High School three years ago, finishing in eighth place as a 171-pound freshman at the 2016 Division 4 Individual Finals. He followed that up with another Finals trip as a sophomore, falling just short of the podium in 2017.
That momentum was stopped last year when the Farwell athletic administration had to cancel the season because of a lack of participation.
"My freshman year six of us went to state and three of us placed, and I thought that was going to help build the program – but it didn't," Thrush said. "I thought people were going to join, but no one did. Wrestling is a hard sport, and it is hard to convince people to go out."
Then a new coach showed up.
Marcus Wilkes, a former Farwell wrestler, was asked to come back to his former school by Farwell baseball coach Josh Higgins to try and get the wrestling program back up and running.
"The last few years I was a manager at Walmart in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, and I was sick of working 100 hours a week and I just got married," Wilkes said. "So I ended up quitting and going back to school. Now I go to Ferris and coach."
Higgins did a good sell job to convince the energetic Wilkes to come home.
"I wrestled for Farwell for my first two years in high school, and then I moved to Wisconsin and wrestled the final two years," said Wilkes, who also played baseball in high school. "I lost every match I wrestled my freshman year, but as a senior I finished 32-13 in Wisconsin.
"I did talk to Josh and asked if he needed any help with the baseball team, and he said none this year, but wanted me to come back and coach wrestling. I was hired in the fall and began to recruit kids."
Obviously one of the first Wilkes reached out to was Thrush, but Wilkes admitted he wasn't sure Thrush was all in to come back for his senior season.
"I knew Jay wasn't sure he wanted to wrestle when we started, but he got new shoes a month into the season, and then I knew he was in it for the long haul," Wilkes said.
Thrush agreed.
"Yeah, once I got the new shoes, I was trapped after that," Thrush said.
Luckily for Wilkes, Thrush picked up right where he left off after his sophomore season.
Heading into this past weekend, Thrush had a 25-4 record wrestling at 189 pounds. And he has been a help to Wilkes in the practice room, showing some of the new wrestlers – along with Wilkes – moves the younger athletes can build upon.
"He has been a huge asset," Wilkes said. "He has become a leader. He is teaching techniques that I am rusty at, helping the younger kids improve."
Thrush has been a leader in the classroom too, carrying a 3.5 GPA.
How many kids have Wilkes and Thrush had to work with this year?
"We had 12 to start, but we have lost some during the year," Thrush said. "Wrestling is mentally tough on first-year wrestlers; it takes a while to understand the sport. Experience goes a long way in this sport.
"We have a youth program, and I hope the young guys stay in the sport," he added. "And having a new coach helps."
One of those young wrestlers to build the future around is freshman Chase Burchette, who has won more than 20 matches this season at 160 pounds.
Wilkes is looking forward to the future.
"I'm excited," Wilkes said. "When I set up our schedule I only had four wrestlers. And I set up a somewhat difficult schedule, and with what I've seen, I'm excited for the future. It was good to see where our team stood against same-level teams with limited weight classes, and we have done well. But this year I wanted to concentrate on individual, and next year we will concentrate on team."
Farwell is in Division 3 and starts its MHSAA Tournament with Team Districts on Thursday at Clare High School and Individual Districts on Saturday at Freeland.
PHOTOS: (Top) Jay Thrush is again a mat standout as Farwell brought back its wrestling program this winter. (Middle) As a freshmen in 2016, Thrush wrestled Clinton’s Verneri Korkee at the Finals and took eighth in Division 4 at 171 pounds. (Top photo courtesy of the Farwell athletic department; Finals photo by HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)