Running Finals Streak to 9, Lowell Keeps D2 Dominance in 'Family'

By Jeff Chaney
Special for MHSAA.com

February 26, 2022

KALAMAZOO -- When asked about his team's unprecedented success, Lowell wrestling coach RJ Boudro admits that the recipe for success is not that hard.

It's all about family.

Boudro's Red Arrows won their ninth straight Division 2 championship, and 12th overall, by defeating Goodrich in the 46-16 in Saturday’s Final at Wings Event Center in Kalamazoo.

"I have coached these guys since they have been knee-high," Boudro said. "I have been coaching at Lowell for 15 years; some of the guys on this team weren't even born when I started. It just starts getting more personable, and that is what coaching is really about. Making relationships, and relationships grow stronger. I love these kids, and I love their families – they support you a lot."

You could tell the closeness of this year's Lowell team all weekend in Kalamazoo, as the Red Arrows marched through Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice in the Quarterfinal and then Gaylord in the Semifinal to set up a rematch with the Martians in the championship match.

Starting at the 189-pound weight class, Goodrich got on the scoreboard first with Cameron Macklem’s pin in 1 minute, 36 seconds.

Lowell got on the board thanks to one of its senior leaders, as Carter Blough – the top-ranked 215-pounder in Division 2 – won by technical fall, 22-7.

Lowell went on to win six of the next seven matches after Blough's impressive victory, setting the tone for another team title heading back home to Lowell.

Lowell/Goodrich wrestling"Last year we didn't have the energy, the people here, like we did this year," Blough said. "We didn't have that stage, but this year we had our crowd here, we secured the dual and we are super excited."

Last year, in the middle of the pandemic, Lowell beat Goodrich 59-7 for the championship. This year would be a bit tougher, but the Red Arrows continued to show the dominance in the division they have displayed over the past decade.

"Lowell is a good team. I don't know what else to say," said Goodrich coach Kenneth Sirignano, whose team ended its year with a 31-3 record. "They were better than us today, by quite a bit."

Sirignano said momentum swung on some tight matches throughout the Final.

"We lost three close matches, and we gave up bonus points," Sirignano said. "In those tight duals, you have to win the close ones and you can't give up bonus points."

Those three sway matches came at 112 pounds – an 8-7 win by Lowell's Landon Musgrave – at 125 with a 3-0 win by the Red Arrows’ Owen Segorski, and at 145 with a 3-0 win by Lowell's Jared Boone.

"Even during COVID we found a way to work around it and get better," Blough said. "That's how this team is – we always find a way to get better no matter what's in front of us."

Lowell, which finished this winter with a 23-3 record, will wrestle for a 10th-straight championship next season. No other team in the state, no matter the division, has won more than five consecutive titles.

"This is ridiculous," Boudro said. "It's hard to put into words."

Click for full results.

PHOTOS (Top) Lowell celebrates Saturday’s Division 2 championship win over Goodrich, which ran its title streak to nine seasons. (Middle) Lowell and Goodrich wrestlers work to gain control during their match. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)

Senior Pair's Selfless Leadership Crucial to Benzie Central's Historic Run

By Tom Spencer
Special for MHSAA.com

March 3, 2023

It is pretty well-known now that a historic wrestling run by Benzie Central came to an end in a Division 4 Quarterfinal last weekend.

Northern Lower PeninsulaPerhaps equally known is the Huskies qualified 11 grapplers for the Individual Finals taking place today and Saturday at Ford Field.

But not many are familiar with the story of senior athletes Wyatt Noffsinger and Austin Smith — the undisputed motivational leaders of the team — and their personal Benzie wrestling history.

The story began when Noffsinger was an eighth grader.  He took a trip with a friend and his father to watch the MHSAA Finals. And it is ending this weekend with Noffsinger and Smith watching — and cheering on — their teammates at the championship event.

Noffsinger and Smith did not qualify for this weekend’s competition. Noffsinger fell one point shy in his 175-pound bracket at the Individual Regional. And Smith graciously had opted to give up his spot in the postseason lineup to Noffsinger.

Last year Smith was among 12 Benzie wrestlers who advanced to Regionals. And injuries kept Noffsinger off the mat.

“It’s a proud moment for me as a coach,” said 10-year veteran coach Josh Lovendusky. “These two guys haven’t missed a practice in the postseason because they knew they had to be there for the team to help them train so they can be ready for the Finals.

“They don’t have to be there — they put their team first,” he continued. “They’re giving up their time to make sure their teammates are successful.

Smith and Noffsinger help as officials at a youth wrestling tournament this week. Noffsinger and Smith represent what the Huskies – who made their first-ever appearance at Team Finals weekend – are all about, according to Lovendusky, who now shares his coaching duties with co-coach Cody Vandonkelaar.

“It is what we’ve been trying to embody this entire season,” Lovendusky said. “Coaching for as long as I have, I have never seen somebody as selfless as these two individuals have been this season.”

Smith may get the honor of being the most selfless. He voluntarily gave up his slot wrestling at 144 pounds for his friend Noffsinger, nicknamed “Cheddar.”

Teams may send only 14 competitors into the individual tournament (not counting the girls division). Benzie’s postseason roster was developed by team vote, and Smith was originally selected. After stewing on it for a few days and recalling how Noffsinger – who wrestles at 175 pounds – didn’t get a shot at Districts or Regionals last year, Smith approached Vandonkelaar about making the change.

“I only felt right that we both get three chances at (the postseason),” Smith said of his decision. “I don’t get four and he only gets two.

“I just thought it would be fair if we both went three for three.”

Both Smith and Noffsinger are thrilled the coaches made the roster change, especially since it resulted in a nail-biting finish in the “blood round” – the round that determines the final two qualifiers who will advance or be done. As luck would have it, Noffsinger faced a teammate in his Finals-qualifying match hosted by Charlevoix, and lost by one point.

“Cheddar exceeded my expectations, to be honest,” Smith said.  “It came down to one point. 

“I was on the end of my seat, and whoever lost I’d feel bad for and whoever won I’d feel awesome for,” Smith continued.  “He came up a little bit short, and I am just happy he got a shot to go.”

Noffsinger is at the top of his class academically and led the Huskies to academic all-state recognition this year. The three-sport star is grateful Smith yielded his spot. 

“Austin didn’t have to do that,” Noffsinger said. “I wasn’t expecting it.

 Smith celebrates a match win, while Noffsinger attempts to break free from an opponent. “It completely says a lot about who he is as a man … who he is as a friend,” he continued. “I was so grateful.”

Without Smith, Noffsinger is quick to point out, he would not have had the chance to fulfill the dream of competing at the Finals that began with that eighth-grade trip.

“Knowing that I was going to have the last shot to make it was a huge sense of relief and gratitude for him as a friend to give me that opportunity,” Noffsinger said. “I wanted to win really bad and make it.

“And the same time, it hurts knowing if you do win, you’re going to take a teammate’s shot at making it – and it really hurt knowing your dream was gone,” Noffsinger said of falling one point short. “It is still cool because we made it as a team, and it will be awesome to be down there for the experience and the amazing atmosphere.”

Lovendusky is quick to point out the two seniors represent much more leadership than any coach could ever request.

“These two individuals are the unsung, motivational leaders of this team,” Lovendusky said.  “At the team states neither one of them wrestled, but they were the absolute loudest. 

“They made sure the team was ready to go,” Lovendusky continued. “You can’t ask for better senior leadership than kids giving everything they have even though they didn’t have the opportunity to wrestle, and they were a pivotal part of what our team did.”

Smith and Noffsinger have one more leadership task to complete when the Individual Finals are over. They’ll lead the charge into the Brazilian steak house that’s become a tradition for the Huskies team.

They’re looking forward to the large serving of steak on a skewer.  And they will celebrate this year’s team making history.

“It’s all-you-can-eat meat, and it’s an awesome experience,” said Noffsinger.

Tom SpencerTom Spencer is a longtime MHSAA-registered basketball and soccer official, and former softball and baseball official, and he also has coached in the northern Lower Peninsula area. He previously has written for the Saginaw News, Bay County Sports Page and Midland Daily News. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Manistee, Wexford, Missaukee, Roscommon, Ogemaw, Iosco, Alcona, Oscoda, Crawford, Kalkaska, Grand Traverse, Benzie, Leelanau, Antrim, Otsego, Montmorency, Alpena, Presque Isle, Cheboygan, Charlevoix and Emmet counties.

PHOTOS (Top) From left: Benzie Central co-coach Cody Vandonkelaar, Wyatt Noffsinger, Austin Smith and co-coach Josh Lovendusky show off the program’s hardware won this winter. (Middle) Smith and Noffsinger help as officials at a youth wrestling tournament this week. (Below) Smith celebrates a match win, while Noffsinger attempts to break free from an opponent. (Photos courtesy of Jill Robinson and Shane Iverson.)