COLUMBUS — Wrapping up his second state tournament with a win gave Westfall sophomore Eli Wright a seventh-place finish in the Division II championships.
“I like to thank my coach (Will) Breyer and (Tim) Geiger — they keep me confident and keep me going. They wanted me to end the season with a win, not a loss. So that’s what I came out here to do is get a win,” Wright said. “And we’re going to celebrate and next year we’ll come back better.”
Wright faced Boden Ballinger from Perkins in the seventh-place final and won a 4-3 decision. A third-period takedown gave Wright the edge he needed.
“It was a very smart wrestled match. In the end, we knew we were up. I think that there was like a minute, 30 (seconds) left, so he didn’t rush, he didn’t panic,” Breyer said. “We knew if we got the takedown with under a minute, we can ride them out.
“It was a very smart match by him. He’s showing great growth as a wrestler. I think when he comes back as a junior, he’ll be even more of an intelligent wrestler.”
“I gave it all I had. I put it all on the mat,” Wright said. “I wanted to go three periods because I’ve watched him before, he gets tired really easy.
“So as soon as we got to the third period, I was head tapping and I see his eyes were shutting when I was doing it. So, I kept doing it. And then right there I looked up at him and I was like, I got this. I’m down three. I get an escape. I know how to get a takedown to ride them out, so that’s what I did.”
Wright went 3-2 at the state tournament this year and wraps up his season with a 32-10 record.
“You’re talking three matches last year. All these matches here — he’s getting so used to this floor,” Breyer said. “Now, next year when we come in, he knows what quarterfinals are going to look like, he now knows what semifinals look like, so the nerves will not be as great next year.”
