Columbus East’s Kenton Wilson, top, competes against Brownsburg’s Bryce Johnson in a 145-pound wrestling match at Columbus East High School in Columbus, Ind., Friday, Jan. 21. 2022.
The Republic file photo
After qualifying for semistate as a freshman, Kenton Wilson was on track to become another in a long line of standout wrestlers at Columbus East.
But after experiencing a health scare that freshman season, Wilson ended up taking the next two years off because of health and burnout issues. He watched as former teammates excelled on the mat.
This year, Wilson decided to come back out for wrestling, and now, he’s two wins away from qualifying for the state tournament.
“The last couple years, I was just kind of tired of wrestling,” Wilson said. “I wasn’t really having fun. I needed a break, and now coming back this year, I’m having a lot of fun. I wouldn’t say I missed it, but now that I’m back, I realized that I did miss it a lot.”
Wilson was a manager for the team his sophomore year. He spent all of his junior year in virtual e-learning.
“His sophomore year, he wanted to be a part of the team,” East coach Chris Cooper. “He wasn’t able to wrestle, but he did our video and helped out. Last year was more just the uncertainty of COVID on top of that he had some health problems.”
During that freshman year, Wilson experienced some fluid in his lungs and was in Riley Hospital For Children just before Christmas. He came back to finish second in the sectional and third in the regional at 113 pounds before falling in the opening round at semistate.
The problem with his lungs went away after that year, but the past two years, Wilson has experienced some random swelling and joint pain. But he realized how much he missed wrestling with his friends.
“My friends were talking to me, and they’re honestly the ones who convinced me,” Wilson said. “It took a lot of it, actually. I was going back and forth for maybe two months about whether I should or not.”
When he got in the wrestling room, Wilson picked up where he left off his freshman year. He won a spot in the lineup at 145 pounds.
“It’s been great,” Cooper said. “I don’t think he ever dreamed he would be varsity this year, having missed a couple of years. Just kind of the way things worked out, some of the guys in that range got bigger, and it kind of opened up a spot for him and he’s ran with it. He’s put together a real nice season.”
But Wilson’s bouts with health issues weren’t over. The first week of January, he came down with COVID and had to miss the IHSWCA Class 3A state duals, which the Olympians won.
“It was really tough,” said Wilson, who wants to attend IUPUC or IU-Southeast to study biology and eventually become a doctor. “It messed with my lungs a lot since I had that problem before. It just got them worked up, and it took me probably two or three weeks to get back into shape.”
Battling the aftereffects of the virus, Wilson finished third in the Hoosier Hills Conference Tournament at 145 pounds.
“That was kind of tough for him,” Cooper said. “He wrestled at conference, but you could tell he was sick. He wasn’t quite back to full speed yet. Then, he’s really put it together in the state tournament series.”
Wilson kicked off that tournament series by winning the Jennings County Sectional title at 145.
“It was really nice coming back from not wrestling for two years and winning a sectional title,” Wilson said. “It was really fun, and I surprised myself.”
On Saturday, Wilson finished third in the Jeffersonville Regional to secure the trip to semistate.
“Coming back this year, I honestly didn’t think I’d be varsity,” Wilson said. “I thought that I’d just come back, wrestle with guys and have fun. I’m really happy and satisfied with myself. I’m really proud that I was able to come back out and do this. But now I’m going to semistate, so I’m kind of hyped.”
Saturday morning, Wilson (22-10) will face Terre Haute South senior Nate Lommock (29-4) in the opening round at Ford Center in Evansville. A win would put Wilson in the quarterfinals, or “ticket round,” against the winner between Castle junior Lee Spencer (29-6) or 15th-ranked Plainfield junior Braedon Spears (21-5).
“I think I can win at least a match,” Wilson said. “My second match will be pretty tough, but we’ll see how it goes. It would mean a lot (to qualify for state).”
“I think he has as good a chance as anybody,” Cooper added. “In his quarter-bracket to make it to state, there’s no one there that’s unbeatable. There’s a couple above-average kids, and I think if he puts two good matches together, he can definitely do it. It’s not easy, but it’s doable.”
Evansville Semistate
When: 9 a.m. EST (8 a.m. CST) Saturday
Where: Ford Center, Evansville
Who: 16 wrestlers in each of 14 weight classes, including the following:
Columbus East: Liam Krueger (113 pounds), Noah Lykins (120), Bo Wagner (126), Nate Anderson (132), Reece Fisher (138), Kenton Wilson (145), Eli Pollitt (152), Kade Law (160), Tristan Statler (170), Jaden Durnil (182), Josh Schrader (195), Tommy Morrill (220), Ashton Hartwell (285).
Columbus North: Liam Curfman (106), Justice Thornton (126), Liam Phillips (152), Keller DeSpain (170), Jared Slocum II (182).
Jennings County: Lane Kirchner (120), Teagan Trotter (170), Gage Gasper (220), Peyton Hayden (285).
Admission: $10 (final session only) or $12 (season ticket)
