READY TO ROLL
Mifflin County begins quest for team state title today
HERSHEY -- The Mifflin County wrestling team makes its sixth trip to the PIAA Class 3A Duals hoping to improve on its lone win in the previous five.
The Huskies, 42-24 winners over Central Mountain in the District 6 Duals, take on District 1 runner-up Quakertown, a 36-19 loser to Council Rock South, in the first round of the state duals beginning at 8 p.m. on Thursday.
Mifflin County will make its first appearance at the duals in three years.
"This is one of the pinnacles of the season to be wrestling at the state duals. You get to butt heads with some of the best teams in the state. That's just awesome," Huskies coach Kirby Martin said. "The only kids that have been down there are the seniors when they were freshmen a couple of years ago. It's exciting to take some newbies down and let them experience Hershey and the Giant Center. Now they can say they've been to state duals."
Having arguably the best season in program history, Mifflin County ventures to the Giant Center unbeaten at 11-0 and ranked seventh in the state. The Huskies captured the Buckskin, Bo Wood, and Ultimate Warrior tournaments, beat Central Dauphin for the first time, and won their first Mid-Penn Commonwealth championship.
According to Martin, the key to this season's success boils down to one word: consistency.
"Overall, the consistency we've had has been really helpful. The kids are doing a great job in practice. They show up and work hard. They've been real consistent in competitions," Martin said. "I ask them to work hard and give a hundred percent effort. I don't expect them to be perfect, but this group has done a great job of staying consistent from one competition to the next. Their consistency has been very, very good."
Mifflin County moved to a season-high seventh in the state team rankings on PA Power Wrestling and have nine ranked wrestlers in the lineup: Nic Allison (No. 8 at 113), Hunter Johnson (No. 19 at 120), Blake Aumiller (No. 25 at 132), Deakon Schaeffer (No. 25 at 145), Parker Kearns (No. 25 at 152), Kyler Everly (No. 7 at 160), Trey Shoemaker (No. 12 at 189), Anson Wagner (No. 11 at 215), and Jaxson Pupo (No. 13 at 285).
Martin is confident his team can get wins at state duals with a lineup like that.
"They absolutely can. It will be a matter of helping them to understand they are a well-balanced team. Yes, there will be nerves, but when the whistle blows, it's go-time. Just wrestle hard for six minutes," Martin said. "If we can get them to do that, it's going to be a fun, state dual meet tournament."
Wrestling at a venue like the Giant Center, there will be nerves with the new guys and even the veterans who haven't been down in a while.
"They've been levelheaded, but let's face it, the Giant Center is where states are at. You can tell them not to be nervous and just wrestle hard, but until you can get some experience in the arena, it's going to be hard to overcome the initial experience of being there," Martin said.
With such tough competition, the margin for error is razor thin. Wins and losses will come down to what it always does when good teams face each other.
"The matches down here, the teams are all good. It's going to come down to what it always does. Get bonus points, don't give up bonus points, win the toss-ups, and go out and wrestle hard for six minutes with confidence," Martin said. "There are a couple of teams head and shoulders above the rest of the field, but there will be a lot of competitive matchups down here."
The Panthers (15-1) ranked ninth in the state, have five wrestlers ranked: Isaac Williams (No. 24 at 106), Mason Zeigler (No. 7 at 120), Collin Gaj (No. 7 at 138), Calvin Lachman (No. 20 at 172), and Frederick Retter (No. 9 at 285).
"This is a team we've never wrestled before, and we haven't seen them in individual tournaments either. I like wrestling new opponents," Martin said. "I like to think about how we will wrestle them and how we match up. I'm watching film on them to see their tendencies and what they like to do."
Martin credits his assistants with making this season one of the best in school history.
"I'd like to give a shoutout to my assistant coaches. They are just as important as the head coach. These guys are exceptional," Martin said. "The kids love them. They work hard, and they make it a fun experience for the kids. I couldn't do it without them."
Despite the obvious goal of winning, Martin and his staff want to see three things from the team at state duals. If they can achieve those, it should be a successful trip.
"I want the kids, number one, to have a fun experience. Number two, these guys have been consistent, and I would like to see them follow through with that since this will be the last set of dual meets this season," Martin said. "And I want to see the effort. They have complete control over that, and I want each kid to go out and give a hundred percent effort for six minutes. If they do that, good things will happen."