MUSKEGON TWP. - High school wrestling is an individual sport, to be sure, but it’s also a team sport, and there’s nothing more fun than having the entire team get in on the winning.
That happened last season at Reeths-Puffer, when the Rockets battled to win the O-K Black conference championship, then captured a Division 1 district championship.
The conference championship was particularly exciting because it came right down to the wire. R-P, Holland and Zeeland East went into the conference tournament tied for first place in the standings, and the team with the most points in the tournament would win the overall trophy.
The Rockets pulled it off by finishing in first place at the tournament.
Ian Cook
The district title was extra fun because it happened in R-P’s home gym. The Rockets cruised to the championship, beating Traverse City West 60-12 in the first round and Traverse City Central 57-24 in the finals.
The two championships were both firsts for Jared Fleming, who was in his second year as R-P’s head coach.
“It had been a couple of years,” Fleming said about the team winning some trophies. “Under the last coach they were used to winning a lot, and it was very cool to bring it into another era.”
Of course, one good year means you had a good team. Keeping it going means you have a solid program, and Fleming thinks the Rockets are definitely in that category.
Reeths-Puffer lost five seniors to graduation, but has a very strong core of returning wrestlers who are capable of keeping the team near the top of the O-K Green standings this winter.
Jake Rozycki
The Rockets’ top returning wrestler is junior Ian Cook, who posted an amazing 52-6 record last season and made the individual state finals for the second straight year. He finished third in the state as a freshman while competing at 103 pounds, then took sixth last year while competing at 120. He is expected to wrestle at 132 pounds this season.
“He has always worked hard, but this past offseason he worked even harder,” Fleming said about Cook. “I am very excited to see where that will take him.”
Sophomore Jake Rozycki is also coming off a great season, when he posted a 47-6 record as a freshman and qualified for regionals. He is expected to compete at 126 pounds this year.
Senior heavyweight Nathan Stafford is also the real deal after going 41-14 last season, qualifying for regionals and finishing just one win shy of qualifying for the state tournament.
Nathan Stafford
“We’re expecting big things out of him,” Fleming said about Stafford. “Him and Ian Cook are the two who wrestled the most seriously in the offseason. It’s so big for us to have a heavyweight who wins that much. A lot of teams just throw a bigger guy out there, but we have a guy who really knows what he’s doing. He has the potential to be somewhere on the podium at the state finals.”
Junior Sage Secrest had a promising 33-14 record last year and will be pushing to qualify for regionals and state this year after falling just short at districts. He’s expected to wrestle at 190 pounds.
“I believe he’s going to dominate that weight class for us,” Fleming said about Secrest. “He’s very strong, a good wrestler and a good leader on our team.”
Nathan Reeves, who was 32-21 last year, is another talented wrestler who will be pushing hard after failing to make it out of districts last season. He is excected to compete at 160 pounds.
Sage Secrest
Andrew Corradin was 20-27 last season and has the capability to take a big step forward this season, according to Fleming.
Senior Nathan Straley will be a big presence in the R-P lineup after missing most of last year due to injury. He will wrestle at 215 pounds.
A very promising newcomer is freshman Hunter Eek, who has had a lot of success in youth and middle school wrestling and is expected to make an immediate impact while wresting at 138 pounds.
“You know it when you see it, and he’s got it,” Fleming said about Eek.
Nathan Reeves
With so many strong wrestlers back, Fleming can’t help but be excited about his team again – but he also knows the competition will be tough and the Rockets will have to work hard to earn success.
“We have some really good kids who are capable of competing with the best in the state,” the coach said. “We have high expectations for our team. But potential is just potential until you do something about it. We’re excited about getting out on the mat and showing what we’ve got.”
Reeths-Puffer will open its season on Wednesday at Grand Rapids Union, competing in dual matches against Allendale and Union.
