The boys wrestling team is off to a great start.

The team placed in the top five in the Ron Madow Invitational held at BHS on Dec. 8; Caleb Greenwood placed first in his weight class; Justin Elwell and Jackson Klein placed third; Aaden Condor placed fourth; Caleb White placed fifth and Essien “6” Williams placed sixth.

In their second tournament, the team finished in the top 13 with Caleb Greenwood placing first individually and Aaden Condor and Solomon Miklowski taking sixth place.

This weekend the team competed at the Willoughby South Rebel Invitational and finished fifth as a team. 

Caleb Greenwood and Solomon Miklowski placed first in their weight classes; Justin Elwell placed 2nd; Aaden Condor placed 4th; Caleb White and Mikael Edwards placed 5th and Jackson Klein placed 6th. 

Head coach James Greenwood, along with co-captains Caleb Greenwood and Aaden Condor, explain how the team has been training since last season. 

“In the off-season the pace is slower, we’re very technical and looking for precision and timing,” Caleb Greenwood said. “I mostly lift, but I do wrestle on the mat 2-3 times a week and try to get extra workouts in and go to club practices.” 

Coach Greenwood is especially excited about the freshmen that joined the team this season.

“I’ve got six freshmen who came in and they are ready to wrestle,” Coach Greenwood said. “[In the pre-season] we had a scrimmage and those guys really really showed out. I mean they looked great, it was awesome.” 

Caleb Greenwood agrees. 

“They got some spirit, and I think they’re gonna get some wins this year,” he said.

While meets are exciting, practices  are very intense for the wrestlers. They start by warming up and drilling before sparring on the mats. 

Coach Greenwood feels that high standards are key to a successful program. 

“I believe we [rise or fall by] our standards,” he said. “I set the standards very high very early… and let them know they are part of a legacy.”

The captains, along with the rest of the team, are very passionate about this culture and mindset. 

“We work hard, and the energy on the team is very positive,” Condor said. “Everybody tries to make it to states so we can have a chance to go to state duals.”

Although practices can be tough, the team has a lot of fun together as they bond over shared suffering, bowling on the weekends and playing dodgeball before practices.

The team is very close and are always pushing each other to succeed. 

“When we have tournaments with the little kids, you’ll see high school kids helping the little kids,” said Coach Greenwood. “And when we’re in practice, say you got a kid who’s learning the technique or messing up the technique, teammates jump in very quickly to help correct.”

As for the main goal of the wrestling season, all of the wrestlers are working hard and making an effort to “go all the way to states and win,” said Condor.

Caleb Greenwood, who placed eighth in the state tournament last season, feels confident in himself and the team this year.

“I feel like we’re going to have a good showing at the sectional tournament, for a couple of us to make it to districts and hopefully states too,” he said. “I feel like we can do that as a team.”

Coach Greenwood agrees. 

“Those guys are ready to rock and roll,” he said. “They are really competitive, and I’m excited to see them as we get close to the postseason.”

Individually, Caleb Greenwood is shooting for a state title.

“[It is my] number one goal right now,” he said.

Besides that, he is excited to lead the team this season.

“I’m excited to be around my team, have some underclassmen look up to me and show them the way of how I made it to states,” he said.