Two wrestlers win state
Individuals compete, earn prestigious titles of state champion in their weight divisions
Maneuvering a cross face, senior Alex Jones gains wrist control over his opponent at a home meet earlier this season. Jones won the 285-pound state championship on March 1.
March 13, 2014
Two Lions claimed individual state championships at the state wrestling meet in Wichita, leading to the team to a 10th-place finish.
Sophomore Alan Clothier won the 182-pound state championship. Senior Alex Jones claimed the title for the 285-pound weight class. Below, they answer questions about the season.
Sophomore Alan Clothier
Q: Did you expect to win?
A: I knew the match was going to be hard, but I just went out there and wrestled.
Q: Do you have a strategy to win?
A: I don’t know. I was really nervous, so I just went out there and wrestled like I never had wrestled. I’ve been wrestling for the past year or so.
Q: What is it about wrestling that drives you to the sport?
A: If I lose it’s on me, and not on anyone else. I can’t go and blame somebody else for it. Losing, it’s on myself. I can blame myself and work harder, so I can determine how good I am or how poorly I’m going to do that year.
Q: Do you think of Alex [Jones] as “Yo-Yo”?
A: He’s great at it. It’s fun to watch. He goes to a lot of tournaments and people just stare at him because does yo-yo, and it’s pretty funny.
Q: What was your favorite moment from wrestling?
A: Getting my hand raised for winning the state championship was pretty amazing.
Senior Alex Jones
Q: What was your favorite moment?
A: My favorite moment was making that kid cry.
Q: What is it about wrestling that drives you to the sport?
A: Having friends on the wrestling team is the best part.
Q: Do you have a technique to intimidate opponents?
A: I swung [a yo-yo] above my head and around my legs, then jumped over it. It threw [my opponent] for a loop. He didn’t know what to say. He had a blank expression on his face.
Q: What do you think of your nickname “yo-yo?”
A: It was my name for a couple of years. No one knew my first name. Everyone called me yo-yo. It’s an easy name to remember.
Q: How did you feel when you won?
A: I was ecstatic. I did a cartwheel as everyone knows. It was an unbelievable moment. It was something I just can’t forget.
Q: Was that the best moment from your wrestling experience?
A: Winning is a rush, but winning state when you’re not even ranked that’s just something that everybody recognizes.
