By Kary Booher (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Months after being understandably in tears, Marshfield High School wrestling coach Matt Holt showed his team how to turn a tragedy into a positive.
With his heart heavy on the memory of his late mother, Holt organized a successful fundraiser that hauled in $3,000 for PinCancer.org on Thursday night, when the Blue Jays scored a sweep of Nevada and Springfield Catholic at Marshfield High School.
Marshfield and Nevada, Holt’s alma mater, wore special Pin Cancer singlets on a night when the Blue Jays beat Nevada 58-21 and topped Catholic 77-6.
That said, the score seemed unimportant in the big picture. Holt’s biggest fan, his mom Trudy Allmer, passed away in July after battling brain cancer.
To honor her memory, Holt organized the dual, going so far as to work with Pin Cancer on the singlets.
“I had bought a Pin Cancer shirt after she got sick and she loved when I would wear it in to the hospital to see her,” Holt said. “I knew that since we had Nevada, the school where I graduated from, I needed to do something.”
Thursday’s victories came in what’s been a successful time for Marshfield wrestling overall. The varsity beat state-ranked Rolla 42-21 on Tuesday as the Jays won 10 of 14 matches.
Returning varsity state medalists Travin Plemmons and Clay Wilson continue leading the team, with Jordon Irwin back on track after suffering an early season injury.
This as Holt nears the end of his fifth year in Marshfield, where he also leads Marshfield Youth Wrestling, which has seen participation numbers increase every year.
“The kids wrestled tough tonight,” Holt said. “I could not be more proud of our effort right now.”
