By Kary Booher (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
It was unlikely that any of his wrestlers doubted how much he cared for them, but Camdenton High School coach Grant Leighty affirmed his thoughts after last season.
You see, Leighty took pen to paper – well, more like fingers to computer keyboard – and wrote a long thank you letter that was published in the local paper after last season.
He is still pumped up after four guys advanced to the state tournament just a year after an injury-plagued season.
“(Last season) was a year that I felt our program made significant strides back to where it was in the past,” Leighty said. “We still have a lot of work to do, but I feel we are moving in the right direction.”
Roster
Leighty has coached for 32 years overall, including the past 15 in Camdenton either coaching middle school or high school. He has led the varsity since 2017.
A year ago, he told O-Zone that, “I think we are going to surprise some people.”
That led to four state qualifiers, and now look: he has nine returning to the roster this year. That’s out of 40 on the overall roster.
The projected lineup could see freshmen Miguel McCreery and Clayton Griffin at 106 pounds, sophomore Derrick Lowe at 113, juniors Mason Long and Reshon Baumgartner at 120, junior Drake Schiefelbein and sophomore Adrian De La Cruz at 126, juniors Finnegan McNitt and Jesus Ortiz at 132, junior Levi Hughes at 138, and senior Noah Sousley and sophomore Zach Willis at 144.
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Look for junior Brady Mills at 150, sophomores Gunnar Rhodes and Timothy Harllow at 157, seniors John Holt and Adrian Reinhart at 165, senior Payton Hinton at 175, senior Nathaniel Beeson and Keenan Virtue at 190, and seniors Nathan West (215) and Jeshua Balderez (285).
Schiefelbein, Long, McNitt, Hughes, Mills, Rhoads, Holt, Hinton and Beeson are all returning starters.
McNitt and Holt were state qualifiers.
“I feel we have several wrestlers that will have a significant impact on the program this year,” Leighty said. “Finnegan McNitt and John Holt are returning state qualifiers that won matches at Columbia last year.
“Nathaniel Beeson had an outstanding season last year, but came up just short qualifying in a very contested weight bracket at districts. Earlier in the season, he had several quality wins, one being over the eventual state runner up from Warrenton. I’m expecting big things for Nathaniel this year.”
Breakout wrestlers?
Leighty pointed out Schielfelbein, Long, Adrian De La Cruz, Hughes, Sousley, Rhoads, and Hinton pique his interest in the sense that they seem ready to apply lessons learned from last year.
“There are several wrestlers that were underclassmen last year that I feel will have breakout season this year,” Leighty said.
Additionally, several experienced wrestlers give him reason for optimism. They are Lowe, Reinhart, West and Baldarez.
“We are fortunate to have several wrestlers back in the program that have been involved in the past,” Leighty said.”
Plus …
“We have an energetic group of freshmen that are coming in and a great group of upperclassmen to lead them,” Leighty said. “I think this will be a great combination for the program.”
Looking ahead
Leighty just wants them to keep competing.
“I try to not focus on the wins and losses too much, just the progression of our technique over the course of the season, so we will be where we need to be come February,” Leighty said. “Our motto is, ‘Fortis Consummare.’ The Lakers’ motto is Latin, translated literally as ‘Finish Strong.’”
