Underclassmen get valuable mat experience for Tigers
The Ephrata underclassmen, whose freshmen make up more than half of the team’s eligible roster, have been gaining valuable mat time for the team.
IAN BIVONA/COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD
EPHRATA – With a roster full of underclassmen and varsity wrestlers with injuries, the younger Ephrata wrestlers have stepped into new roles as of late.
“I feel like the kids are motivated, the kids are excited and they bring that same attention, same energy every day,” Ephrata Boys Wrestling Head Coach Austin Parker said. “They see the progress they’re making, even though they still may lose sometimes, they come back and want to keep working. They keep working hard, and you can see it in the way they fight in a match.”
Over half of Ephrata’s 35 eligible wrestlers are freshmen, and the younger wrestlers now get valuable experience on the mat by filling in for injured teammates.
“We’ve had some injures that we’ve had to overcome and the freshmen, like always, have stepped up,” Parker said. “We have one or two sophomores that have had to fill varsity spots, and even though we may lose in those weight classes, the kids go out there and just fight.”
The grit and determination of the Ephrata underclassmen have been noticed by competitors, Parker said.
“I’ve had kids from other teams come up and be like ‘Your kid’s strong,’ and (I say) ‘Well, he’s only a freshman.’ I tell them all the time, ‘Hey, take a loss as an opportunity to learn something going forward.’ It’s awesome how they come back and they want to learn.”
One of the young wrestlers that Parker made note of was freshman Micah Sandberg, who won his first career match on Thursday night in a dual against East Valley.
“Not only did (Sandberg) pin, he pinned him the first time – the crowd went wild – and the refs call it a pin, and all of a sudden the coach from East Valley started walking on the mat,” Parker said. “I’m like, ‘What happened?’”
Sandberg, who was out-weighed by East Valley’s Kasyn Winthrow by “about 60 pounds” according to Parker, was unphased by a referee calling a premature pin and went back on the mat to earn his first win.
“What they did was they had to redo the pin, with the (East Valley wrestler) on bottom and Micah on top, but Micah went out there, turned the guy on his back, and officially got a pin,” Parker said. “In my eyes, he pinned the kid twice last night.”
Sandberg earned most outstanding wrestler and most inspirational awards from Thursday’s dual.
Ian Bivona may be reached at ibivona@columbiabasinherald.com.