By Carl Holcomb
Moorefield Examiner
“Winning is the science of being totally prepared.” – George Allen
“Our attitude is the primary force that will determine whether we succeed or fail.” – John C. Maxwell
Success comes from a foundation of disciplined preparation with a positive attitude as proven by five century mark wins and an overall domination by Keyser at the Viking Smash in Petersburg.
The Golden Tornado won the Viking Smash Championship among a field of 11 teams with a myriad of success having Top-3 place winners in 14-out-of-15 classes including five titles.
Knowing how to guide the Golden Tornado to triumph comes through a phenomenal tenure by head coach Colin Rotruck, who collected 450 career victories during the Viking Smash title run.
“Extremely proud of the hard work and dedication that our wrestlers have shown this far. We are working hard toward our goals as a team and the Viking Smash was a good test for our team at this point in the season,” Keyser Wrestling coach Colin Rotruck commented.
“I have been extremely blessed to work with a number of great assistant coaches and great wrestlers which has made my success as a head coach easier. The support of my wife and family has been an extremely integral part of my success as well. I am blessed to be a part of the tradition of Keyser Wrestling.”
The 100-win career milestone was obtained by five wrestlers at the Viking Smash.
Petersburg’s Lukas Wolford earned his 100th career win en route to becoming the Viking Smash Most Outstanding Wrestler in his final season.
Wolford was joined on the century mark plateau by Vikings teammate Alex Halterman.
Mineral County hit the century mark four times at the Viking Smash which included both wins and pins.
Keyser’s Ross Hicks garnered 100 career wins and teammate Owen Rotruck notched 100 career pins.
Frankfort duo of Peyton Brittingham and Gavin Cornell collected 100 career victories.
Gold medals aren’t really made of gold. They’re made of sweat, determination, and a hard-to-find alloy called guts.” – Dan Gable.
The Viking Smash had a plethora of state ranked talent with 11 boys and 10 girls battling one the mats.
East Hardy Boys Wrestling featured one state ranked grappler Aaron Barb, who is seventh place in the 106 class.
East Hardy had a depleted lineup without the girls another issues, but showed heart and determination.
The Cougars would have added three more girls to the state ranking total if they had been participating: Morganne Miller, Gracie Heishman and Jaedyn Funk.
East Hardy is preparing for the Belle of the Brawl in Baker featuring the great skills of girls wrestling in the Mountain State and beyond.
Moorefield Girls Wrestling brought four state ranked members to the Viking Smash: Lee-Anne Coon 100 8th place, Annie Barr 126 6th place, Grace Simmons 132 9th place, and Kailynn Penkov 185 8th place.
The girls picked up numerous wins, but failed to place competing with the boys as there was no separate girls division.
Moorefield Wrestling went undefeated on the first day at 5-0 and finished 7-3 overall for fourth place at the Viking Smash.
The Yellow Jackets victories on the opening day of the Viking Smash came against the X-Team consisting primariyly of Keyser JV squad 59-22, edged Petersburg 42-41, beat East Hardy 65-18 with pins by Jhon Paul over Carter Myers, Nathan Crites over Hunter Nelson and William Atkins over Connor Henderson; defeated Pendleton County 70-12 and Elkins.
Moorefield Boys Wrestling had two grapplers become place winners as Jhon Paul was the runner-up in the 138 class and Javi Acosta placed third in the 132 class.
“Great effort by the Moorefield wrestling team this weekend at the Viking Smash: 7 wins and 3 losses on the weekend, finishing 4th out of 11 teams. Big shout out to Jhon Paul on a 2nd place finish and Javi Acosta on finishing 3rd,” Moorefield Wrestling coach Larry Schoonover noted.
East Hardy Wrestling’s Aaron Barb was the runner-up in the 106 division with a 9-1 Viking Smash record creating 30 wins on the year.
Barb has shown great improvement having placed third last year at the Viking Smash.
“You must show no mercy… nor have any belief whatsoever in how others judge you…for your greatness will silence them all.” – The Ultimate Warrior
East Hardy Wrestling lost all team matches at the Viking Smash, but still kept focus on the individual battles including Nick Roomsburg’s pin against Moorefield’s Blake Robinette.
“A tie is what you get after ice cubes have wrestled with hot water.” – Mokokoma
Winning matters, but learning from losses brings more knowledge and the Viking Smash provided a lot of wisdom.
