Recently, I had a talk with Senior Thomas White.  I questioned him on the new Wrestling team and his thoughts about the season as a whole.  Following is my interview:

Cowell:  When and where were regionals?

White: Regionals are this Saturday February 3rd, at Althoff Catholic High School.

Cowell: How do you advance to the next round and where is it?

White: To advance to the next round you have to place in the top three of your weight class. There are about 8-10 teams so you will need to win a couple matches to have a chance.

Cowell: Is there any extra pressure on the wrestlers with this being the first year of wrestling?

White: No pressure, just having fun out there. I think the teams expected us to be not so good as we are just starting a program up, but we have found success. The pressure should really be on the other teams to try to compete with Red Bud because we work hard and get after it in matches, even though we have wrestled for only a few months. Eddie Miller, who is wrestling our 113 spot, does a great job and will have a chance to advance. Nate Gonzalez, 132 spot, has improved a lot since joining and is starting to get dangerous out there. Nate Bleier, 170 spot, always works hard and gives it his all. Dave Bartholomy, 182 spot, gives it his best and always works hard in practice to get better. Pierce Heizer, 220 spot, always gets after it from the whistle and leaves it all on the mat. These guys are awesome to have on the team and they deserve credit for their hard work. Everyone is starting to find success on the mat and I would love to see one or two guys advance to Sectionals. Unfortunately for Nate B. and I, we will be done after this year as we are seniors; for the other wrestlers, they will be a force to be reckoned with if they continue to work hard.

Cowell: How is Mr. Pipher doing as a coach as a whole in his first year as coach?

White: Coach has been incredible. Obviously I have never had a wrestling coach before ,but I have had many coaches in various sports and he is one of the best I have had. He cares about what we are doing to get better and pushes us to the maximum we can give. We also have John Brittingham as an assistant who does a great job too. These coaches are special because they really care about their wrestlers and I’m proud for them to be my coaches. Our team is doing very well and I give all the credit to them.

Cowell: Will there be a home wrestling meet this season?

White: Unfortunately I would say not, being our first year it is hard to schedule matches with teams who have a set schedule from year to year. Look next year for a couple home matches.

Cowell: Personally, do you think your specific weight class will affect your chances to making it to the next round?

White: Personally I am in the 160 weight class. In my opinion I think it is the toughest weight class in our regional. Althoff’s 160 is a state champion, Metro East Lutheran has a tough 160 as well as East Alton Wood River. I feel with my skills I can compete with anyone who is put out there in front of me. But at the end of the day, I don’t worry about that; I only worry about getting my hand raised in victory at the end of the match. There are opponents in every weight class who are always bringing it, we have seen all the teams in our regionals except for maybe 3-4 so we know what has to be done to succeed. I am proud to be one of Red Bud’s wrestlers and no matter what happens Saturday, I feel like a winner anyways.