Five wrestlers head to championships

And then there were five.

After what IU Coach Duane Goldman said was a pleasing performance at the Big Ten Championships, the five starters who have qualified for the upcoming NCAA Wrestling Championships have been hard at work. 

The five who will be representing IU in Des Moines, Iowa, from March 21-23 include sophomores Taylor Walsh, Joe Duca and Luke Sheridan and juniors Ryan LeBlanc and Adam Chalfant.

LeBlanc, Duca and Chalfant all earned automatic bids into the tournament, while Walsh and Sheridan earned wildcard selections. 

Goldman noted these five were the ones he expected to make it to the NCAA Championships.

As the time nears for the five to take the mat for the last time this season, Goldman said the focus is solely on the individual and doing everything possible to make sure each wrestler is given the best chance possible.

“At this point, it’s just focusing really on each guy,” Goldman said. “In practice, it’s just the guys that are going to Nationals, and we don’t let a lot of the other guys out on the mat. We don’t want guys running into each other and risking injury, and it’s really about being healthy and being positive.”

As in every match, be it the NCAAs or a regular season match, the positive mental attitude is key for Goldman and his wrestlers.

Entering the NCAAs, Goldman said each wrestler will have his work cut out for him right off the bat.

“They’re all going to meet up with some pretty tough competition fairly early, so hopefully they can do well and do better than that what the predictors say,” Goldman said. “It’s a national tournament, so anything can happen.”

Because the five IU wrestlers will be up against other wrestlers from all over the country, Goldman said they need to be on top of their game from the get-go.

Yhey will be faced with tough competition early on in the tournament, such as Walsh’s first match against No. 3 seed Joseph Napoli from Lehigh.

The nature of the tournament does not allow any leeway. It is only a matter of time before each wrestler is faced with a match that could be his last of the season.

With the pressure of competing in the biggest tournament in college wrestling riding on each wrestler, Goldman said he and his staff have been working with each guy to build them up.

“As long as they feel good physically, we can handle the mental part of building them up,” Goldman said. “As long as they are feeling good, they are going to go there feeling ready to do their best.”

Each of the five wrestlers has something to bring to the table. Three out of the five have national rankings, and Sheridan is close behind them with a position on the Coaches Panel Rankings. 

With these confidence boosts, Goldman said he believes the five will not be afraid going into the tournament, ready to take care of business.

“They just need to get out there, feel as good as they can and let it fly,” Goldman said.