Wrestling coach Mr. Wayne Catan expects state runner-up David Sweetman ’23 and Ty Trickle ’24 to win state championships this year.
“All the work they’ve put in in all of these years,” Catan said, “this is the year that it’s gonna pay off. I don’t think anybody’s going to stop these guys.”
“I think that’s a very accurate assessment, if I’m going to be honest,” Trickle said.
Sweetman competes in the heavyweight division – between 221 and 285 pounds. Trickle competes in the 138 pound division.
The team’s two stars have both been wrestling since childhood.
“They started in the youth programs around the valley,” Catan said. “They just have a love for the sport.”
Sweetman attributes his wrestling prowess to plain experience.
“You want to do more than just practice at school,” Sweetman said. “Do club. Get a lot of different perspectives. Get with a lot of different coaches, find out what works for you, and then just practice what you’re good at.”
“I’m gonna try this year to actually wrestle matches,” Sweetman said, looking to change his approach this season. “Last year, I would kinda just pin the guy and then leave because that’s easier and I don’t want to wrestle a full match, but I think this year I’ll actually wrestle my matches.”
Sweetman hopes to show recruiters that he has the requisite skill, not just strength, to compete in college wrestling.
Trickle said he is thinking of wrestling in college.
‘I’ve taken a couple of visits to Coast Guard Academy and Wesleyan,” Trickle said “They’re both smaller D-3 schools, but they’re great academic schools, which is also kind of what I’m looking for.”
As the team’s two most talented members, Sweetman and Trickle are tasked with helping their teammates improve.
“We have a good culture on the team, and it’s based on love,” Catan said. “Ty and David don’t take advantage of that. They’re not gonna pin a guy in ten seconds. They’ll work with the kid, and they’ll show their Brophy teammates what they’re doing wrong and how they can improve.”
The Brophy Wrestling season continues at Horizon High School at the 3rd Annual Husky Invite on Saturday, Dec. 10.
