With the wrestling season slated to start in November, no coaches are set to lead the teams as of late August.
Past head and assistant coaches are no longer teaching at MHS this school year, leaving the administration and wrestling athletes to find new coaches to continue the program.
Jacob Barton, junior, and his family have been taking initiative to help find coaches. Having little luck securing anyone for the positions, Barton’s father, Ben Barton, and grandfather, Tom Smith, have offered to step up and help coach the team if no other coaches can be found.
“My grandpa was a college wrestler and a coach for college wrestling,” Jacob said. “He got inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame. My dad also wrestled in high school under my grandpa.”
Barton said wrestling is important to his family because it teaches valuable lessons.
“It’s a way of discipline and a way we can always work hard and achieve something every single day,” Barton said. “For me, there’s nothing harder than what I do for wrestling, so that’s why I love it.”
Aiden Strobel, senior, has been wrestling since his freshman year. He said he is worried he won’t get to give proper goodbye to the program if not enough coaches are hired.
“I really want to do my senior night,” Strobel said.
Strobel said wrestlers are desperate to find a way to continue the sport.
“Some kids want to go to Lafayette and practice with them, but I don’t know if that’d be possible,” Strobel said.
Ryah Wurman, junior, is also concerned for her future as a wrestler.
“It’s kind of nerve racking,” Wurman said. “I’ve only been wrestling for two years, but last year I made it to State and I’ve been working really hard.”
Wurman said she is willing to take drastic measures to participate in a wrestling program.
“If we don’t have any coaches and the team gets cut, then I might switch schools to go wrestle at another school,” Wurman said.
There may be hope for the wrestling program, however.
Lisa Nieder, administrative assistant in the Activities Office, said that hope was found for the position after social media attention.
“Because we’ve had the job posted for a really long time, and we didn’t get applications, some teachers posted it on Facebook,” Nieder said. “It kind of went viral.”
The post garnered a number of potential candidates with experience in coaching.
“That’s all going through the interview processes right now, and we hope to be able to announce those coaches in September,” Nieder said.
