Houseman, Holt have state title dreams

Thu, Mar 6, 2008    to del.icio.us

It's been six long years since Grand Haven last had an individual win a state championship in wrestling. That wrestler was John Cox at 152 pounds, who went onto have a stellar collegiate wrestling career at the Naval Academy.

If all goes as planned, by Saturday evening the Buccaneers could have at least two more joining Cox on that prestigious list – Seth Holt at 189 pounds, and John Houseman at 135.

"John and I talk about that everyday," Holt said Tuesday. "Even today in fifth hour (at school) that's all we talked about.

"I'd like to see that plaque right up here," Holt added with a smile, pointing to a spot on the wall where he'd like to be recognized as a champion.

If the Division 1 finals at the Palace of Auburn Hills plays out like the rest of the season, Holt's request could be taken care of. He's entering the finals with a stellar 44-1 record, with his only setback occurring against an opponent from South Haven.

"I wrestled really bad against the kid," Holt recalled. "I got down seven and then finally decided to turn it on and got it down to 9-6, but ran out of time."

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While Holt's physical nature often wears down his opponent, Grand Haven coach James Richardson is quick to point out that he's also one of the more fundamentally sound wrestlers on the squad.

Tonight, Holt opens as a heavy favorite against Livonia Stevenson's Emanuel Onwuemene. Holt placed third at 189 pounds a year ago at state, an experience he believes will only help him in his second go-around.

"He didn't wrestle well in one match at the state tournament," Richardson said. "Other than that, he had a great tournament."

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"It's so different actually being apart of everything," Holt added. "Just being there and going through all the weigh-ins and see everything through the tunnel. There's just so much behind the scenes that you don't realize beforehand."

For Houseman, it's a been there, seen-it-all scenario. With this being his fourth state finals as a Buccaneer, the only thing left for him to accomplish is to win a title. He came oh-so-close last season, but fell in the finals to Rockford standout Jeff Shutich. A year before that, he placed third. He also took the runner-up spot as a freshman.

"It feels the same as any other year, but it just seems crazy that it's almost all over," Houseman said, who enters the finals with a flawless 33-0 record — a goal he said he set to achieve before the season.

A state title for Houseman starts with a first-round matchup against Livonia Churchwell's Andrew Murray. If Houseman is able to accomplish his goal, he said he'd be overwhelmed.

"It would be a great pay off for all the hard work I've put in," he said. "It would mean that I've helped our program reach another level, and I'd represent my coach and my dad well, which would make them feel good."

Dan Sabin will be making his third finals appearance, but his first at Division 1 and his first for the Buccaneers. He transferred this year from Kent City because of family reasons, but hasn't skipped a beat, turning in a 29-1 record. Like Holt and Houseman, Sabin is a first-round No. 1 seed, facing Flushing's Jamie Revord.

In his two previous state meets with the Eagles, Sabin has finished third as a sophomore and fifth as a junior.

"I'm nervous as always, but I know how to use it," Sabin said, who competes at 125 pounds.

Unlike his three counterparts, 160-pound junior Chris Lucas doesn't feel any pressure-packed expectations. At the regional round at East Kentwood, Lucas said he was relieved just to get past the "blood round" — the cut-off between making the finals or not. He ended third overall, securing his first berth to state, where he hopes to place in the top five.

"There's a lot less pressure," Lucas said. "I have nothing to lose."

Lucas has overcome a lot of adversity this season, and much of it has occurred off the mat. Lucas was one of a pair of Bucs' wrestlers that was misdiagnosed with MRSA, a staph infection that can be spread by skin-to-skin contact.

"I was out of school for two weeks and during that time, the rumors were flying," Lucas said. "I remember one of my friends called me and asked me if I had scarlet fever. It was ridiculous.

"Although it turned out to be nothing, going through the whole ordeal was pretty scary because we weren't sure what could happen."

It took awhile for Lucas to get back into the swing of things after being cleared medically, but eventually became one of Grand Haven's most impressive wrestlers in the closing stretch of the season.

Lucas (36-13 overall) enters the first round against Flint Southwestern's Quentin Lefear.