LEXINGTON — The prognosis was bleak and Drew Kasper knew it.
The pain in his left knee prevented Kasper from fully straightening his leg and as he waited in the doctor’s office, Lexington’s 182-pounder expected the worst.
“When my doctor first looked at my knee and said, ‘It’s not good news,’ I thought my season was over,” said Kasper, the Richland Bank Athlete of the Week.
Two weeks after having surgery to remove part of his injured meniscus, Kasper won his third Ohio Cardinal Conference championship. A week later, he helped the Minutemen advance to the Ohio High School Athletic Association team tournament semifinals.
Kasper was one of three Lex wrestlers to win both matches at the state duals over the weekend. He pinned Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary’s Chris Consillio in Lexington’s dramatic 36-29 win in the quarterfinals and earned a 9-4 decision over St. Paris Graham’s Hayden Bronne in the Minutemen’s 58-15 loss in the semifinals.
Lexington rallied from a 29-18 deficit in its quarterfinal win over SVSM. Kasper jump-started the comeback with the first of four straight victories to close out the match. Fellow seniors Ronald Kahoun (195), Bailey Faust (220) and Nate Temple followed suit. Faust’s victory was the most dramatic as he moved up from 195 to wrestle two-time state medalist Dre’k Brumley. The second ranked 220-pounder in the state, Brumley nearly pinned Faust before he got off his back and battled back for a 5-3 victory.
Faust’s win gave the Minutemen a 30-29 lead. Temple followed with a pin to send Lex to the quarterfinals for the first time in three years.
“My heart was racing. I could feel it pounding everywhere on my body,” Kasper said of watching Faust. “I knew that match was going to decide it.”
The individual tournament begins Feb. 28. Kasper qualified for state last winter, but another extended postseason run didn’t seem likely last month.
“The doctor said, ‘I recommend you not (wrestle),’ and the therapist said, ‘Do what you can do,’ ” Kasper said after winning his OCC title. “I didn’t know what I’d be able to do, but I helped the team.”
Lex coach Brent Rastetter was impressed by his senior’s grit.
“Two weeks and a day after having knee surgery he wins a conference title,” Rastetter said after the OCC meet. “I’d say that is pretty phenomenal.”
