LEXINGTON, Ohio — The Minutemen have been down this road before. Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary has not.
Lexington coach Brent Rastetter hopes that experience will pay off at the Ohio High School Athletic Association team state tournament Saturday at Ohio State’s St. John Arena.
The Minutemen earned their third straight trip to the state duals with regional wins over River Valley (46-22) and Miami Trace (44-25) last week.
Eight wrestlers in Lexington’s lineup competed in the state duals last year. The Minutemen qualified as the No. 5 seed and lost to No. 4 Toledo Central Catholic 37-27 in the quarterfinals for a second straight year.
“They’ve been here and they’ve done this,” Rastetter said. “They’ve all been a part of that and I think it definitely helps.”
The Minutemen won their eighth consecutive Ohio Cardinal Conference title last weekend. Lex produced seven conference champs, including four-time OCC winners Brandon Leynaud and Bailey Faust and three-time champ Drew Kasper, who returned to the mat two weeks after knee surgery. Senior Michael Kahoun won a conference title after battling injuries throughout the season and his career.
“We have been banged up because the competition that we’ve had has been extremely tough this year,” Rastetter said. “We’ve had to battle through that. It’s all part of the learning experience.”
Kasper’s doctor recommended he not wrestle in the OCC tournament. He didn’t take a shot during the event because he didn’t want his injured left leg to hit the mat.
“I feel I should be able to start shooting (Saturday),” Kasper said. “It’s hard to defend if they shoot a single leg.”
SVSM is making its maiden voyage to the state duals. The Irish beat two-time qualifier Perry 41-25 in the regional final to punch their ticket to Columbus. SVSM is led by individual state tournament qualifiers Garrett Carter, who finished seventh at 132 pounds last year, and Dre’k Brumley (eighth at 220).
Saturday’s outcome could hinge on the performance of Lexington’s unheralded wrestlers.
“It gives a lot of kids who may not be contenders for the individual state tournament at the end of the season the chance to really say they contributed with something,” Rastetter said. “It’s a fun experience.”
Lex is one of four Division II programs to advance to the state duals all three years the OHSAA has sponsored the event. Toledo Central Catholic, Claymont and St. Paris Graham all qualified for a third year as well.
A Lex win over SVSM would set up a match-up against powerhouse Graham, the two-time state defending duals champ.
“This is a neat thing, wrestling at St. John Arena in the state duals,” Rastetter said. “Their goal is to be able to win that first one and get a shot at Graham in the second round. We’ll work all week toward that and let it rip when we get down there.”
