As he climbs the stairs out of the boys’ locker room after his first official practice, senior Ryan Lindsley reflects on what direction he wants his final wrestling season practices to go. “Our practices start out with lifting weights for about half an hour. Then we stretch, have announcements, drilling, live wrestling, and conditioning. Every practice is something different, so it doesn't get old throughout the season,” said Lindsley, a varsity wrestler at Campbellsport High School. “Wrestling is rough and takes a lot of mental toughness.”
With winter sports having started on November 1st, many students (Lindsley included) are setting goals, getting psyched up for practice, and getting their head into “game mode.” All of the various teams throughout the school are getting down to business and stepping up the intensity of their practices. “In the off season [the wrestling practices] are light, but during season they do get pretty intense,” admitted James Hawley, another excited senior varsity wrestler for CHS.

And practice intensity isn’t the only thing Lindsley and Hawley agree on about wrestling. They both have very specific goals set in mind for themselves and/or their team. “I expect to go down to state and place very high; even as high as a state champion. And same for the team,” said Hawley. “I also want to take team state.”

Lindsley’s goals are not as exact as Hawley’s, but they carry the same tone. “I think we are going to go very far this year as a team. The thing is, we have a lot of depth, and a lot of solid, good wrestlers,” said Lindsley determinedly. “We all work very hard and have a lot of pride with Coach [Peterson] leading us to every match.”

The wrestling team’s dedication, practices, and goals, however, do not differ much from other sports offered at Campbellsport High School. Katie Rodenkirch, a varsity captain on the Campbellsport Dance Team, believes that her team puts forth just as much dedication and effort as other teams. “We’ve been practicing all throughout the summer and fall, but winter is our official season. When the winter season starts, we practice every day for two hours, and have competitions almost every weekend from the end of November until the middle of February,” explained Rodenkirch. “Our practices are intense, painful, hilarious, and fun....sometimes,” explained Elaina Stukenberg, another captain on the varsity dance team. She went on to detail that this year, all seniors have the same goal- to make their team have the best year that they can possibly have. Stukenberg also smilingly explained the unique dance season: “The start of our season was freshman year. Technically, dance season doesn't end, so therefore there is no beginning.”
Athletes at this school are in sports for many different reasons. “I play basketball,” Jordan Rowe, a varsity player on the boys’ basketball team, proudly stated. “I only play to win: nothing else!” The enthusiasm Rowe displays when talking about his sport only hints at his excitement for the upcoming season. Other athletes can’t wait for the fun times to come, either. “I’ve been looking forward to this since the day I was born! It's time to light this candle!” exclaimed Lindsley. “For us seniors we have nothing to lose; it's our last year!”
Hawley takes a more laid back approach when thinking about his anticipation for the upcoming season. “I have been looking forward to this since I was young and watching the high school guys wrestle at the home meets,” he admitted.
With their winter season starting up strong, excited Campbellsport athletes are sure to have a good year and, hopefully, a winning one.