D3 Preview: Spoilers Look to Advance
February 21, 2019
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Dundee and Richmond have met in seven of the last nine Division 3 Wrestling Finals, and it’s hardly a shock they are the top-seeded teams heading into this weekend at Kalamazoo’s Wings Event Center.
But there are potential spoilers waiting. Remus Chippewa Hills is only three seasons removed from a title match appearance, and Whitehall brings 10 Individual Finals qualifiers and a pair of coaches with championship experience as it looks to make a move toward the top.
Below is a look at all eight teams competing in Division 3, listed by seed. Quarterfinal matches begin at 4:30 p.m. Friday, with Semifinals at noon Saturday and the championship match that afternoon at 3:45 p.m. All matches this weekend will be viewable live on a subscription basis on MHSAA.tv. For Friday’s schedule and results throughout, check the MHSAA Wrestling page.
#1 Richmond
Record/rank: 24-2, No. 2
League finish: First in Blue Water Area Conference
Co-coaches: Brandon Day, 15th season (452-95); Preston Treend, third season (70-9)
Championship history: Eight MHSAA championships (most recent 2017), six runner-up finishes.
Individual Finals qualifiers: 103 Hunter Keller (22-4) soph., 112 Daniel McNichol (27-8) sr., 112 JD Gross (24-10) jr., 125 Austin Kilburn (22-6) jr., 130 Hunter Seguin (23-14) sr., 140 Hayden Bastian (26-5) sr., 145 Ethan Wyatt (16-11) sr., 171 Wesley Peters (30-11) fr., 215 Luke Davis (37-5) jr., 285 Dan McKiernan (29-14) soph.
Outlook: After winning the Division 3 Final in 2017 by tie-breaker criteria over Dundee, Richmond fell in the 2018 Final to Dundee 40-15. Among those back for possibly more are returning Finals placers McNichol, Bastian and junior Josh Barton. McNichol and Bastian are two of just four senior starters, but 13 starters and 14 Blue Devils total have at least 20 wins this winter. They once again eliminated No. 5 Algonac on the way to Kalamazoo.
#2 Dundee
Record/rank: 15-5, No. 1
League finish: First in Lenawee County Athletic Association
Coach: Tim Roberts, 20th season (512-74-1)
Championship history: Ten MHSAA championships (most recent 2018), seven runner-up finishes.
Individual Finals qualifiers: 103 Casey Swiderski (39-2) fr., 112. Austin Fietz (32-9) soph., 135 Jonathon White (32-9) sr., 135 Tyler Swiderski (22-10) soph., 140 Christian Killion (38-5) jr., 145. Grant Ott (32-11) sr., 154. Stoney Buell (38-8) soph., 171 Jaxon Guinn (16-6) jr.
Outlook: Dundee is wrestling for its fifth Division 3 championship over the last seven seasons, with a roster that impressively has just three seniors and five juniors – and five upperclassmen expected to start. But Buell is a reigning individual champion and Killion and Tyler Swiderski were Finals runners-up a year ago, while Fietz, White, Guinn and senior Cal McAvoy also were placers.
#3 Whitehall
Record/rank: 28-2, No. 3
League finish: First in West Michigan Conference
Co-coaches: Justin and Collin Zeerip, first seasons (28-2)
Championship history: Class C runner-up 1984.
Individual Finals qualifiers: 103 Aidan Weiler (33-9) fr., 125 Max Brown (38-4) fr., 135 Jacob Haynes (14-12) soph., 140 Marco Moore (21-18) soph., 145 Kyler Honore (30-12) jr., 152 Ira Jenkins (34-6) fr., 160 Trenton Blanchard (34-6) sr., 189 Kayleb Venema (40-2) jr., 215 Allen Powers (37-4) sr., 215 Jarrean Sargeant (34-10) jr.
Outlook: Under the Hesperia champion Zeerip brothers, Whitehall is making its fourth straight Quarterfinal appearance and move up a seed this season after reaching the Semifinals a year ago. With just two seniors on the roster, and five freshman starters, this is another team with an exciting future to go with the present. Blanchard, Venema and Powers were Finals placers a year ago.
#4 Remus Chippewa Hills
Record/rank: 27-1, No. 4
League finish: First in Central State Activities Association Gold
Coach: Kevin Edwards, first season (27-1)
Championship history: Division 3 runner-up 2016.
Individual Finals qualifiers: 112 Taylor Gibson (35-11) jr., 112 Daylin Wittig (30-6) soph., 119 Gavin Miller (22-15) soph., 125 Carson Hayes (35-9) soph., 135 Bray Haynes (36-9) sr., 140 Mason Hayes (40-0) sr., 160 Trenten Wiggins (31-7) soph., 171 Gabriel Petoskey (36-11) jr., 189 Chayton Wiggins (45-1) jr., 215 Carl Whipple (27-7) soph., 285 Colby Roosa (35-1) soph.
Outlook: Chippewa Hills will wrestle in its eighth straight Quarterfinal hoping to advance to a fifth straight Semifinal. Edwards took over this season for longtime coach Nate Ethridge after serving as an assistant during Ethridge’s 18 running the program. Haynes was a Finals placer last season and is one of four repeat qualifiers. There are only three senior starters, but 12 of 14 in the expected lineup have won at least 25 matches this winter.
#5 Montrose
Record/rank: 27-5, No. 6
League finish: Second in Mid-Michigan Activities Conference
Coach: Steve Barnette, seventh season (140-76)
Championship history: Nine MHSAA championships (most recent 2005), five runner-up finishes.
Individual Finals qualifiers: 119 Jake Elasivich (42-7) soph., 145 Robert Skinner (26-11) soph., 171 Jack Kalakay (34-7) jr., 285 Griffin Barnette (45-4) jr.
Outlook: Montrose is returning to the Quarterfinals for the first time since the last championship season of 2005, and defeated No. 7 Birch Run to help get here. The Rams finished second in their league to another contender, Division 4 power New Lothrop. Watch for them moving forward – they have one senior starter but 10 underclassmen in this weekend’s lineup. Elasivich and Griffin Barnette were Finals placers last season.
#6 Alma
Record/rank: 33-6, No. 8
League finish: First in Tri-Valley Conference Central
Coach: Randy Miniard, eighth season (188-92)
Championship history: Has not appeared in an MHSAA Final.
Individual Finals qualifiers: 119 Dametrius Castillo (32-4) soph., 125 Solomon Rosales (25-11) soph., 130 Josiah Baltierra (27-18) fr., 135 Jarrett Ferman (32-3) jr., 152 Justin VanBlaricum (28-9) jr.
Outlook: The Panthers are making their second straight Quarterfinal trip coming off a third consecutive league title, and also moved up a seed from a year ago. Alma got past No. 10 Lake Odessa Lakewood to clinch what was also its second Regional title ever. Castillo also achieved some individual history for the program with its first Finals championship last season since 1993. There is only one senior on the roster and 10 underclassmen in the lineup for this weekend.
#7 Dowagiac
Record/rank: 24-9, unranked
League finish: Third in Wolverine Conference
Coach: Colin Burandt, fourth season (76-35)
Championship history: Two runner-up finishes (most recent 1998).
Individual Finals qualifiers: 119 Dylan Elmore (45-5) sr.; 285 Wyatt Bailey (33-11) soph.
Outlook: Dowagiac returned to the Quarterfinals last season for the first time since 2004 and now has made two straight. The experience should continue to pay off as the team will graduate only three seniors with only two expected to start this weekend. Six wrestlers have at least 30 wins this winter.
#8 Shepherd
Record/rank: 12-1, No. 9
League finish: Second in Tri-Valley Conference Central
Coach: BJ Cline, fourth season (57-19)
Championship history: Four runner-up finishes (most recent 2001).
Individual Finals qualifiers: 112 Kye Andrews (37-8) jr., 119 Lance Clark (26-6) soph., 145 Trevor Robinson (40-2) sr., 285 Kevin Smith (36-8) sr.
Outlook: Shepherd is returning to the Quarterfinals for the first time since 2002, with three senior starters who all have at least 30 wins and also nine underclassmen among expected starters. Robinson was the Finals runner-up at 135 last season, and he also was a runner-up in 2016.
PHOTO: Remus Chippewa Hills, here at its league tournament, is one of the few to break into a Division 3 Final over the last decade. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
Roberts Drives Dundee to Chase Dream
January 8, 2019
By Doug Donnelly
Special for Second Half
DUNDEE – The thing that keeps Dundee wrestling coach Tim Roberts motivated isn’t another dual meet victory, matching up with state powerhouse Hudson in a conference meet or hanging another banner inside the Vikings’ gymnasium.
Those things are nice, but what keeps Roberts going in his 20th season as the Dundee head coach is a certain two-time MHSAA Finals-qualifying wrestler from the mid-1980s who won 120 matches for Dundee but ultimately fell short of his goals.
That wrestler was Roberts.
“I’m always trying to prove myself, and I’m always trying to get better,” Roberts said. “When I think of myself as that kid who didn’t place at state, I do much better because I keep that hunger and desire. I need to learn more. I’ve got to get better at this.”
Roberts is already pretty good at what he does – a hall of famer, says Hudson coach Scott Marry, a seven-time MHSAA championship-winning coach himself.
“Coach Roberts is one of the best coaches I’ve ever coached against,” Marry said. “He gets his kids ready mentally and physically. You better have your team ready if you’re going to wrestle Dundee.”
Earlier this season, Roberts reached a career milestone – 500 career wins. He’s led Dundee to six Finals titles and six runner-up finishes, 19 District and 18 Regional titles. He’s coached 32 Individual Finals championship wrestlers and more than 140 all-staters. Under his leadership, Dundee also is approaching 20 Lenawee County Athletic Association titles.
The numbers don’t tell the full story about Roberts, however.
“I could write a book about Tim and how great a coach he is,” said Dundee athletic director Tom Oestrike. “His coaching profile speaks for itself, but what is even more impressive are the type of young men he has helped build in his career – men of selflessness, character and discipline.”
When Roberts wrestled at Dundee, he was a 98-pound freshman who grew to compete in the 126-pound weight class as a senior.
“We were a solid program at the time, (but) winning state was an impossible dream back then for sure,” Roberts said.
“I wasn’t bad at wrestling. I was pretty good. Compared to the guys we have now – I wasn’t as good as them. I thought I was pretty good, but I didn’t accomplish the goals that I wanted to.”
After high school, he enlisted in the Army. It was during that time that he got the coaching bug. He realized he wanted to help young student athletes learn how to get the most out of their careers.
“When I was in the military, I learned a lot about building myself into something and I wanted to share that information,” he said. “I thought about wrestling a lot and how I really didn’t accomplish the goals that I would have liked to, and I wanted to help other people. I had this desire to try to help. I felt like I had a knack for it.”
After his first year as an assistant coach, Dundee changed wrestling head coaches and Jim Wittibslager got the job. Roberts asked him if he could stay on as an assistant.
Wittibslager is a hall of fame coach in his own right. He compiled a record of 333-36-3 in two stints as the Dundee head coach. The Vikings won four straight MHSAA Finals titles during his tenure, from 1995-98.
“We went from a team 4-21 with zero state qualifiers, and by the fifth year we were state champs with 14 state qualifiers,” Roberts said. “It was quite a building process. It was lot of fun to go through and learn. Winning state went from an impossible dream to something that ‘Oh yeah, we could do this.’ We built ourselves into that level.”
Coaching with Wittibslager was a career-changer for Roberts.
“That was crucial in my development in how to coach,” he said. “I thought I had a knack for helping people and I had a little talent in that area, but I learned so much about what it takes, the work ethic and how to win and how to think like a winner.”
Admittedly, Roberts isn’t the same coach he was two decades ago. The sport has evolved significantly.
“I don’t coach now like I did 20 years ago, I’ll say that,” he said. “You grow with the times or you get left behind.”
What hasn’t changed during that time is Roberts’ attention to detail, his passion for coaching the right technique and getting his team ready for meets. Practices now include time in the weight room, warming up with some gymnastics moves such as back handstands, leaps and cartwheels; and, of course, technique.
“We still do conditioning,” he said. “We do quite a bit of that.”
Roberts believes one thing that sets wrestlers apart from each other is how far they can push themselves on the mat – when they reach the point where they feel they don’t have any more strength or ability, they find it.
“The only way you know if you can (push yourself) is by getting (to that point). That, as much as anything, will win you matches,” he said.
Maintaining that success has never been easy. Dundee typically has about 20 wrestlers out each year, a comparably low number to some other high-level programs. But that is where Roberts does his best work. Coaching at the high school level, he said, isn’t about coaching extraordinary athletes – it’s about coaching the average ones.
“It’s been an endless process for 20 years to keep trying to get better at this,” he said. “Average people are who you are coaching. That’s what coaching high school is, I think, learning how to work with the average person. Then, once in a while, you get to work with the exceptional person and that’s fun.”
Despite the enormous success during his 20 seasons at Dundee, Roberts has experienced the same highs and lows as any other coach.
“Lots of highs and lows,” he said. “Lots of times of feeling great, then you get humbled. Then you start feeling great again and then humbled again.”
Roberts coached Dundee to a Division 4 championship in 2001 and Division 3 titles in 2007, 2013, 2014, 2016 and 2018. Last year’s team was ranked nationally and had 14 Individual Finals qualifiers.
“Every one of those (championships) is like the best day of my life,” Roberts said. “Every time. It’s such a great feeling in the end that it all came together, and everything did work, and you did get it all done. A lot of things have to go right. It’s not easy.”
Roberts, 50, isn’t planning on stepping away from coaching any time soon. He’s also not stopping to think about reaching 500 career wins any time soon. He’d rather think about that high school wrestler who missed out on winning a state championship – but has had a remarkable impact on so many others.
“That’s for when you are done (coaching),” he said. “Right now, I’m still trying to get better and trying to work on my weaknesses as a coach and always seeking out how I can be better at this. When you’re done is when you get to reflect.”
Doug Donnelly has served as a sports and news reporter and city editor over 25 years, writing for the Daily Chief-Union in Upper Sandusky, Ohio from 1992-1995, the Monroe Evening News from 1995-2012 and the Adrian Daily Telegram since 2013. He's also written a book on high school basketball in Monroe County and compiles record books for various schools in southeast Michigan. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for Jackson, Washtenaw, Hillsdale, Lenawee and Monroe counties.
PHOTO: Dundee wrestling coach Tim Roberts and his team celebrate one of the many successful moments during his two decades leading the program. (Photo by David Schankin.)