Finals Contender Anderson, State-Ranked Kent City Carrying High Expectations Into February
By
Dean Holzwarth
Special for MHSAA.com
January 29, 2026
KENT CITY – The summer before his freshman year, Kent City’s Sammy Anderson admittedly was unsure of his potential as a wrestler.
That all changed, however, when the season began and a talented group of seniors altered the course of Anderson’s future on the mat.
“We went to a CMU camp in July and to be honest, I was not very confident in myself,” Anderson said. “From there, I didn’t know how my first high school season was going to go, but there were a ton of great seniors that really pushed me and motivated me to be the best I could be at this sport.
“Those seniors gave me a lot of confidence, and I just kept working hard throughout the season and I made it to state and found out that I could be good if I kept working hard at it.”
Kent City wrestling coach Chad Kik remembers those seniors showing Anderson the ropes and helping guide him through his first season.
“When he hit the high school scene he was in a good situation to learn,” Kik said. “We had a good handful of upperclassmen he got to work out with during those first two years in the room.
“He’s taken on their approach to wrestling, as well as learning lessons as far as work ethic and how to be a leader from them.”
Fast forward to Anderson’s senior year, as he has blossomed into one of the top wrestlers at 126 pounds in Division 3.
Earlier this month, Anderson reached a career milestone while competing at the Fruitport Legends Tournament.
Anderson went 5-0 on the day, winning his final match 10-6 against an opponent who had beaten him at Regionals last year, to earn a career milestone with his 150th win.
He became the 14th wrestler in school history to accomplish the feat and attributes his success to that group of seniors.
“It’s a pretty nice milestone to hit, and a bunch of the seniors from my freshman year really pushed me to be really good in the sport,” Anderson said. “I wanted to be like them, and wanted to get to 150 and maybe even surpass them.”
Anderson owns a 165-36 overall record, including 35-4 this winter as he eyes a return to the Individual Finals.
“He has a great demeanor for wrestling,” Kik said. “He never gets too high after a win, or too low after a loss. He keeps things in perspective. He’s very good at going back and analyzing the things he needs to work on or what went wrong. He’s able to move forward rather quickly, and he’s fun to watch.
“He’s constantly in motion, constantly on the attack and he wears down a lot of opponents, because he just comes at you.”
After his early success, Anderson failed to qualify for the Finals as a sophomore with a one-point loss in the blood round at Regionals.
While disappointing, he used that tough loss to refocus.
“I was trying to make state again and, unfortunately, took that loss, which happens,” Anderson said. “It just drove me and motivated me a lot more for my junior year, and I wanted to do well that year.
“Coach always preaches to keep moving forward and don't look back. Every tough match has a purpose, and take it as an opportunity to grow yourself, learn from it and do better next time.”
Anderson rebounded with a terrific campaign last winter and garnered fifth place at 120 pounds to achieve all-state status.
“He had that setback his sophomore year, but he came back strong and was focused on getting back to state,” Kik said. “He had an incredible state meet, and it’s been fun to watch him grow.
“This year he has a chance to be District and Regional champ and set himself up for a top-four seeding to hopefully make a run.”
Anderson has been the catalyst for a squad that is currently ranked No. 10 in Division 3.
The Eagles won the Kent City Kickoff Classic to open the season and claimed the top honor at last week’s Hopkins Invitational.
They also took third at the 20-team Kent County Classic, finishing behind only Rockford and Byron Center.
“I think we had high expectations coming into the season,” Kik said. “We returned quite a few from last year with some new additions that have been helping our team as well.
“We set goals of conference champs, District champs and then contending for a Regional championship. Those are our goals every year, and we thought coming in we had a good chance to put ourselves in position to try and achieve those goals.”
Kent City achieved one of them Wednesday night by clinching the Central States Athletic Association title with victories over Reed City and Central Montcalm to finish the league dual schedule with an unbeaten record.
The Eagles have four wrestlers with more than 30 wins so far, including Anderson, Dylan Russo (106), Sam Kik (113) and Adam Hunter (138).
Jayden Loomis-Sandison (144), Travis Pike (132), Hunter Gustinis (150), Victor Vasquez (157) and Jackson Carr (165) all have won 23 or more matches.
“At the beginning of the season there were some pretty high expectations,” Anderson said. “This is one of the best teams we've had in a minute, I think, and I think we can go far this season.
“I’ve been trying to be a leader and push the guys in the room that don’t have as much experience, and I think we can make a run in the postseason if we stay healthy and things can go our way.”
The Eagles will meet Grant in Team Districts next month with Newaygo and Fremont on the other side of the bracket.
“If we continue to grind and wrestle the way we have,” Chad Kik said, “then I think we have a chance to do well in the postseason.”
Dean Holzwarth has covered primarily high school sports for Grand Rapids-based WOOD-TV for five years after serving at the Grand Rapids Press and MLive for 16 years along with shorter stints at the Ionia Sentinel and WZZM. Contact him at [email protected] with story ideas for Allegan, Kent and Ottawa counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Kent City’s Sammy Anderson works to break his opponent’s grasp during a match this season. (Middle) The Eagles take a team photo after winning their Kent City Kickoff Classic. (Photos courtesy of the Kent City wrestling program.)
With Another Big Finish, Delton Kellogg's Ferris Can Match Dad's Finals Feat
By
Pam Shebest
Special for MHSAA.com
February 24, 2022
DELTON — Nearing the end of a stellar four-year wrestling career, Caden Ferris has just one complaint: Not enough mat time.
That is not a knock on his coach, but a nod at his record.
The Delton Kellogg senior will take a 45-0 record into next weekend’s MHSAA Division 4 Individual Wrestling Finals at Ford Field.
Of those wins, 32 came by pins with just one match making it to the second period. The other 13 were by forfeit.
Although he talks of “more mat time,” he will definitely take the pins as he works toward repeating at 215 pounds.
If that happens, he will become just the second wrestler in school history with two Individual Finals titles.
The other one? His dad, Rollie Ferris, who won in 1992 and 1993.
In fact, wrestling is the Ferris family’s legacy at Delton Kellogg.
Ferris’ brother, Tyden, was a two-time Finals runner-up (2016, 2018), and his uncle, Billy Ferris, has one championship (2001).
“It’s always been in the family, and I’ve always been going to my brother’s practices and tournaments,” said Caden Ferris, who started wrestling in sixth grade.
“I sometimes wrestle my brother in the backyard, but not a lot. He’s four years ahead of me.”
Wrestling his dad has a different spin.
“He tried once. It didn’t work out in his favor,” he added laughing.
During his freshman year, Ferris posted a 36-19 record, and those losses fueled his desire to win even more.
His sophomore season he improved to 38-3, and last year, 33-2. Total, he’s 152-24 heading into his final weekend of high school competition.
Following a familiar path
Rollie Ferris began wrestling in third grade, but honed his skills early, growing up on a farm with five brothers.
“We’re just always competitive,” he said. “When I had the chance to start wrestling in third or fourth grade, it was just a natural for me.
“I always enjoyed competing, then you get your hand raised, and then you get medals. It was awesome.”
Rollie Ferris’ journey did not start out “awesome.”
“My very first time wrestling (as a third grader), I got thrown on my back in a headlock by a kid I didn’t know at the time,” he recalled. “I was crying.”
His skills improved immensely from that first pin to his two Finals titles in high school.
Although he attended Central Michigan University on a football scholarship, he wrestled for coach Tom Borrelli for two of those years.
Borrelli is still coaching at CMU, where Tyden is a senior on the football team.
Because of that connection, “I’ve always been up at CMU and wrestling with them and getting to know the coaches since I was real little,” Caden Ferris said.
So when Coach Borrelli called to offer his son a four-year wrestling scholarship, “I was in awe because I know that wrestling doesn’t always get all that,” Rollie Ferris said. “Caden was offered before he even got a state championship last year.”
Having Ferris on the Delton Kellogg team is a tremendous asset, coach Dan Phillips said.
“You can always count on six (points) from him when he goes on the mat.” he said. “He’s a great leader on our team and vocal on the bench.
“He’s a pretty good physical specimen. He’s tall, he’s strong, he’s lanky. He’s well-coordinated. He’s very athletic.”
As for so many pins, “He’s relentless. If you make a mistake on the mat, he’ll capitalize on it. Plus he’s strong.
“The kids aren’t trying to get pinned. They can’t help it. That’s his attitude when he gets out there. He’s going to take them down and pin them. There’s no question about that. That’s his attitude.”
Full family effort
With several young, inexperienced wrestlers on the team, Phillips said this is a rebuilding year.
While the Panthers did not qualify for Team Regionals, four other wrestlers competed individually including junior Joelle White (110) in the MHSAA’s first-ever girls tournament. Junior Gage Vincent (119) will join Ferris at Ford Field.
To prepare, Ferris has followed his dad’s advice.
“I do a lot of running, bike, weight training, a lot of mat time, drilling with anybody I can find to throw around,” he said.
“I’m wrestling seven days a week including Grand Rapids, with all sorts of coaches.”
His dad said that takes a lot of dedication.
“I’m extremely proud of him, not only for the wins but he wants to put the work in,” he said.
“We live in Delton, which is an hour to anything so you have to be willing to be in the car and go places to do things. He’s willing to do all that.”
Caden Ferris’ mother, Marie, has been witness to it all.
“I call her my kids’ free agent,” Rollie Ferris said. “She’s just out there pushing for them, talking to people and setting up stuff constantly.
“She’s been with me since I was 16, so she watched both me win state twice and Billy win.”
She has also been there to cheer on her sons and daughter, Faith, in their sports endeavors.
One thing their father has learned is “not to be mat side with them so much,” he said. “The coaches do a good job with them.
“I’ve learned with my three kids to let other people coach. I want to be their dad, although I still probably am a little bit more intense than I should be.”
Once his son graduates in the spring, there will be a lull in the Ferris family wrestling tradition at Delton Kellogg until Rollie’s nephew Mason gets to high school. A sixth grader, Mason is also a wrestler.
For Caden Ferris, before the pomp of graduation, there are a few hurdles to face to go with next week’s big opportunity.
Rollie Ferris knows, in spite of his son’s success, nothing is guaranteed.
“As a dad, I’m always nervous there’s somebody in the closet that we don’t know,” he said. “Just like I tell these kids all the time, to be somebody, you’ve got to beat somebody.
“If I’m somebody out there wanting to wrestle Caden, if I’m his dad, I’m telling him we’ve got to beat this kid. He’s gonna be sitting up there not hungry. He’s got to beat the guy in the mirror.”
Pam Shebest served as a sportswriter at the Kalamazoo Gazette from 1985-2009 after 11 years part-time with the Gazette while teaching French and English at White Pigeon High School. She can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Calhoun, Kalamazoo and Van Buren counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Delton Kellogg’s Caden Ferris, in maroon, works to control his opponent during last season’s Division 4 championship match at 215 pounds. (2) Caden Ferris and his father Rollie Ferris. (3) Panthers coach Dan Phillips. (4) Caden Ferris holds up his chart during last season’s medal ceremony. (Action shots by HighSchoolSportsScene.com; head shot by Pam Shebest.)