Kyle Leek
Howland's Kyle Leek
When he scanned his young roster at the beginning of the season, Howland High wrestling coach Brian Earich knew he could count on senior Kyle Leek for victories.
Leadership was a different story. Leek was the team’s only captain and wasn’t known for being overly vocal.
“He was a state runner-up [as a junior] and the question was, How would he handle it?” Earich said. “Would he stick his chest out?”
Earich got his answer in early January at the Green Duals, where the team’s undefeated record was in serious jeopardy after a few early losses
“We had a lot of people who didn’t have varsity experience and winning wasn’t a big deal to them,” Leek said. “They started slacking.”
So Leek got into his teammates’ faces and challenged them to raise their intensity.
“After me, everybody won by pin,” Leek said. “We won [the meet] by point.”
Said Earich, “That was a big turning point.”
Howland finished 10-0 — its first undefeated season since Leek’s freshman year — and Leek went 39-4. But after losing in the Division II state semifinals to 140-pounder Matt Stephens of St. Paris Graham, Leek saw his dream of a state crown slip away. In the third-place match the next night, Leek was pinned by Beaver Local junior Dylan Ice — the first pin of his career.
“It’s still kind of rough [to think about],” said Leek, who admitted he wasn’t completely focused in the Ice match. “I wish I had one more year, but I don’t.”
Still, Leek shared Eastern Ohio Wrestling League Division I wrestler of the year honors with Ice (who had a tremendous state tournament) and Canfield senior Aron Brenner.
He hasn’t decided whether he’ll wrestle in college; if not, he may opt to coach middle school wrestling with Earich, who is dropping down after this season.
No matter what he chooses to do in the future, he can always take pride in his past.
“With some guys, it’s all about me,” said Earich. “But with Kyle, all he does is show up and work.
“He’s a real special kid.”