Sunday, March 23, 2014
In Logan Sharp’s first year of wrestling, he won only one match.
Second year, two or three matches.
“I wasn’t very good until I got into about fourth or fifth grade,” Sharp said. “I don’t know why, maybe the technique just came to me then.”
Luckily for West Branch High School, he stuck with it and turned into a state qualifier two years in a row. Sharp decided to wrestle at 220 pounds his junior season, but his goal to medal in Columbus came up short because of a shoulder injury. This year, back wrestling at his normal 285, he was not about to be denied.
“It posed some major problems,” Sharp said of wrestling at 220 pounds. “I would come in at 230 almost every week and have to cut back down to 220. So I had to watch everything I ate — even water became a problem by the end of the week.”
Back at his comfortable weight, Sharp earned second place in the 285-pound weight class. Even though he fell 4-2 in the championship match, Sharp can now leave with the satisfaction of accomplishing what he set out to do.
“My main goal was to get on the podium, but after my preliminary match, when I beat the No. 2 in the state, I decided I wanted to be a finalist and maybe even win the tournament.”
Sharp is no stranger to competing at the highest level. He wrestled the top-ranked 285-pounder in the country at a Top Gun tournament and got beat 12-3. But Sharp said that served as a wake-up call more than anything else.
“He made me realize that I had to start working harder to be able to beat top-notch opponents,” he said.
Sharp is looking at both Kent State University and the Air Force Academy, where his brother plays football.