Once again, Merrillville senior Michael DeLaPena is preparing for the mountainous climb that is the state wrestling tournament.
And if the last two seasons have been any indication, DeLaPena is sure to have plenty of obstacles in the way.
“They’re all tough kids,” he said. “Once you get to state, there are no slouches there. There’s a reason they are there.”
But in the last two seasons, the road traveled by DeLaPena has been particularly difficult.
After qualifying for the first time as a sophomore at 113 pounds, DeLaPena lost in the first round to Mt. Vernon’s Paul Konrath, who would go on to finish third in the state.
Last season, DeLaPena reached the semifinals at 126 before losing to Danville’s Brock Hudkins, who earned his second state title later that day.
DeLaPena finished fourth, but the lessons learned have his eyes aimed higher for this year’s state meet.
“Last year, after getting into the semifinal match, he realized he can wrestle with those guys,” Merrillville coach David Maldonado said of DeLaPena. “He’s got the experience, the drive, the training and the technique.
“It’s just a matter of putting it all together and being ready.”
DeLaPena is 24-2 at 126 this season after taking first at Saturday’s Duneland Athletic Conference Meet.
IndianaMat has DeLaPena ranked fourth at 126, and it’s likely that road will go through some of the three wrestlers ranked ahead of him, including two-time state champion Colton Cummings of Lowell.
But don’t expect that difficult path to intimidate DeLaPena.
“He has that resiliency in everything he does,” Maldonado said. “Some kids have it, other kids learn it. I think he was one of the kids that just had it. He has something side of him that just allows him to push, push, push.”
Wrestling has been a staple of DeLaPena’s life after his mother married Paul Maldonado, a cousin of Merrillville’s coach. Those family ties have only fueled DeLaPena’s desire to be one of the last wrestlers standing in mid-February after the state meet.
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“I’ve been going down to state for years,” he said. “And I realized that there are kids who are top-ranked that still get beat on the first day. Anything can happen.”
Lowell wins NCC: As hosts of the Northwest Crossroads Conference Meet, Lowell didn’t want to let the title walk out the door. And with four individual champions, Lowell edged Hobart 254.5-235 to win Saturday’s meet.
Senior Max Steward took first at 195 after dropping down from 220, where he’d wrestled all season.
“We asked him about moving down to 195,” Lowell coach Bobby Howard said. “He went down for the county meet and ever since, he’s been great at that weight.”
Lewis leads Calumet: After qualifying for regionals twice at 285, Calumet junior James Lewis dropped down to 220 this year and the wins have piled up.
“He’s quite an athlete, and not giving up 30-40 pounds has made a big difference,” Calumet coach Jim Wadkins said of Lewis.
Along with junior Victor Lizardi at 145 and sophomore AJ Fowler at 195, Lewis was one of three winners for Calumet at Saturday’s Greater South Shore Conference Meet.
Dave Melton is a freelance writer for the Post-Tribune.
TOP 5
With last week’s rankings in parentheses
1. Portage (1)
2. Chesterton (2)
3. Lowell (5)
4. Hobart (3)
5. Merrillville (4)
Wrestler of the Week: Valparaiso senior Greg Lichtenberger won the conference title at 152 pounds by scoring a takedown during the first overtime period.