Knights' Pair Look for Success at State Wrestling Meet

Oak Creek Knights wrestlers Josh Regazzi and Mike Heard were happy to qualify for the WIAA individual state wrestling meet Thursday at the Kohl Center, but coach Mark Sommerville said their goals are just beginning to take shape.

"These kids have been talking about their goals from day one, and this is one of them," Sommerville said. "It's not the end goal, but it's a good start."

The two juniors wrestled strong all season long. Regazzi, a 171 pounder, finished 33-8 on the season. Heard, in the 285-pound (heavyweight) division, went 26-8. Both wrestlers went 3-1 at the Greenfield sectional last weekend, good for second-place finishes and a trip to Madison.

The trip is the second in a row for Regazzi, who gained valuable experience competing at state a year ago.

Heard, however, does not have the same experience as his teammate. To make matters worse, he got the unfortunate draw of the state's top-ranked heavyweight, Curt Fuller of Wisconsin Rapids.

But Heard has overcame adversity all season long. At last week's sectional, the junior battled for the championship with Franklin's Brenden Butler and lost a 2-1 decision in double overtime. Heard had to quickly gather himself and put the disappointment behind him to win the wrestle-back match and qualify for state. That is exactly what he did in earning a 15-6 major decision.

Sommerville says both wrestlers have learned a lot about themselves from losing.

"To be honest, when a kid takes a loss, it's not always the worst thing," Sommerville said. "You learn a lot from losing. You learn about your character, your drive and your willingness to change what your doing."

Specifically, the coach points to Regazzi's loss early in the season at the Stech Tournament and Heard's late-season loss to a wrestler from Kenosha Tremper. Both wrestlers learned from those losses, Sommerville said, and he points to them as defining moments in the season.

Although the superstitious Sommerville would not make a prediction, because he refuses to jinx his wrestlers, it appears he has big aspirations for Regazzi and Heard because of their strong work ethics.

"(Both) spent a lot of time at a local wrestling club, Ringers," Sommerville said. "That combined with weight training and cardio workouts really helped these two kids achieve their goal."