February 27, 2019
As a junior, Ben Parker stepped up to the mats of the State Tournament ready to compete in the 160 pound weight class representing Fossil Ridge High School. He wrestled in two matches and was defeated in both which gave him a 26-18 record for this season.
His first match, bout 71 was ended with a major decision and the score was 13-1. Period one of the match was marked by a takedown scored by his opponent. Following that, the second period began with Parker’s single point escape after 18 seconds. He was met with a takedown and two nearfalls, but he was able to avoid being pinned.
On Friday February 22, his second match was against a wrestler from Pomona High School and it was finished with a score of 11-3. Bout 204 was made up of three escapes completed by Parker while his opponent scored with five takedowns and one escape.
Akin to the previous duels and tournaments of the season, Parker held a determined attitude and looked at state as a way to gauge areas of improvement. Already he is planning for the 2019-2020 season he said that he was “Looking forward to qualifying more guys.” He also committed to “Leading a better team next year.”
As the friendships are the highlight of wrestling for most of the guys, Parker reiterated that with his favorite part of the weekend being “Just hanging out with the three guys… and bonding with the rest of the team and coaches was a lot of fun.” He also stated that “I’m proud of the fight. I didn’t see many guys give up, I mean, Mikey worked his butt off and then worked so hard he passed himself out.”
While the State Tournament of 2019 did not hold a title for Parker, he looks to next wrestling season to claim his spot on the awards stand and concluded the tournament with “Lets get ‘em next year.”
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