TERRE HAUTE — If winning the Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference didn’t prove David Knight was a state high school wrestling contender at 215 pounds, a dominant showing at the Northview Sectional should have done the trick.
Knight, a Terre Haute North junior, became the school’s first MIC wrestling champion.
“After I won [the MIC], I felt like I could take on anybody,” said Knight, who just might have the chance to take on the state’s best if his postseason success continues.
In last weekend’s sectional, Knight pinned Owen Valley’s Michael Hill in 58 seconds and Bloomington South’s Juan Valentin in 3:52.
In the championship, Knight earned a late takedown to beat Bloomington North’s Jake Vandeventer for a 5-2 decision.
The victory was big for Knight; not only could he celebrate his first sectional title, he achieved redemption of an early-season loss by a 3-2 score.
Now 36-1 on the season, Knight could face Vandeventer again today in the Bloomington South Regional.
“I’d wrestled this kid before. He’d beat me every time. My goal was to get points first and beat him. It was a real good match,” Knight said after the sectional.
Knight said he’s taking advantage of his quickness to attack his opponents’ legs.
“This year, I feel like I’ve been on my feet, got confidence in my shot,” said Knight, adding that coach Mark Frisz has helped his strategy develop. “Since I wrestle big guys, and they’re not used to shots, [coach Frisz] has helped me develop a shot that’s good for a big guy that won’t get me out of position, moves that they’re not used to seeing.”
While improved technique has helped, Frisz is impressed with Knight’s matured psychological approach this season.
“The final match got very physical. A lot of times, that would have taken David out of that match. He would’ve lost his focus and worried about just fighting,” Frisz said. “He stayed calm and knew if he kept working at it, he would be able to score. David got a takedown late, kind of a scramble situation where both guys were in a position to score.”
Knight is also a critical part of Terre Haute North’s football team on the offensive and defensive lines.
“David’s a big strong kid, very athletic, good quickness,” Frisz said, “and he’s able to control his opponents and move them out of position so that he can score.”
Wrestling and football have typically had a strong group of players to participate in both sports. Frisz hopes Knight’s success might persuade others to join the wrestling team.
“I think that wrestling improved his football,” Frisz said. “He’s a prime example of what good the two sports can do for kids.”
The two sports do provide a challenge for Knight.
“Coach [Chris] Barrett likes me at about 250 pounds then I’ve got to get down to 215,” Knight said.
It’s all about discipline and parents who know what to cook, Knight said.
“It’s not what you eat, it’s how you eat, try to cut down on the sugars, eat more proteins, eat more vegetables that burns more calories,” Knight said. “My parents have a book for it. I let them guide me through it.”
Frisz said that maintaining his weight is a big reason for Knight’s success.
“He’s not bouncing up and down. He’s not spending a bunch of energy cutting weight,” Frisz said.
Knight’s also become a leader for the other Patriots, and he’ll be joined this weekend by 189-pounder Doug Collett and 140-pounder Nathan Page.
“I feel like I’ve led by example, and that was my big thing,” Knight said of his quality practice habits. “Now, I’m starting to help people’s confidence, getting them hyped before a match.”
With the semistate at Evansville a week away and the state finals the next week, Knight hopes to be getting hyped for the next couple weeks.
“I’d like to be on the podium this year,” Knight said. “Be in the middle of the circle this year at state finals.”
Bloomington
SOUTH regional
• Time: 11:30 a.m. (finals approximately 5:30 p.m.)
• Admission: $6
• Advancement: Top four place winners in each weight class advance to the semistate round of individual state tournament (at Roberts Stadium in Evansville on Feb. 13).
• Sectional qualifiers from area schools (name, school, sectional placement, record):
103 — Caleb Nicosin (Northview, third place) 27-9; Steven Stanford (TH South, fourth place) 18-19.
112 — Skyler Hall (Northview, second place) 3-1.
119 — Levi Edwards (West Vigo, champion) 37-3; Austin Bell (Northview, third place) 22-14; Colt Thompson (Sullivan, fourth place) 19-13.
125 — Dakota Case (TH South, champion) 28-6.
130 — None.
135 — Jordan Jensen (TH South, second place) 23-3; Luke Pingleton (Northview, third place) 22-2.
140 — P.J. Montgomery (TH South, second place) 32-2; Nathaniel Page (TH North, fourth place) 11-9.
145 — Tsali Lough (TH South, champion) 19-12; Jedidiah Cox (Sullivan, fourth place) 22-9.
152 — Austin McClain (TH South, second place) 25-10; Ryan Roach (West Vigo, third place) 24-3; Larry Shaffer (Northview, fourth place) 28-16.
160 — Holden Fudurich (Sullivan, second place) 28-2; Casey Anderson (TH South, third place) 9-9; Brady Silver (Northview, fourth place) 23-11.
171 — Ben Bird (West Vigo, second place) 30-6.
189 — Doug Collett (TH North, second place) 27-11; Brandon Pleake (Northview, third place) 21-10; Blake Ray (West Vigo, fourth place) 27-11.
215 — David Knight (TH North, champion) 36-1; Aaron See (Northview, fourth place) 23-11.
285 — Beau Judd (Northview, champion) 25-10; Nick Brownfield (West Vigo, second place) 26-12; Joel Blakely (TH South, fourth place) 17-16.
North Montgomery regional
n Time: Noon
n Admission: $6
n Advancement: Top four place winners in each weight class advance to the semistate round of individual state tournament (at New Castle on Feb. 13).
n Sectional qualifiers from the area schools (name, school, sectional placement, record):
103 — Kyle Tolbert (North Vermillion, fourth place) 24-8.
112 — Spencer Bishop (South Vermillion, fourth place) 28-9.
119 — none
125 — Dalton Millikan (South Vermillion, champion) 36-1.
130 — Nathan Luta (Turkey Run, second place) 24-7.
135 — Austin Shell (North Vermillion, champion) 31-3.
140 — Alex Thomas (South Vermillion, second place) 28-9.
152 — none
160 — none
171 — none
189 — Aaron Riggen (North Vermillion, champion) 29-4; Jared Paxton (Rockville, fourth place) 21-13.
215 — Ax Tuttle (North Vermillion, fourth place) 27-6.
285 — Caleb Miller (North Vermillion, second place) 29-3; Trent Wallace (South Vermillion, third place) 33-5.
High School
WRESTLING REGIONAL: North’s David Knight a more confident wrestler heading into today’s regional
- High School
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THN SECTIONAL: Braves to play Mooresville for sectional title tonight
Terre Haute South continued to show what’s new and Terre Haute North unfortunately reverted back to what’s old in Class 4A high school girls basketball sectional action Friday night at North.
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OWEN VALLEY SECTIONAL: Eagles bring Vikes down to earth
Baby steps. A baby takes that first step and grins, then attempts the second step and tumbles. The West Vigo High School girls took their first step with a victory Tuesday night in the Class 3A basketball sectional at Owen Valley.
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BLOOMFIELD SECTIONAL: Sullivan jumps to early lead in sectional victory
Sullivan jumped out to a 9-0 lead and were never threatened in a dominant 48-25 win over Eastern Greene in a semifinal game of the Class 2A Bloomfield girls basketball sectional inside Glover Gymnasium on Friday.
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North Vermillion Sectional: Panthers, Falcons to meet for NV title
Outstanding defense and quality passing landed Riverton Parke in the championship game of the Class A North Vermillion Sectional. The Panthers will have to get through the host school tonight in order to secure the program’s first sectional crown since 1992.
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South swimmers don’t advance at Finals
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South runs into talented North Central team
Terre Haute South players and coaches knew when they got off the bus Saturday afternoon that they couldn’t run with the Class 4A No. 3-ranked Indianapolis North Central Panthers.
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BASKETBALL ROUNDUP: Duncan’s OT free throws help Marshall down H-P
Jacob Duncan hit four free throws in overtime Friday night as visiting Marshall defeated Hutsonville-Palestine 51-49 in Little Illini Conference action.
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O'Leary pours in career-high 34 for Terre Haute North
Matt O’Leary poured in a career-high 34 points, 17 in each half, to lead Terre Haute North to a dominant 69-46 home victory over Center Grove in Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference boys high school basketball Saturday afternoon.
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Davis hits layup in double overtime to lift Terre Haute North at Bloomington North
Playing without their two leading scorers against a team that — most of the time — seemed more determined to win than they did, Terre Haute North's Patriots got a driving layup from Steven Davis with 2.8 seconds left in the second overtime to escape Bloomington North with a 54-52 win in high school basketball Thursday night.
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Sullivan stays on top of WIC for third straight year
Western Indiana Conference boys basketball teams have been trying to storm the Sullivan castle for three years now. The Golden Arrows have endured nearly every kind of strategy in the effort to breech their wall. West Vigo tried a few more on Thursday in a showdown for the WIC championship.
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South girls looking for solid performances at swimming state finals
One individual and one relay team, which includes that same individual, will represent Terre Haute South in the IHSAA girls swimming state finals today and possibly Saturday at the Indiana University Natatorium in Indianapolis.
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PREP ROUNDUP: Cesinger, Jones each score 24 in Clay City win
Blake Cesinger and Brylan Jones poured in 24 points apiece to lead visiting Clay City over North Central 67-53 in SouthWestern Indiana Athletic Conference boys high school basketball Thursday night.
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Teutopolis knocks off record-setting Marshall girls in regional championship
Marshall jumped ahead 4-0 only to watch Teutopolis score the next 11 points Thursday in the championship game of the Class 2A Teutopolis Regional.
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Sullivan wins battle in low post
Sullivan dominated the low block at both ends of the court Wednesday to defeat South Knox 43-30.
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State wrestling berths won't come easily
If high school wrestlers thought regional competition was tough last weekend, they can expect the competition, as Keegan Michael Key used to say on MADtv, taken to “a whole notha level” on Saturday.
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South pulls upset
Plainfield’s 16-5 record made the Quakers the team to beat in the Class 4A Terre Haute North Sectional.
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Vikings break long sectional drought
You’ll have to forgive West Vigo for celebrating just a wee bit prior to the postgame handshake with South Vermillion, but its first victory in a sectional game in 11 years was worthy of celebrating.
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PREP ROUNDUP: RP rolls past Attica
Riverton Parke jumped to a 20-point halftime lead and easily defeated Attica 59-34 in the Class A North Vermillion girls basketball sectional on Tuesday.
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They’re the pride of Marshall
With a 24-1 record, coach Kathy Miller’s Marshall team earned the top seed in the Class 2A Teutopolis Regional.
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Union season more fun with Talpas around
The Union boys basketball team has had its share of fun moments in the past, arguably the most fun being its Class A state runner-up in 2000.
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Injury bug follows girls into postseason
Who’s healthy is the question at least three of the four teams will be asking tonight when Class 4A girls high school basketball sectional play begins at Terre Haute North.
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Rockville needs late run to stop West Vigo
It was a game of fits and starts, but host Rockville finally overcame a stiff challenge from visiting West Vigo in a 53-46 victory in boys high basketball action on Saturday.
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Northview holds off Plainfield
Northview got its sixth victory in boys high school basketball action Saturday night, defeating Plainfield 59-56.
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PREP ROUNDUP: Cloverdale helps Rady to career win No. 714
Brandon Dorman and Joe Fidler combined for 37 points and six 3-pointers Saturday night as visiting Cloverdale defeated Turkey Run 63-45 in boys high school basketball.
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North seniors enjoy hot start
The appearance of balanced scoring in the Terre Haute North High School basketball lineup Saturday night was a little bit deceiving as the Patriots held on to defeat visiting Evansville Reitz 62-48 in North’s Senior Night contest.
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Ben Davis Giants top South Braves
Visiting Ben Davis nearly went to sleep on a sizeable lead against Terre Haute South in Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference high school basketball Friday night.
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No. 3 Panthers too much for Patriots
After trailing by 15 at halftime, Terre Haute North’s boys basketball team got off to a nice start in the second half and cut its deficit to seven against Class 4A No. 3 Indianapolis North Central.
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Clay City gives Shakamak first SWIAC loss
Clay City shook up the top echelon of the SouthWestern Indiana Athletic Conference with a solid 52-41 victory Friday over visiting Shakamak in a boys high school basketball game at the Eel Dome.
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Regional wrestlers know importance of opening-round matches
Eight in each weight class. Four of those advance to the semistate. No byes.
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PREP ROUNDUP: Mahurin leads Rox to victory
Lane Mahurin tallied 10 of his game-high 29 points in the fourth quarter to help Rockville hold off Wabash River Conference foe Fountain Central 80-72 in boys high school basketball Friday night.
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