PERU — Western senior wrestler Jake Wiechmann had lost twice this season to Kokomo standout Fletcher Miller, and was trailing 3-1 to Miller in the third period of the championship of the 182-pound match at the Peru Regional Saturday when the opportunity for vengeance struck.
Miller lunged for a takedown, Wiechmann countered and in a flash had Miller on his back. A quick slap of the mat later and Wiechmann had his pin, and the 182-pound title.
“I waited. I guess I was in the right position at the right time, and I took advantage of it,” Wiechmann said.
Miller had defeated Wiechmann on Jan. 25 for the title of the Oak Hill Sectional.
“He takes a low shot. I knew that from last week and the other times he beat me,” Wiechmann said. “I was just there, switched my level and met him in the middle.”
Vengeance was sweet.
“It means a lot,” Wiechmann said. “Last time [Miller beat me] was sectionals, and first time was just a regular tournament, so being able to beat him at this stage means a lot, makes up for the last two losses. And it means a lot because it puts me in good position for next week.”
Both wrestlers qualify for next Saturday’s Fort Wayne Semistate at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum. Wiechmann will be matched against a fourth-place finisher from another regional in the opening round while Miller will face a third-place finisher.
Western coach Chad Shepherd said the match boiled down to “a senior who wanted to win. We talked all week about every match is his last match, and he wanted to win.”
The two rivals have just five losses between them, and have now wrestled three times. Each has lost just once to the rest of his competition.
“Fletcher wrestled real well for about five and a half minutes,” Kokomo coach Ryan Wells said. “We were up 3-1 and he just plain got caught. At this level, and especially against a kid as good as Wiechmann is, you make one little mistake and get yourself out of position for a split second and things like that can happen. But we still think Fletcher can do some good things next week. He’s not counting himself out and we’re not counting him out at all yet.”
Wiechmann, also a football standout who earned Class 3A All-State honors from the Indiana Football Coaches Association, is making his second trip to the wrestling semistate. He lost in the first round last season. This year, he’s better equipped to vie for a berth in the state finals.
He said he’s better, “physically and mentally. Definitely mentally a lot better. I have more experience. I didn’t really experience semistate last year, first year. Now I kind of know what it’s all about. I’ve been to bigger tournaments this year, so I know what it’s all about.”
A calmer, unflappable attitude has carried Wiechmann to a 28-3 record.
“He’s matured, that’s probably the biggest thing,” Shepherd said. “He doesn’t get flustered or frustrated. The whole team keeps it pretty even keel and that might be because of Jake because that’s the way he is.”
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