LOWER LAKE >> They are champions on the mat and in the classroom.
“I thought the year was over, but it keeps getting better,” Lower Lake High School wrestling coach Ed Fuchs said of the recently completed 2015-16 season, which did get better for the Trojans on Tuesday.
“I was just getting ready for middle school practice and I opened an envelope on my desk,” Fuchs said.
What was inside?
Out popped certificates earmarked for 12 Lower Lake wrestlers for academic achievement and the news that the Trojans were being honored as a Distinguished Scholastic Team by the North Coast Section because of an overall 3.02 grade point average (GPA).
“I’ve probably given out three or four of these in all my years here,” said Fuchs of the individual scholar-athlete certificates, which require an athlete to main a minimum GPA of 3.50. “And I’m giving away 12 this year alone. I’m definitely excited.”
Fuchs has taken steps in recent seasons to require more of his wrestlers than just attending practices and following school and team rules if they wish to remain on the Lower Lake squad. He is a stickler for getting the job done in the classroom as well. While Lower Lake requires its athletes to maintain a minimum 2.0 GPA to be eligible for sports, Fuchs requires a 2.5 GPA.
And that’s not all.
“They (wrestlers) can’t have any missing assignments in their classes,” Fuchs said. “I do a check with their teachers every three weeks. If they have missing assignments, they don’t wrestle.”
Why is Lower Lake’s coaching demanding more from his wrestlers?
“I don’t want them to settle for the minimum. I’m trying to prepare them for life,” he said.
He’s also busy training successful wrestlers. The Trojans, a freshman- and sophomore-dominated squad in 2015-16, claimed a second straight Coastal Mountain Conference Championship. Better yet, they were perfect on the year, running the table during the dual-meet season (8-0) and winning the CMC Championship Tournament (for the second year in a row) at season’s end.
Lower Lake also brought home two of the three medals won by Lake County wrestlers at the North Coast Section Championships — freshman Blake Fredrickson was fifth at 108 pounds and Peerless Brooke was sixth at 195 pounds.
Of the 12 Lower Lake wrestlers who maintained GPAs of 3.5 or higher, five carried GPAs in excess of 4.0. Lily Wetmore led the team at 4.4, Weeden Wetmore and Jack Schroeder were next at 4.2, followed by Fredrickson and Adam De Leon at 4.1.
“This team is getting the job done on the mat and in the classroom,” Fuchs said. “I couldn’t be more proud of them.”
