Years before dominating the Class 3A 285-pound division of Colorado wrestling for two seasons, Resurrection Christian’s Samuel Stockton was a pre-teen watching his cousins wrestle.
He decided to give it a try himself, working his way through club, middle school and eventually joining the RCS team. He didn’t even have a spot on the Cougars varsity team as a freshman.
As a sophomore, an injury kept him out of action until the regional tournament. He lost in the state championship match that year before going on a run his final two years in high school that included a 64-0 record and back-to-back state titles.
He lost only one match in three seasons and is this year’s Reporter-Herald wrestler of the year.
But he wasn’t always so dominant. He fought through an injury and recovered from a disappointing loss at the end of his sophomore year before finally reaching the pinnacle of Colorado wrestling twice.
“My cousins started out wrestling,” Stockton said. “They did it one year. I was probably 10 or 11 and I went to one of their tournaments. I thought it was cool and asked my parents if I could do it. They said yes. So, then I started in the Fort Collins rec league at Wellington Middle School and then wrestled there fourth and fifth grade. Then I started at Rez.”
During his freshman year with the Cougars, there were wrestlers ahead of him as he worked through which weight class he would fit into. He didn’t have a spot on the varsity roster and looked forward to having one his sophomore season.
But an injury kept him out of action for most of that year. He wasn’t able to return and start training until just before regionals, which he ended up winning.
“I had a partial tear in my hamstring, which then caused the bone where my hamstring attaches to my hip to fill up with fluid,” he said. “The doctor described it to me like an orange and the outside was kind of OK, but the inside was pretty much mush. If I pushed it too hard, I could pretty much cut that bone in half. I ended up taking three months off and that injury to get completely healed took 18 months.”
He worked his way back, finally getting to compete at regionals. He took an undefeated record into his first state tournament, although he had to take some forfeit losses during the season to have enough matches to qualify for state.
What happened at the end of that state tournament laid the groundwork for his final two seasons of dominance.
He advanced to the finals at 215s as a sophomore but lost a triple-overtime heartbreaker and finished as the runner-up. It was the last time he would lose in an RCS singlet, and it gave him all the motivation he needed going forward.
“Honestly, the only thing I do remember about that match is the overtime,” he said. “It was 1-1 going to the third overtime and all I needed to do was escape and I win. I got out, I think it was like with 22 seconds left. I remember standing up and the ref holding up one and I was like, ‘Oh, I just won state.’
“And pretty much right after, he shot and I made a dumb decision. I tried to throw him by me and ended up just sitting on my butt. We were out of bounds, but he got the takedown with, like, a second left.”
He spent all summer and the next fall using that match, specifically the overtime, as motivation. He went 29-0 his junior year and won his first state title. He followed that up his senior season with a 35-0 record and won his second championship by pinfall.
Stockton said winning that first championship felt great, but in some ways it was just like any other victory he had achieved.
“I think everybody in wrestling or any other sport could agree with this,” he said. “Everybody’s like, ‘Oh, if you win this, you’re whatever. And then you do it and you’re like, ‘Oh, nothing changes.’ It was super cool but in some ways I realized the only thing that changes is you get to go home happy. You get the bracket and you get to go home happy. And that was kind of what I thought.”
Behind the humble exterior, Stockton is a competitor, and his goal after winning his first championship was to win another his senior year.
He said he built that up more in his head this past season than the one previous. He was able to put the expectations aside and went about his business, collecting wins until he was able to celebrate at Ball Arena for a second time.
Stockton leaves Rez with his picture on the wall of the Cougars’ wrestling room, and while he isn’t sure where he will continue wrestling in college, he is mulling his options.
Best of the rest
Wyatt Malara, Thompson Valley: The Eagles senior won the 4A championship at 165s in dominating fashion. He won each of his first three matches at Ball Arena either by technical fall or pin in the first period and then pinned his finals opponent in 2:49. He finished the season with a 51-4 record.
Ty Eversman, Thompson Valley: The Eagles sophomore won his first state championship at 144s in 4A. He pinned each of his first three opponents and eventually won a 9-8 decision in the championship match. He finished the season with only one loss, going 23-1 overall.
Donavon Farrell, Berthoud: The Spartans junior, who transferred from Iowa, won his first Colorado state championship at 215s in 3A. He pinned his first two opponents before winning his semifinal match by a 9-5 decision. He then pinned his finals opponent and finished the season with a 48-3 record.
Saydee Lussenhop, Loveland: The Red Wolves sophomore came up just short in her bid to win a second straight state title, losing by a 6-2 decision in the finals at 110s in 5A at the state tournament. Still, she earned her second straight top-two finish and ended the season with a 38-5 record.
Bryce Hayman, Loveland: The Red Wolves senior advanced to the championship match at 190s in 5A at the state tournament after winning his second-round match by a 11-10 decision and his semifinal match by a 4-3 decision. He lost in the finals by technical fall and finished the season with a 33-9 record.
Julia Schnell, Berthoud: After finishing second at state as a freshman, the Spartans sophomore lost in the second round at 120s in 4A at the state tournament. She won her way all the way back to the third-place match, winning it by a 6-2 decision to claim her second top-three finish and end the season with a 38-8 record.
Jaxon Ficarra, Berthoud: The Spartans junior lost in the second round at 175s in 4A at the state tournament but won his way all the way back to the third-place match, which he lost by a 5-2 decision. He finished the season with a 34-15 record.
Amiyah McGee, Loveland: The Red Wolves junior lost in the second round at 100s in 5A at the state tournament and advanced all the way back to the consolation semifinals. She lost but wrestled for fifth place and won that match with a pin. She finished the season with a 37-2 record.
Kael Kreutzer, Mountain View: The Mountain Lions senior lost his first-round match at 285s in Class 4A at the state tournament but wrestled back to the consolation semifinals before losing again. That put him in the fifth-place match which he won by pin in 17 seconds. He finished the season with a 32-11 record.
Jackson Eversman, Thompson Valley: The Eagles senior finished fifth at the 4A state tournament at 150s. After losing a close match in the semifinals, he wrestled back to the fifth-place match and won it to finish the season with a 38-8 record.
