Two of Galesburg's best wrestlers in history end careers by medaling at state

Greg Leibach witnessed the end of a very special era last month.

“Over the last four years, we’ve watched two of the greatest Galesburg High School wrestling careers unfold side-by-side,” said the Galesburg coach of the first two Silver Streaks grapplers to win multiple state medals.

Seniors Gauge Shipp and Rocky Almendarez brought home, respectively, a second- and fourth-place finish from the Class 2A state meet, which was held Feb. 15-17 at Champaign’s State Farm Center.

The best friends entered the state finals with just one loss between them, and they both won their first two matches to reach the semifinals—Shipp at 132 pounds and Almendarez at 120.

Shipp breezed into the championship match with his third consecutive lopsided win, a 12-2 major decision over his IC Catholic foe. Also up against an ICC wrestler, Almendarez didn’t allow a point in the first round but lost a hand fight in the second and ultimately fell 4-0. He then posted a 15-4 major decision to reach the third-place match, where he suffered another narrow loss, falling 6-2 to finish 42-3.

“Winning my quarterfinal match was a big moment for me,” said Almendarez. “I’d never made it that far. I’d always lost in the first round. But this year, I broke out. The major decision against the Kaneland kid—I liked that one, too.”

Shipp entered his championship bout riding a 94-match win streak, which included his 50-0 state title-winning junior season. But then a nagging left ankle injury flared up.

“It’s something I’ve dealt with all season,” he said. “During our first little exchange in the first round, I really hurt it. After that, I couldn’t put any weight on my left foot at all.”

Shipp battled as well as he could, but he dropped an 11-4 decision to three-time state finalist Ty Edwards of Yorkville Christian, a Gardner-Webb recruit. The prior weekend, Shipp had topped Edwards 13-4 in the Sycamore Sectional championship match.

“There were some emotions of sadness there,” said Leibach. “It was hard, just knowing that the injury left him short of reaching his full potential.”

Two extraordinary wrestlers

Shipp finished in the top 10 in the state all four years, placing third as a freshman (a non-IHSA event due to COVID) and sixth as a sophomore before his dominant stretch as an upperclassman.

“Gauge is relentless in his desire to put points on the board,” said Leibach. “He attacks from the first whistle, and he can get you from either side of the body. When he settles in on top, the score can get lopsided in a hurry. His tilt game is phenomenal. He can get three points on one side and then three on the other before you know it.”

Shipp also attacked his senior season, in general.

“There was no sense of satisfaction,” Shipp said about his junior-year title. “I just kept working. I didn’t let it be a distraction. I usually practiced at least once a day in the offseason, and if I didn’t practice, I’d run three miles. I knew I needed that type of work ethic.”

Throughout his career, few wrestlers managed to give Shipp a strong challenge. Fortunately, though, a teammate could.

“Me and Gauge, we go back to our seventh-grade year,” said Almendarez. “I was just starting to get into wrestling. Going up against him changed me. We started making each other better. He’s been great about showing me a lot about wrestling and about different clubs.”

Almendarez has had a strong career himself, medaling three times overall, and his career has had a natural trajectory.

“Rocky has a pace and a physicality that’s hard to teach,” Leibach said. “That’s a natural gift of his, and it’s a pace and physicality that’s hard for opponents to keep up with.”

Pursuing his passion

While Almendarez may soon be working with this father as a roofer full-time, Shipp still plans to continue in the sport, both as a competitor and a coach.

“I’m going to be wrestling at the Division I level,” he said. “I’m nowhere near finished.”

Shipp said he plans to make the announcement of which school that will be in the next few weeks.

Shipp has been wrestling since his very early days, around 5 or 6 years of age, and his first coach has been his lifelong coach.

“My mom and dad (Erin and Ryan), for sure,” he said, when asked who’s given his career a major boost. “They’ve helped me out with everything, supported me 100% and always believed in me.”

“For both Gauge and Rocky, Ryan Shipp’s dedication to their development has been huge,” said Leibach.

“I wasn’t all-in at first, but coach Shipp really pushed us— everyone in my class—and they all stayed with wrestling because of him,” said Almendarez.

Shipp also credited two-time NCAA champion Eric Jurgens, who leads Shipp’s Iowa-based club team, Young Guns.

Like Jurgens, Shipp plans to stay with the sport when he’s done winning championships.

“I definitely want to coach at some point,” said Shipp, who shortly after his interview could be found offering advice to some younger wrestlers warming up in the Gale School gym. “I’ll always be involved with the sport.”

This article originally appeared on Rockford Register Star: Two Galesburg wrestlers end their career with top 5 finishes at state