Why Roberson wrestling is hitting its stride entering NCHSAA individual state championships

ASHEVILLE – There was a much smaller group than normal in Roberson’s auxiliary gym during Tuesday’s wrestling practice.

Most of the team already had wrapped up its season. Just five Rams are still wrestling, preparing to head to the NCHSAA Individual State Championships starting Thursday.

Two of the wrestlers, Itachi Duvernay and Connor Reese, practiced against each other. Reese held his own, despite being in a weight class 120 pounds lighter. Neither practiced at full speed.

Coach Justin Pike gave the wrestlers five minutes of free practice time, letting them work on whichever moves they want. At this point, there’s no changing the style that helped them advance this far, he said.

“It's been a long road to get here throughout the season,” Pike said. “We wrestled a lot of matches. That’s what this time of year is about – finding your peak at the right time.”

Reese and Duvernay are hitting their strides, winning the 4A West Region in their weight classes. They key, they said, is not to let the pressure impact performance.

“You just gotta stay calm and go out there and wrestle,” Reese said. “It’s the same as any other weekend.”

“I find the best way to get better at wrestling is just to do it,” added Reese, who wrestles year-round. “As long as I can find some place to get on the mat, that’s what I do.”

At this point in the season, Duvernay, who wrestles in the 285-pound class, will practice against the much smaller 165-pound Reese. It helps him work on speed.

Duvernay’s improvement has been steady and remarkable, advancing to the state finals in only his second year wrestling.

“I only had one move last year,” Duvernay said. “All I would do is hip-toss people. Now I have about four or five good moves.”

Part of Duvernay’s quickness translates from football, where he was an All-WNC offensive lineman for the Rams. Both hand fighting and flipping hips have transferred from to the mat, he said.

“He’s the first big boy I’ve ever seen move like that,” Reese said during practice, after Duvernay escaped a move from his teammate.

Roberson will also be carrying teammate PJ Deshauteurs with them in their thoughts after Deshauteurs, who wrestled in the 215-pound class this season and was on Roberson’s football team, was shot and injured Feb. 9.

The team was at regionals when they heard about Deshauteurs, Duvernay said, which motivated him to win a regional title. Come this weekend, Duvernay will be wrestling for his teammate and longtime friend. A state title, he said, would bring extra meaning.

“Obviously it’s a very unfortunate situation,” Pike said. “We love him and wish the best. … Everybody handles things in their own way, but right now we’re trying to focus on what’s ahead.”

Beyond Duvernay and Reese, Roberson is sending three other wrestlers to state – junior Job Brown is the second seed from the West Region in the 144-pound class, while his younger brother, freshman Luke Brown, earned the third seed in 106-pound class. Freshman Lilly Reese will wrestle in the first girls individual state championship at 145 pounds.

Reese will be the first girl to represent Roberson after the sport became sanctioned at the NCHSAA level this season. As a freshman, she wasn’t around as the sport transitioned. Still, making a state competition was her main goal this season.

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“I don’t know if I’m going to go out there and go 0-2 or if I’m going to win the whole thing,” Reese said. “Hopefully that’s what my plan is, but just the fact that I made it as a freshman – I’m not going to worry about it.”

As practice ended, Pike gave a message to his team. Everything they’ve worked for since the season started Oct. 31 has led to this weekend. He knows his team is ready.

“They’re wrestling really tough right now,” Pike said. “They’re well-prepared heading into it.”

Evan Gerike is the high school sports reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times. Email him at egerike@citizentimes.com or follow him on Twitter @EvanGerike. Please support this type of journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times.

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Roberson wrestling hits stride entering individual state championships