Warrenton wrestling coach Kevin Fowler is hopeful a program milestone has paved the way to new standards. The Warriors recently celebrated their first individual state champion, with senior J.J. Filipek winning the Class 3 title at 182 pounds. It was a goal that was often talked about within the team circle but had never been accomplished in two trips to the finals. “I think it puts creedance to the statement,” said Fowler. “Now when we talk about winning state titles, the kids will realize that it has been done.” Fowler, who won a state championship during his high school wrestling career, says overcoming the mental aspect of achieving such a feat is critical. Seeing is believing, according to the fifth-year coach. “High school athletes need to believe something can be done,” said Fowler. “Not having a state champion in our program was kind of a mental block for us.” This year’s team also showed the possibility of having an illustrious career, even if it comes without top honors. Senior Ryan Sherry claimed his third straight state medal to place himself among an elite field. Fowler says success tends to breed success, based on the enthusiasm and motivation it brings into the program. In contrast, a struggling program that reaps no rewards from its work will continually lack the desire to work harder. “I’ve been in programs where the mentality every year was that you’re going to have state champions,” said Fowler. “The more you get kids around greatness, the more acclimated they are to the situation.” The wrestling program has been down in numbers the past few years, struggling to fill several weight classes. After taking seven competitors to state in 2011, the Warriors were reduced to just three this year. Fowler believes outsiders will take notice of the program thanks to Filipek’s achievement. "Hopefully this is a recruiting tool, because not many sports have a state champion tied to their name,” said Fowler. He says wrestling faces a unique barrier often not found in other sports. Unlike most mainstream sports, a freshman who has never wrestled before is typically very unfamiliar with the sport. “It’s hard to recruit a freshman student onto a wrestling team because it’s so foreign to them,” said Fowler. “They have not concept of what it’s really like. A lot of these kids think it’s WWE.” Fowler says retaining athletes is also difficult, because a wrestler’s development often takes several seasons. If an underclassmen has not competed prior to high school, it may be junior or senior year because the work reaps evident results. “We have lots of numbers to start off,” said Fowler. “But when kids that have never wrestled before go out against somebody that’s far more experience, they’re going to get it handed to them for a while. There’s a couple years of growth in technique. It takes a special kid to stick with the program and understand it will pay off in the end.” Fowler used junior Dakota Werner for example. It took a lot of convincing for Werner to finally try wrestling, but ultimately Fowler says it was an excellent fit for him. Werner will be the Warriors’ only returning state qualifier next season.