By Clint Mitchell
For Marshfield senior Micah Ragsdale, all of his years of hard
work and dedication have finally come to fruition.
The Blue Jays senior wrestler secured a college future last Friday
in the Marshfield High School library, signing his National Letter of Intent to
wrestle at Hannibal-LaGrange University next season.
“This is such a good day for me,” Ragsdale said. “It’s very
exciting. Overall, they have such a nice campus at Hannibal, and the coaches
are all good guys. It was just a perfect fit for me.”
A large crowd of family, friends and coaches piled into the high
school library to witness Ragsdale’s signing. And as one-by-one they came to
shake the senior’s hand, he admitted, the support was overwhelming.
“That means a lot to me,” he said. “I really didn’t expect to see
that many people show up. To have that kind of support, that just means so much
to me, more than I can explain.”
Ragsdale is coming off a 44-8 junior campaign, in which he won the
Class 3, District 3 title in the 195-pound weight class. He qualified for the
state tournament, compiling a 2-2 record en route to a second-place
consolation-bracket finish. The 6-0 senior also racked up a 31-14 record as a
sophomore, just missing out on state qualification.
But it was a trip to the Hannibal-LaGrange wrestling camp in the
summer leading into junior season in which Ragsdale made the biggest impact on
the Trojan coaching staff.
“He was such a hard worker, and she showed us that he wanted to be
a student of the sport,” said Hannibal-LaGrange University head wrestling coach
Scott Hawes. “He worked really hard, and really focused on taking on the
technique that we taught him.”
Hawes and his staff — who have qualified 10 wrestlers for the
National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics National tournament since
2008 — stayed in touch with Ragsdale over the following seasons, watching him
improve each time on the mat. But just as important as wins and losses, Hawes
said, was Ragsdale’s work ethic.
In fact, Ragsdale’s hard work was enough to earn him a spot on the
Missouri National team last summer, after the he finished fourth at the State
Freestyle/Greco tournament.
Though Ragsdale finished 0-4 at the National Freestyle/Greco
tournament in Fargo, N.D. — the premier event for high school wrestlers — his
participation alone in the highly-prestigious tournament was enough to leave an
impression on Hawes.
“That’s one thing we really look for,” Hawes said. “We saw him out
there wrestling in some big summertime tournaments. A lot of guys are at home
enjoying the summer off, but Micah was out there working. That’s important to
us.”
The fact that Ragsdale’s work ethic has carried him so far comes
as no surprise to Marshfield head wrestling coach Chris Teed, who has seen his
senior’s growth and maturity firsthand.
“It’s so exciting for me to see this for Micah,” Teed said. “I’ve
seen him put a lot of time and effort into getting this far. I have no doubts
he’s going to succeed at the college level, just because of how hard he works.”
Teed took over as the Jays’ head coach this summer, after spending
two years as an assistant, and he admits, without Ragsdale, the Marshfield
program would not be where it is today.
“Micah is such a good leader,” he said. “He’s not always the most
vocal, but he leads by example. That’s very important for a coach to have
somebody like that who’s going to take on some sort of leadership role. He’s
helped build this program up, and people have come out for us just because
they’ve seen how Micah handles his business.
“I’ve enjoyed seeing Micah go from where he was when I got here,
to where he is now. I’ve felt him getting better and getting tougher. I know
it’s encouraging to him to see all his hard work pay off.”
In addition to wrestling this winter, Ragsdale is also a standout
offensive lineman on the Blue Jays football team. And though he said he enjoys
his time on the grid iron, Ragsdale knows when the winter rolls around, he’ll
be putting in countless hours on the mat to ensure not only a successful senior
campaign, but an optimistic start to his college career.
“I really feel like I’m prepared (for college wrestling),”
Ragsdale said. “But I know I have a lot to work. I need to get better in the
top and bottom positions. But I have confidence in myself, and I know I can do
good and be successful when I get to Hannibal.”
