Crestview’s Grubb earns milestone mark

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent editor

CONVOY — It’s a program that made its varsity debut just four years ago, during the 2020-2021 winter sports season, and now it has its very first 100-match winner.

Crestview senior wrestler Gavin Grubb, who attends Vantage Career Center, accomplished the feat by going 5-0 during last week’s Parkway Holiday Invitational. All five of his wins came via pins, including a :57 fall in the 128-pound semifinals that gave him the milestone mark. Win No. 101 came in the championship round, a 4:37 pin of Celina’s Aaren King. Grubb’s dominating day helped the Knights secure a second place finish at the invite, behind Division II Celina.

“It feels great to get to 100 wins,” Grubb said. “It has been a long term goal for me ever since I was a freshman, seeing all of these great wrestlers around me earning their 100 wins.”

Grubb picked up the sport while in elementary and has been going strong ever since. Along the way, he became an integral part of the fledging program, which has become more than competitive in a short amount of time.

“I have been involved in wrestling since fifth grade (2016),” he explained. “This is when Jake Sawmiller started the wrestling club. Since the first year of wrestling, my favorite thing about the sport has been the fact that size doesn’t matter. You are matched up with opponents your size. Another thing that I find truly amazing about wrestling is that in the end you determine the results. There is nobody else to blame for your loss and that truly helped me grow as a person.”

“Gavin is our first senior that has started with our youth program and followed all the way through to his senior year,” head coach Jake Sawmiller said. “He has been one of the best examples you could ask for of a kid coming through a new program. He works so hard every day, never makes excuses, and continues to push his partners in practice. He is leading this program by example beyond the success he’s had on the mat.”

“Gavin is a quiet kid,” Sawmiller continued. “Even when he’s hurting a bit, he won’t say it. His junior year he wrestled the entire season with a torn labrum and nobody even knew. He has that grit and determination to get through the pain and perform. I don’t advocate for hiding injuries but Gavin is tougher than about any kid you’ll meet on the mat.”

“My favorite thing about Gavin is not that he works hard and has a burning desire to be the best, it’s that he cares about his younger brothers and the youth of the community. Gavin is a shy kid but his actions go light years beyond his words. He’s as proud of his three younger brothers as he is in his own success.”

“He’s a great kid and his priorities go beyond his wrestling career and I couldn’t be more proud of him for that. He is a four-year straight A student athlete and is the best example of a kid that you could have on any sports team.”

For all of his accomplishments on and off the mat, including 100 wins, Grubb has goals that he wants to check off his list, both individually and team-wise.”

“My two major goals are to win NWC personally, but more importantly, win conference as a team,” Grubb stated. “This would get Crestview wrestling team our first conference title. As for postseason, I hope to go as far as possible and place as high as I can in the state to wrap up my career.”

Last year, Grubb’s season ended in the Division III districts.

When his season ends, whenever that may be, that may be it for Grubb and his wrestling career, as he pursues his plans for the future.

“I have received some letters of interest from colleges, however, at this time, I do not plan on going to college,” Grubb explained. “I enrolled at Vantage Career Center, Construction Equipment Technology, my junior year. I am going to try my best to get accepted to the Ohio Operators Union apprenticeship program upon graduation.”

Crestview will return to action on Saturday, January 13, right at home with the 12-team Crestview Wrestling Duals. The Knights are also slated to compete at the Van Wert Invitational on January 27, and a big dual meet with Columbus Grove is set for February 6.

Columbus Grove is on top of the conference as well as Allen East but we are hoping to push the norm and throw our name in the pot here,” Sawmiller said. “We are just four years into our program and hoping to make a statement with this crew of kids this year.”