Liberty’s Russo, Scioto’s Wilson eye three-peats

Olentangy Liberty’s Dylan Russo and Dublin Scioto’s Ty Wilson embrace their status among central Ohio boys wrestlers and the challenge they face this season.

Russo, a senior, wants to close his prep career with a third consecutive state title while Wilson, a junior, hopes to stand atop the state podium for the third season in a row.

Both realize their opponents won’t be backing down, especially once the state tournament arrives.

“It pushes me to work a little bit harder,” Russo said of the competition. “I know some kids are looking at me saying, ‘Russo is who I want to beat and I want to wrestle him as well as I can,’ so I guess it’s pushing me to work harder in the room and helping me excel and get better.”

Russo, an Oklahoma commit, captured his second state title last winter with a 5-3 win over Oregon Clay’s Ty Cobb in the 215-pound final to finish 34-6. He won at 220 as a sophomore.

“Whether he thinks about it or not, other people do, so he does have a target on his back,” Liberty coach Mark Marinelli said.

Wilson won the state title at 132 last season, defeating Toledo Whitmer’s Jeremy Ginter 9-7 to finish 53-4 after winning at 113 as a freshman.

“There will always be a target on my back, but that’s one of the things that motivates me to keep working hard in the room,” said Wilson, who plans to compete at 144 this winter. “I’m feeling great. I have to stay consistent, making sure that I’m not slacking off in the room. I know that being a two-time state champ could get to my head, but I have to keep working and know that I have more things to achieve.”

Wilson has aspirations of graduating as a four-time state champion. He is the first Scioto wrestler to win two.

“He’s had that target since the middle of his freshman year when people started saying, ‘Who is this kid?’ And then last year being a returning state champ, obviously kids wanted to beat him,” Scioto coach Adam Huddle said. “That comes with the territory and that’s where you have to wrestle through positions and that’s where we can help him and coach him and get him more offensive and score more points.”

Several teams are expected to contend for a Division I district title, including Dublin Coffman.

“We lost a huge nucleus of our team last year, but the expectations don’t change,” Shamrocks coach Chance Van Gundy said. “We have some voids to fill, but I like the direction of our program. I truly believe our future is bright. We’ve had a good run, but it’s far from over. The culture is changing even for the better. It’s stronger than ever.”

Coffman features junior Omar Ayoub, who won the state title at 126 last season after losing to Wilson at 113 as a freshman. He plans to compete at 138 this season.

Coffman junior Ethan Birden finished second at state at 144, losing the title match 1-0 to Perrysburg’s Joey Blaze. Birden finished fifth at 132 as a freshman.

Along with Russo, Liberty expects another big season from junior Jaxson Rosselli, who finished third at state at 113 last season and fourth at 106 as a freshman.

Desales again should be a top contender in Division II.

Desales senior David Mcclelland earned the program’s first state championship since 2005 by winning at 132 a season ago. He plans to compete at 138 this season.

Desales junior Max Shulaw is seeking his first state title after finishing second at 215 last winter and fourth at 195 as a freshman.

Also in Division II, Watterson returns sophomore Mitchell Younger, who is coming off a state title at 144.