2022 is shaping up to be a pivotal year for Lexington Wildcat wrestling.

Head coach Chase Owens took over in 2021 after the departure of Derek Strobel, who had helmed the program for 22 seasons.

Owens had been an assistant under Strobel since 2012, so the transition has been a good one so far, he says.

“I had great relationships already established with the team members before coach Strobel left and they have been working just as hard for me as ever,” Owens said.

The team closed out their preseason this past weekend by winning the Wildcat Duals, a tournament hosted by Lexington as a fundraiser for the wrestling program. All ticket sales and concessions went towards team expenses including travel and equipment, mat tape and the actual competition mats rolled out in the gym for home matches.

According to Owens, tournaments such as this also have a wider purpose.

“This type of tournament lets the team see competition from other areas, even out-of-state teams like Commerce, Georgia, that they would not normally have a chance to encounter,” he said.

The Wildcats will launch themselves into region play this week, with four regional opponents scheduled in the month of January. So there isn’t much time to get acclimated and they have to perform to remain in the playoff picture.

“We take it one match at a time,” Owens said of region preparations. “We spend a week on that team, look at what they do, view film and past matchups, taking the season one obstacle at a time no matter what arbitrary ranking they have or we have at the time.”

The Wildcats are a young group this season, with only one returning State qualifier at the 132-pound level, Zach Couture.

Couture. “We built this team around him,” Owens said. “We have a lot of hard workers that match to match have continued to get better and better, but until we get to see lower state or regional championships, I’m not sure how they will fare across the board.”

Owens has tapped a source close at hand to fill out his roster this season: the Wildcats’ football team.

“I also coach football, along with one of our other wrestling coaches, so we tried to recruit from the football team — some of them have stepped up and filled holes for us this season,” he said. “It’s a good fit across the sports. It’s a good combination, especially for a defensive lineman because both sports require you to use your hands, and both are about applying pressure in the right spot and gaining an advantage with that pressure.”

Owens is a hands-on coach beside the mat, calling to his wrestlers throughout their matches, ever the coach and teacher.

“I’m a big ‘talk you through it’ coach,” Owens admitted. “They don’t have to do what I’m saying, but if they are in a position to need the coaching and guidance, I want them to be able to hear my voice saying, ‘This is what you can do.’ Ultimately the wrestler is going to make whatever decision they are going to make on the mat.”

Without a star wrestler on the roster, Owens positions this season as one in which they will be competing as a team more than as individuals. It’s an important distinction in a sport where individual wrestlers can earn state titles on their own records.

“I think we have a good opportunity to make a run on a state team championship,” Owens said. “We want to compete in as many duals as we can, and learn as a team. Figure out where we gave up points, where we gave up pins, that we could maybe not give them up in the future; also where we did get a win, when we could have gained more points. Because on the team level, every point is going to matter.”

Owens said the team mentality is important especially going through the region schedule, where playoff spots are on the line.

Goals aside, Owens said the way forward is clear.

“We take it one match at a time, we don’t look ahead, and win or lose we hold the team to high expectations — that’s Wildcat wrestling.”