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EDWARDSVILLE – Edwardsville's Noah Surtin is without a doubt one of the top wrestlers in the state of Illinois in the 120-pound weight category.
Surtin lost his first wrestling bout of the high school season at last weekend's Cheesehead Tournament in Wisconsin.
Surtin, one of the top-ranked wrestlers in Illinois, reacted about the way those who have known him would react.
“It just makes me want to work harder,” Surtin, who wrestles at 120 pounds for the Tigers, said. “I got back in the practice room the next day; I got a workout in, I worked hard. Every time I step on that mat, I'm thinking about that loss and thinking about state and what I can do to improve and get back.”
The Tigers won twice Thursday night, defeating Alton 60-19 and Belleville Althoff 45-22 in a triangular meet, with Surtin winning both of his bouts on the night; he and the Tigers went into their match against the Redbirds knowing that they couldn't take their Southwestern Conference rivals lightly. “We knew they were going to be tough,” Surtin said. “They had a tough dual against Belleville West and we had a tough dual against Belleville West; we knew they had tough kids, so came out like we always do; we don't take anyone lightly – it was a good win for us.”
Surtin won both of his bouts by fall. “I just wanted to go out here and make a statement,” Surtin said. “I'm not backing down any more, I'm working harder and getting better every single day.”
Surtin took fifth at last year's IHSA Class 3A individual state tournament, defeating Chicago St. Rita's Tommy Russell in a 33-second pin; Surtin is determined to get back to Champaign-Urbana's State Farm Center in mid-February and bring back a state championship, something a Edwardsville wrestler has never done.
“Edwardsville's never had a state champion and I think we can have two in one year,” Surtin said, referring to Luke Odom, who wrestles at 132. “Me and Luke – that's what we're striving to do every day; we both have tough brackets – I know I'll have three Top-10 kids in the country, so it'll be stacked, it'll be fun and exciting and I'm ready to compete.”
