Ask 6-year-old Carter Mikels how it felt to win a state title, and he will simply shrug his shoulders with a small smile cracked.
While he might not feel the magnitude of his accomplishment yet, Mikels became the first elementary wrestler from the Seymour Wrestling Club to win the Indiana State Wrestling Association Folkstyle championship.
Mikels went 4-0 to win the Pee Wee 40 pounds division to finish as the top wrestler at the recent tournament hosted by Warren Central in Indianapolis.
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Following a bye, Mikels pinned Kaden Cole in 1:41 and won by another fall over Andols Banter in 30 seconds to make the championship.
In the finals, Mikels won a decision against Kanon Posey of Contenders Wrestling Academy 7-2.
“I liked to do pins,” Mikels said. “I like the shots because when you shoot the people, they’re strong, but you can get them.”
Seymour Wrestling Club youth coordinator and coach Justin Ratliff said Mikels came out strong in each of his contests.
“Carter is one of those wrestlers that goes hard out of the gate,” Ratliff said. “He was able to catch just about every one of his opponents unaware, even in the championship match. He got the first takedown in the championship and kept the lead, which is something we stress to the kids. It’s easier to get the first takedown and build on that lead.”
Seymour Wrestling Club sent a handful of kids to state, and Asher Ratliff and Isaiah Pichardo also placed in the tourney.
In the Intermediate 65, 8-year-old Asher placed sixth.
“It was tough,” Asher said. “There were lots of big, older kids from different teams. I wrestled pretty good. At first, I was really doing well, but then I got tired. It feels good to place. There were some tough kids. Last time, in my first year, I didn’t place.”
Ratliff won by fall in 1:52 over Brant Beck, pinned Eston Ward in 2:38 and defeated Max Wahl by technical fall 17-0 before losing to Central Indiana Academy’s Kyle Harden by major decision 10-0.
“Asher had two tough draws in the first rounds,” Ratliff said. “He kept digging deep and wrestling hard. We tell them to never give up because if they’re down three or four points, you can swing it back your way.”
Harden would be named champion in the division, defeating Contenders’ Andrew Williams 6-0.
Fresh off the high school season, Pichardo, a freshman at Seymour High School, finished fifth in the Cadet 88 bracket.
Switching weight classes, Pichardo saw mixed results at the tournament.
“I wrestled all high school season at 106. When I actually got to wrestle my weight class, it was pretty tough and something new,” Pichardo said. “I wasn’t really ready my first match, but it was better after that. I felt pretty comfortable at the tournament.
“The difference was strength, honestly. A 20-pound difference is a lot. When I transitioned, I felt a lot stronger. You have to have a different mindset when you wrestle people your own weight.”
In the first round, he lost by fall to Portage’s Robert Belshaw in 1:50.
Pichardo pinned Penn’s Vincent Sparrow in 4:31, but then lost to Norwell’s Tonner Johnson 10-1 in a major decision.
In a rematch with Belshaw, Pichardo won 5-2 to earn a medal.
“Isaiah beat a kid who beat him earlier in the year, and that’s a big confidence booster,” Ratliff said. “It shows growth and understanding. He learned from his first (match), and that says a lot.”
For Ratliff, the tournament yielded promising results for the upcoming Greco-Roman and Freestyle seasons.
“It’s exciting,” Ratliff said. “We always set the goals for our kids to train to be state champions. A very select few made it to the top of the podium. The last few years, we’ve had kids making it to the podium and placing. It’s exciting as a coach for the program, parents and kids.”