Neer brothers part of Northmor’s strength
CARDINGTON – Sam Neer leaned toward the mat where his younger brother and Northmor teammate, Jake, was wrestling for a spot in this weekend’s district tournament, shouting advice and encouragement during Saturday’s Division III sectional wrestling tournament at Cardington-Lincoln High School.
It’s been that way in the Neer family for a long time.
Jake’s victory in the consolation semifinals at 106 pounds secured the brothers’ second district bid of the day. Sam previously had wrapped up his berth by reaching the finals of the 145-pound class with older brother, Caleb, cheering him on.
Jake and Sam are two of 23 Marion-area grapplers who finished in the top four of their respective weight divisions to advance to the district meet, which is scheduled for Friday and Saturday at Coshocton High School.
The Neers also helped the Golden Knights win the team event with 235 points.
District appearances for Northmor are a common thing in the Neer household, which boasts 10 members.
The children are, in order of age by sex, brothers Ben, Caleb, Jedd, Sam and Jake and sisters Lyndsay, Hannah and Alyssa. Their parents are Doug and Denise Neer.
Caleb, Jedd, and now Sam and Jake are all district qualifiers.
All of the boys but Ben have wrestled, and the girls have been a part of the wrestling circle by keeping stats.
“Alyssa was real small when she was young, and we tried to talk her into a low weight class when she was young,” Sam said. “But dad thought it was a bad idea.”
Sam and Jake got their starts when their father took them to watch Caleb compete in a biddy program.
They became involved in that program and were coached by their brothers, who volunteered their time to help out.
All of the wrestling boys would attend open tournaments and compete at one age level or another. “We would be there all day, waiting on all of us to wrestle,” Sam said.
The best district finishes from the group have been a fifth by Jedd and eighth from Caleb.
Jake thinks Caleb has been the best of the bunch.
“He knows technique and mental strength, which is very important if you want to do well,” Jake said. “It’s nice to have them all around. If you have a problem, you can go to one of the brothers.”
Sam said the boys school also plays a part in their participation in the sport.
“At Northmor, the sport to do is wrestling,” he said.
Sam said there has been internal family pressure on he and Jake to make the district tournament.
“It’s never vocal, but there is always that sense you have to live up to expectations set by our older brothers,” he said.
Sam Neer placed second Saturday, while Jake finished third.
The Neers, however, aren’t the only members of the Northmor team who fared well Saturday.
Conan Becker (120), Jake Farley (138) and Kyle Johnson (182) won individual titles, while Aaron Kitts (113) and Griffin Jenkins (126) finished second.
“We don’t have the returning all-stars this year who are known statewide like we have in the past,” said Northmor coach Scott Carr, a native of Marion. “This is one of the top teams we’ve had, from top to bottom, at Northmor in a long time.
“I tell them to believe in themselves, and they keep showing up.”
Pleasant’s Ethan Ice was district champ at 126, as were North Union’s Corbin Bunsold at 170 and Brandon Cox at 285.
Other district qualifiers from area schools are:
•Northmor: Jake Neer, 106, third; Brice Trimble, 285, third; Lane Foster, 195, fourth.
•Pleasant: Brock Zugg, 138, third; Carter Wolf, 106, fourth; Preston Smith, 120, fourth.
•North Union: Noah Maynard, 113, fourth; Chandler Sandusky, 126, fourth; Christian Koch, 138, fourth.
•Mount Gilead: Tim Williamson, 145, third; Billy Matyac, 152, fourth; Kaleb Fisher, 285, fourth.
•Cardington-Lincoln: Lane Waddell, 145, fourth; Jarrod Fair, 220, fourth.
•District alternates (fifth-place finishers) from the Marion area are Ridgedale’s Kalib Patterson (106), Cardington-Lincoln’s Patrick Hook (113), Pleasant’s Noah Alexander (132) and Northmor’s Nathan Price (220).
dmcphers@nncogannett.com
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Twitter: @starsportsdenny
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To see a video from the sectional wrestling tournament, visit www.MarionStar.com.
OHSAA D-III SECTIONAL
At Cardington-Lincoln High School
Final team scores: Northmor, 235; Hartley, 164; West Jefferson, 140; Madison Plains, 1221/2; Liberty Union, 118; North Union, 114; Pleasant, 1121/2; Centerburg, 100; Columbus Academy, 781/2; Grandview Heights, 77; Mount Gilead, 60; Ready, 56; Cardington-Lincoln, 541/2; Newark Catholic, 46; Harvest Prep, 37; Ridgedale, 211/2; Eastmoor Academy, 15; Linden McKinley, 9; Danville, 8; Africentric, 7; Delaware Christian, 6.