Ranked No. 1 in in his weight class most the season, Hayden Watson looks to return to the state finals.
Daily Journal file photo
The west wall of Center Grove’s wrestling room is a persistent reminder of the program’s past.
Pins, wins or otherwise, the single-season and career leaders in various categories are displayed as a means of inspiration to those who enter.
Hayden Watson has had four years of after-school practices to stare at the names and numbers.
The senior admits he notices. Occasionally. However, at this moment, Watson’s focus is so intensely singular that concerning himself about which rung of history he occupies is among the least of his worries.
Watson, the defending state runner-up at 145 pounds, wants to finish his prep career with a victory beneath the intense glare of the spotlight inside Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. Coincidentally, doing so might actually position him at the top of the Trojans’ career win list.
Two birds, one stone.
Center Grove’s current standard is the 154 victories compiled by Anthony Schoettle, a 2013 graduate. Watson, ranked second in the state among 145 pounders with a 29-1 record this season, takes the mat at Saturday’s Mooresville Sectional with 140 career wins.
In order to approach and perhaps even catch Schoettle, all he has to do is not lose — for the rest of his high school career.
“I usually don’t look at (records). It’s not that big of a deal to me,” Watson said. “A state championship is just something I’ve looked forward to for a long time. It’s something I’ve worked for my whole career.
“After I do or don’t get (a title), my focus will shift to college.”
Watson, who committed to attend The Citadel, a military college in Charleston, S.C., lost to Zionsville’s Logan Wagner, 9-5, in last season’s finale. His 32-5 record earned him a share of the Daily Journal’s Wrestler of the Year honors with teammate Drake Buchanan, the returning state runner-up at 182 pounds.
Memories of the aftermath of last season’s final match remain fresh in Watson’s mind.
“Everything just kind of went quiet,” he said. “I thought to myself, ‘I can’t believe I lost. I got second.’ I do not like second at all. I’ve never liked losing. I think that’s what fuels me more than anything.”
Under normal circumstances, Watson would either be closer to taking over as the Trojans career leader in wins or have already done it. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic caused some matches to be canceled during the 2020-21 regular season.
Watson’s place in history is secure whether he gets the record or not. Numerous individual titles since the start of the 2018-19 wrestling season, whether county, conference, sectional or regional, guarantee it. He advanced to the second round of semistate as a 113-pound ninth-grader, took home a third-place state medal at 132 as a sophomore and was second on the podium last February.
All that remains is the state championship Watson thinks about every time he practices, works out in the school weight room or runs in the offseason to improve his conditioning.
“Records are cool and all that stuff, but it shows Hayden’s laser focus on winning a state title,” Trojans coach Maurice Swain said. “That’s kind of what he’s tunnel-visioned on. Hayden is just one of those guys that going into his senior year, that was his goal.”
