North wrestling snaps decade-long drought, wins district title

GROSSE POINTE WOODS — There’s a different type of connection when a high school coach has walked the same school hallways as a student.

Coaches at their alma maters often navigated the same school parking lot each morning, ate in the same cafeteria, and possibly even had the same teachers as their athletes.

The coaches know the athletic and academic expectations at the school, and they also know what it’s like to be a high school student-athlete.

For Grosse Pointe North boys wrestling head coach Jaron Nelson and his assistant coaches, Joey Lawnicki and Mike Bouldin, they know exactly what it’s like to be Norsemen.

“It’s a good connection for us because they can relate to us more, especially with them going to the school,” senior captain Preston Auld said. “We know where they came from and where they’re at now, and it makes our connection stronger between players and coaches.”

When Nelson thinks about expectations for North wrestling, he remembers 12 years ago when North won its last district championship with Lawnicki, Bouldin and himself all on the team under head coach Eric Julien, who is now the wrestling head coach at St. Clair Shores Lakeview High School.

Nelson remembers the excitement and pride that surrounded Norsemen wrestling. Now entering his fourth year as head coach, Nelson said the program is finally turning a corner.

“Under the previous coach, Derek Davison, who was a phenomenal coach, I just learned a lot from him,” Nelson said. “I saw his vision before he took off. He really helped mold most of the older guys that were on the team. When I stepped in, we just hit the ground running with wrestling. We made the guys love the sport and fall in love with building a team. The older guys just keep passing it down to the younger guys and building that cycle.”

North’s young corps of wrestlers had a strong group of veteran leaders with senior captains Preston Auld, a Division 2 state qualifier in the 144-pound weight class this year, and Ian DuVernay alongside senior Andrew Persyn, junior Blake DiCicco, and junior Barrett Nelson.

Auld led the team in wins with 35, and North earned its first district championship since Nelson and his coaching staff wrestled for the Norsemen, beating Harper Woods 46-24 Feb. 7 at Grosse Pointe North High School.

Nelson said his primary focus when taking over the job was putting North wrestling back on the map, and a district title is a great start toward that direction.

“It’s been an exciting one,” Nelson said. “We’ve got a younger team, and those boys showed up and were willing to learn a lot. We had to hit the basics, and we’re looking to hit the ground running next year with some consistency as far as the district title we won. In years past, North hasn’t had a big team as far as wrestling goes. I’m just trying to build that culture in Grosse Pointe and continue getting kids out.”

North would fall to Warren Woods Tower High School in its next matchup at regionals, but would see Auld, Persyn and sophomore Derand Sako all qualify for individual regionals on Feb. 11 at Lake Shore Fieldhouse.

Auld would earn district runner-up while Sako would wrestle his way through the consolation bracket, finishing fourth.

Sako, only in his second year ever wrestling, has been a breakout sophomore for the Norsemen in the 157-pound weight class, and said he felt comfortable in the sport because of his grandfather, who wrestled collegiately in Albania.

“I have a family background (in wrestling), and I just loved it when I first saw it,” Sako said. “It was natural for me.”

Alongside Sako, sophomore Dwayne Howell, who tallied 15 wins this year, sophomore Aaron Rabaut, freshman Mason Tapling, freshman Carlos Jackson and freshman Dominic Smolarek all made contributions for North this year on the mat as underclassmen.

Rabaut had an unconventional offseason after suffering a broken arm early into his freshman campaign, and had to work on retooling his craft while battling the mental part of returning to the mat.

Going 14-2 in junior varsity competition, Rabaut said he regained some confidence in his ability and expects to be an impact wrestler next season.

“I feel like I made a lot of progress and caught back up again,” Rabaut said. “Going into the offseason, I’m going to keep wrestling and hope to make it to regionals and states next year.”

From having 13 wrestlers his first year to 28 to end this season, Nelson and his staff have done an impressive job building the program and increasing numbers each year.

District hardware will only help promote the program more, and Auld said he already notices the change in outlook of Norsemen wrestling.

“I feel like in the past, wrestling was an overlooked sport and you kind of had to be in it to try out for the high school team,” Auld said. “Now, anyone can walk on, have a good time and compete.”