Pre-Season Nationals provided redemption for 113-pounders Storr & Trout

By Rob Sherrill

The 113-pound weight class is one of the most difficult to handicap, especially as the season begins. It’s a weight class that often becomes home to a mass exodus of wrestlers moving up from 106 the previous season, in addition to those who are staying there…or not.

For two wrestlers who hit the mat on a year-round basis, that schedule often requires the same mindset a major league baseball player has. If that player doesn’t win today, there’s another game tomorrow. For the wrestler who doesn’t win this week, there’s another tournament next week.

That philosophy paid dividends for a pair of 113-pounders, Kanen Storr of Leslie (Mich.) and Doyle Trout of Utica (Neb.) Centennial, in the USA Wrestling Pre-Season Nationals, Nov. 2-3 at Cedar Falls, Iowa.

Storr was an undefeated state champion last season as a 106-pound freshman. Trout, who competed at 113 last season as a sophomore, won his second state title.

The two also were active in the off-season … and both took their lumps. Storr recorded a pair of wins over Owings Mills (Md.) McDonogh School’s T.K. Megonigal during the off-season, but those were his only quality wins in 12 matches against ranked competition. Trout, meanwhile, lost all nine off-season matches against such opponents.

Did that record beat down the confidence of either wrestler? It doesn’t appear that way. In fact, it made both stronger.

Fast forward to the Super 32, where the two fashioned very similar resumes. Neither placed in the top eight, but both came close. Storr advanced to the round of 16, where he lost 5-4 to North Bethesda (Md.) Georgetown Preparatory freshman Eric Hong. A 4-2 loss to Eli Stickley of St. Paris (Ohio) Graham knocked him out one match short of placing.

Trout, meanwhile, lost a round earlier, 1-0 to Garrett Lee of Marysville (Ohio). He ripped off three in a row in the consolations, including a 7-3 victory over Ethan McCoy of Saltsburg (Pa.) Kiski School, before a 1-0 loss to two-time Florida champion Kyle Norstrem of Brandon eliminated him two rounds short of the medals.

When it was time for the Pre-Season Nationals and the High School Division separated into two separate age groups for the first time, it was Storr and Trout who claimed the two 113-pound titles.

Storr racked up a 7-0 record in winning the 9th-10th Grade Division title. That mark included a technical fall and three major decisions and he finished it with a 4-2 victory over Cadet National placewinner Andrew Mehrholz of Deerfield (Ill.).

Trout went 5-0 to take the 11th-12th Grade Division crown. After scoring a major decision and three decisions, he pinned another Fargo All-American, Isaac Jimenez of El Paso (Texas) Coronado, in the final. Jimenez had beaten Trout, 13-5 in the Junior National Duals.

One weight class. Two wrestlers. A lot of losses under the bridge … replaced by wins.