NAUGATUCK — To be successful on the wrestling mat takes a combination of skill, speed and strength.
For the better part of six years, Logan Wilcox has been honing his skills through the Pomperaug-Oxford youth wrestling program. This season, the Naugatuck High freshman is representing the Garnet and Grey as a team of one and wrestling with Pomperaug.
The sport of wrestling is not about winning every match. It’s about building technique to move up the ranks to compete with the best. Pomperaug head coach Tony Ryan said that is where Wilcox is heading.
“Logan has improved his skills since day one,” said Ryan, who is in his fourth year at the helm of the Panthers. “I believe this is Logan’s sixth year in the Pomperaug youth program, so he’s not your typical first-year high school wrestler.”
Wilcox will wrestle in the 160-pound class, Ryan said.
“I will try and match him up in every dual meet and tournament we have on the schedule. He is a lot more aggressive than when he first started, and if he continues to fine tune his skills he has the potential to place at states this season.”
Steve Wilcox, Logan’s father, said his son first got involved with wrestling through the Pomperaug-Oxford youth program directed by Geoff Hayden.
“Every year he continued to improve and now he is competing at the high school level,” Steve Wilcox said.
Like anything else, there is a learning process. In his first high school wrestling match, Wilcox wasn’t as successful as he had hoped and was outpointed 13-7 in a decision to a New Fairfield wrestler.
“Being my first high school match I think the nerves kind of clouded my judgment at times,” Wilcox said. “Looking back at the tapes I felt I could have done some things better and possibly have won the match. But at this point it’s all a learning experience.”
“The thing I noticed about high school competition compared to the youth program is the overall intensity,” Wilcox added. “Coach Ryan has been stressing to me that it’s all the little things that you can build on to reach that next level.”
Wilcox found success at the Pomperaug Invitational on Dec. 16. He earned a pin of his opponent to pick up his first win of the season and went 1-2 in the tournament.
“From the very first time you step on the mat it’s all a learning experience,” he said. “It was definitely a moral boost to be a freshman and to be able to pin a varsity wrestler.”
Aside from wrestling and his studies, Wilcox is also a member of the percussion section of the Naugatuck High School marching band.
“I’ve got a few things to keep me busy,” Wilcox said. “Our band season came to an end at Met Life Stadium in New Jersey playing under the lights at the Nationals in early November. That was pretty exciting.”
“Now I have a little more time to focus on the little things that coach Ryan talks about to get better as a wrestler,” Wilcox added. “Doing the best I can in school is always a priority. I want to get my endurance up and work on my technique and positioning. It’s the little things that will help me to achieve my goal of wrestling at the states.”
