Believing In Himself Sandpoint Wrestler Isn’T Superman, Just A Lot More Comfortable On The Mat

In retrospect, Sandpoint High wrestler Jake Rosholt believes he could have won a state championship last year as a freshman.

Physically, Rosholt held his own against his peers. Mentally, though, he was no match against the best at his weight.

It appears he’s pinned his most difficult opponent to date - confidence. The final exam will come at state next month.

If that result is anything like an early-season test, Rosholt should earn an A. Rosholt, who posted a 33-7 record at 140 pounds and placed fifth at state last year, grew about 4 inches and put on about 20 pounds in the off-season. He’s up three weight classes at 160.

His record is 21-0. Counted among those wins are titles at the prestigious Tri-State Tournament, Sandpoint’s tourney (where he was named outstanding wrestler) and the Madison Invitational in Rexburg, Idaho.

Rosholt admits he has experienced his best growth between his ears.

“I didn’t have self-confidence last year,” Rosholt said. “I just didn’t go out and wrestle (at state). I held back and I was timid. I just didn’t believe in myself, I didn’t have the heart. Maybe it’s something that comes with maturity.”

Rosholt’s coach Mike Randles says the changes have been measurable on the mat.

“Last year, he’d get a little nervous before a match,” Randles said. “He’d change his style and start doing things he normally wouldn’t do.”

Rosholt said his two losses at state - particularly an 8-5 quarterfinal defeat to eventual state champion Pete Hodges, a senior from Idaho Falls - are prime examples of his lack of confidence.

“I regret it now that I look back at it,” Rosholt said. “I was disappointed because I didn’t wrestle to my potential. If you wrestle as well as you can and don’t win, you can live with it because maybe somebody better won.”

His confidence began growing during the freestyle season.

Rosholt showed his potential at the Cadet World Trials (for 15-16 year olds) when he finished second, losing 11-7 to a Pennsylvania wrestler in the final.

Rosholt will compete one more year at the Cadet World Trials.

Rosholt took fifth at the Cadet Nationals, where he lost 11-6 to an opponent he had beaten 12-3 at the World Trials.

It was another learning experience, he said.

Rosholt graduates to the Junior Nationals, where he will have three years of eligibility, this summer. He hopes to place, something his friend Jared Lawrence - Sandpoint’s unbeaten, four-time state champ - never accomplished.

During his freshman season, Rosholt leaned heavily on his freestyle skills. Takedowns were his forte. Unless the move worked into a pin, he normally let his opponents loose so he could score another takedown.

“I didn’t know how to grind,” Rosholt said. “I couldn’t ride (opponents). Most of my matches were on my feet.”

Randles spent considerable preseason practice time drilling Rosholt on scoring while on top and working from underneath opponents.

“He has an inherent tenaciousness about him,” Randles said. “Last year, he had a tendency to make mistakes on the bottom and he had trouble getting out from underneath. This year, he hasn’t cut one kid.”

Rosholt has had two impressive victories this season. The first came in the Tri-State finals when he rallied from a 5-0 deficit in the second period to beat senior Matt Westenfelder of Lakeside (Nine Mile Falls, Wash.) 11-5. Westenfelder was a State 2A champ last year.

His other big win came last weekend in the finals at Madison. Rosholt handled senior Aaron Portmann of Hillcrest 11-1.

Portmann, third at 152 last year, was ranked No.1 in the state going into the tourney. Second-ranked Rosholt will move atop the rankings next week.

Sandpoint, famous for its wrestling families, has another coming in the Rosholts. Jake is the oldest of three brothers and a sister, Jesy, who all wrestle.

Jesy, an eighth-grader, doesn’t plan to wrestle in high school, but Jake expects his brothers to be as good or better than he.

And Jake will be a dandy before he’s finished.

“He could have been a four-time state champ if he’d been able to start at a lower weight than 140,” Randles said. “That’s a tough weight for a freshman to start at. But he will make a name for himself before he’s done. He’s always been a great takedown technician. As he develops the other ingredients over the next three years, he will be a very difficult kid to beat.”

It’s evident already.

Rosholt has had a cosmetic change since last year. He now sports a tattoo of the Superman emblem on his right shoulder.

He knows what some people probably think when they see the tattoo.

“But I’m not a cocky person,” he said. “I’ve always been a Superman fan. It’s a motivational thing. I don’t think I’m Superman or unbeatable.”

He just looks like it.

“Winning state was a dream last year. I could have won if I’d believed in myself,” Rosholt said. “It’s a realistic goal this year.”

He’s certainly making believers. And count Rosholt among them.