The Barton men’s wrestling team has had itself a pretty darn good first season. The Cougars are reaping the benefits of that now.
This past weekend all 10 wrestlers qualified for the NJCAA Championships as Barton finished second as a team at the West Central District Championships.
So it wasn’t a huge surprise when Coach Mike Bammes reaped some of those rewards himself. Bammes was named Coach of the Year in the region as Barton achieved more than most would have predicted in its inaugural season of the sport.
“I do what I need to do to get the guys ready anyway I can throughout the year,” Coach Bammes said. “Both in and out of the classroom. This time of year it’s about how bad they want it and how hard they want to work to get it.
“This is my job. I love being a wrestling coach. These are the fun times of the year and it makes it even better when you’re a first year program having this success.”
Success is something Barton has had a lot of so far. The Cougars are not done. Barton will compete at the NJCAA National Championships Feb. 27-28 in Council Bluffs, Iowa.
For Coach Bammes, he hopes this group of kids is setting a foundation for the future.
“I would like to keep things rolling for many years to come,” Coach Bammes said. “This groups’ efforts and bringing in the good recruits year in and year out will help make that happen.”