BUTLER TWP — While he is only a sophomore, Butler wrestler Christian Sequete isn’t shy about his goals on the mat.

He wants it all.

“I want to place at the state meet this year and eventually win a state championship,” Sequete said. “I want Cole Baxter’s record here, too, but last year may have cost me my shot at that.”

Baxter, a senior at Kent State University, is the Golden Tornado’s all-time wins leader with 160. Sequete was 15-10 his freshman season, missing six weeks with a torn meniscus.

He was able to return to action in time to qualify for the WPIAL Tournament, where he reached the third round.

“What hurt Christian was losing a lot of that critical varsity experience as a freshman,” Butler coach Scott Stoner said. “The year before that, he was wrestling eighth-graders.

“Wrestling varsity as a freshman is always an adjustment period, especially when you’re a freshman at an upper weight class. You’re wrestling kids two or three years older and with a lot more experience.”

That hasn’t bothered Sequete so far this season. Despite being a “young” sophomore at age 15 and wrestling at 170 pounds, he leads the Golden Tornado with a 25-2 record, 14 pins and 127 team points.

Justin Johnson is second on the team with 20 wins and 96 team, points while Caleb Baxter has 10 pins.

“Christian is one of our top dogs,” Stoner said. “As he gets physically stronger and his body continues to mature, he will get that much better.”

Sequete was 25-6 with 15 pins as an eighth-grader. He reached the junior high state tournament in seventh and eighth grade. He placed sixth at the state meet as a sixth-grader.

He knows all of the numbers in terms of Butler wrestling history.

“Just getting 100 wins would be a big accomplishment for me,” Sequete said. “We’ll see where it winds up. I just want to win as many matches as I can and wrestle for as long as I can.”

He’s already learned that injuries can cause setbacks.

“I missed most of the summer (before his freshman season) and wasn’t as sharp as I could have been,” Sequete said.

This year has been a different story.

Both of Sequete’s losses have been by decision to the same opponent — Anthony Welsh of Beth-Center — who placed fifth in the PIAA meet last season with a 36-6 record. A senior this year, Welsh has more than 4,600 career yards and 80 touchdowns as a running back in football.

That has been the only athlete to derail Sequete so far this season.

“I know I have to wrestle better on my feet and harness my shooting so it’s more consistent,” Sequete said. “I’ve got plenty of room to get better.”

That could be bad news for the competition.

Stoner said Sequete could wind up as one of Butler’s all-time best wrestlers by the time he’s through.

“He needs to get a little tighter with some of his technique, but, absolutely, all of the tools are there,” the coach said. “It will come down to how hard he wants to work at continuing to get to that next level.

“It’s all in front of him. He’s having a great year.”