Trio at top of Tornado heap
BUTLER TWP — Cole Baxter and Mike Crawford have reached the top of the leaderboard.
Eric Tuck wants to join them — but he has to get on the mat first.
The three Butler seniors are primed to leave their mark on the Golden Tornado wrestling program.
“We're the first group to come all the way through, from first grade on up,” 171-pounder Baxter said. “We want to leave here on top in the record books because records are made to be broken.
“Guys will come along behind us and topple what we've done. That's how you want the program to be.”
Entering competition at the Kittanning Duals this weekend, Baxter carried a career record of 130-14. Crawford, wrestling at 152 this season, is 104-27 despite an injury-plagued career.
Both have passed T.J. McCance's previous school record of 103 wins. Alex Evanoff (101) is the only other Butler wrestler to reach the century mark in wins.“I was there when all four of those guys got No. 100,” 145-pounder Tuck said. “I was 9 or 10 years old (and) in the stands when T.J. did it, and I've been a teammate of the other three.“I really want to get there, too. It's been a goal of mine my entire life.”Tuck began wrestling in first grade. Baxter began when he was 4 and Crawford got started in fourth grade.Tuck is 86-38 in his career and is on pace to slide into third on the Tornado's all-time victory list before he's done. But he's not in the starting lineup right now.Dillon Weston, a fellow senior, recently beat him out in wrestleoffs for the 145-pound slot. Tuck will try to win back his starting role in the Butler wrestling room Monday.“It speaks for where our program is at when a guy with nearly 90 career wins has to fight for his spot on the mat,” Butler coach Scott Stoner said.And Tuck has no choice but to fight.“I'm not certified at 140 and Mike (Crawford) is at 152. I'm pretty much locked in here,” he said. “That's how wrestling goes. It's part of the sport.”While Baxter and Crawford always have been around the 140 weight class or higher, Tuck was a 103-pounder his freshman year and has steadily grown.“He was a tall, lean 103-pounder,” Stoner said. “He's still tall and he's still filling out. A lot of freshmen and sophomores who have success at 103 or 112 fizzle out as they go up in weight as juniors and seniors.
“That hasn't happened to Eric. He's adapted well to the larger weight classes.”Crawford has rebounded well from injuries. He had two shoulder operations as a sophomore and battled knee problems last year.Yet when he gets on the mat, he wins.“Mike will be a lifer in this sport,” Stoner said. “He loves it that much. A wrestler can overcome a knee injury, but shoulders are tough. He's been able to get through it.”Like Tuck, Crawford hopes his senior season ends with a trip to Hershey and a spot on the podium at the state meet.“Reaching 100 wins was important to me and kept me coming back,” Crawford said. “But, yeah, I want more. I want to get to that state meet.”Tuck and Crawford plan to wrestle in college. Baxter is weighing football and wrestling options and will make his decision after the season.For now, his sights are set on achieving what he can at the state level.“I thought I was ready to win a state title last year and it didn't happen,” Baxter said. “It's hard to stay focused and on top of your game all the way through, but that's what it takes.”Baxter dropped his WPIAL title match by a point last year and did not place at the PIAA meet. He won a WPIAL crown and finished fifth in the state at 145 pounds as a sophomore.“Cole is a great wrestler, but there are plenty of other teams across Pennsylvania with a Cole Baxter of their own,” Stoner said.Regardless of what hardware may or may not be coming their way, Baxter, Crawford and Tuck have not fallen short of expectations.“I knew when they were freshmen they had a chance to be the biggest winners we've had, Stoner said.He didn't keep such goals much of a secret.“We've always known what's been expected of us,” Crawford said. “Hopefully, we haven't disappointed.”
