Tom Whalen supports the old adage that good things come to those who wait — and work.
The Prospect wrestling coach has watched several of his wrestlers wait their turn for a spot in the lineup before blossoming into winners on the mat.
Ryan Vedner, a senior competing at 170 pounds, is one of them.
“It was never a case of, ‘Would he become the wrestler he is (now)?'” Whalen said. “It was just (a matter of) when he would.
“Ryan is a program guy. He’s a person who has paid his dues and continued to work hard until his opportunity came to him last year.”
Now, Whalen said, Vedner is passing his knowledge along to other wrestlers so they might get that same opportunity one day. He wrestled in a handful of matches as a sophomore and became a fixture in the varsity lineup last season.
“Our lineup was so deep and talented, so you continue to work and train hard, put the extra time in,” Vedner said. “When your chance comes, you have to take advantage of it.”
Vedner advanced to the Class 3A Hoffman Estates Sectional last season before a concussion forced him to bow out of the 170-pound bracket. He wrapped up the season with a 25-8 record.
He’s been even better this season.
Vedner entered the week at 28-2, with 20 of those victories secured by a major decision, technical fall or pin. He is ranked fifth in his weight class among Class 3A wrestlers by IllinoisMatmen.com.
But he would rather not think about rankings in the middle of his senior season.
“None of that matters, and it’s something I really don’t pay attention to,” said Vedner, who won Prospect’s Mudge-McMorrow title at 170 pounds last month. He also placed second at Barrington’s Moore/Prettyman Invite in November.
“I know who the toughest and best competition for me will be, so where anyone is ranked in the state means nothing, because sooner of later you’ll have to beat them to advance.”
Vedner is preparing for those important matches by sticking to his tactical style and keeping up the work ethic that has gotten him to this point. Whalen said the mental aspect to wrestling has been a strength for Vedner as well.
“He’s always been a hard worker and talented wrestler, but his confidence and mental toughness have improved along with his conditioning, which has kept him injury-free,” Whalen said.
Vedner said he would like to wrestle in college but has not yet chosen a school. Wherever he goes, he plans to study natural resource conservation or forestry.
Prospect (16-6 in dual meets) also has benefited from the solid efforts of several other top wrestlers. Junior Andrew Baysingar (126, 27-3) has returned to form after an injury cut his season short last season. He qualified for the Class 3A state meet as a freshman.
Baysingar and freshman Jack Milos (113, 27-3) both went 5-1 at DeKalb’s Don Flavin Invitational at the end of December.
Meanwhile, senior Joe Kaiser (195, 20-4) has exceeded his win total of last season.
At DeKalb, Vedner won all six of his matches to help the Knights go 4-2 as a team.
Michael Garofola is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
Twitter @Pioneer_Press
