Notebook: Encouragement from Mom put wrestler back on the mat
By Bob Sherwin
Seattle Times staff reporter
Snohomish County sports
Clint Osborn was finished with wrestling. Done.
Never again, he vowed, would he get on the mat, not after the humiliation of being pinned in 20 seconds. That was his final match. He was retiring from the sport.
He was 10 years old.
“There was a period there when he took time off, “said Peggy Osborn, his mother. “I did have to convince him to get back in wrestling because I love it so much. But I do recall him being frustrated.”
To his mom’s delight, Osborn returned to wrestling, but it took him three years to get that sting out of his system. He came back when he reached middle school. It was a fateful decision as the 18-year-old senior from Lake Stevens High School now heads to the Mat Classic this weekend as the favorite to win the Class 4A state championship in the 275-pound division.
“She encouraged me to come back, “Osborn said of his mom. “I came back in middle school, but I wouldn’t have if it wasn’t for my mom. I would not be where I am right now.
“It’s an emotional time. There are so many things I’m feeling. I’m excited because I know I probably won’t get another chance do this again ever. Plus, I’ll be losing the most important coach ever in my life [Lake Stevens wrestling coach Brent Barnes], who has helped me in all areas of my life.”
Heading into the weekend, Osborn also feels an emotional connection with his grandmother, Faye Stich, who has battled health problems. She had breast cancer and a subsequent brain tumor, but her cancer has been in remission for six years.
“My grandma pushed herself to be strong, “Osborn added. “I want to accomplish so many goals, for my grandparents, my mom, my dad, my coaches to be so proud of me. That’s the biggest thing driving me.”
Osborn finished second in the state last year, losing 3-1 in the finals to Brad Farmer of Vancouver’s Heritage High School, who weighed more than 300 pounds and now wrestles for the University of Oklahoma. Osborn still weighs about 240.
“He had me psyched out, I have to say, “Osborn said. “He had wrestled a kid I looked up to, and he beat him all up.”
The muscular Osborn routinely gives up 30 to 40 pounds in his matches. He won in Saturday’s regionals by pinning 275-pound Mac Stach of Snohomish.
Osborn and six other Lake Stevens wrestlers will try to defend their Class 4A state team title Friday and Saturday at the Tacoma Dome. Also representing the Vikings will be senior Lester Brown, the 2004 state 125-pound champion, now wrestling at 135. Barnes will try to lead the Vikings to their fifth state championship, their fourth in the past six years.
“I look back at the tradition. I try to think what they had to overcome to become the best, “he said of past Lake Stevens wrestlers. “So I push myself when it’s the hardest.”
It’s difficult to simulate the kind of hulking competitors Osborn faces each week. He wrestles teammate Andy Smith, a 215-pounder, but Smith doesn’t have the same bulk as Osborn’s opponents. So Osborn augments his practices with former wrestlers and even the father of one of his teammates.
Osborn is in a position perhaps as rare as any high-school senior. He has the chance to win a state title in two sports in which he finished second in the state as a junior. He also finished second in the shot put at the state track-and-field championships last spring.
Osborn, who finished fourth in the shot put at the Junior Olympic nationals last summer, is considered the best shot-putter in the state. He’ll have the opportunity to avenge a runner-up finish in the event this spring.
But Osborn is not looking that far ahead. He hasn’t even given this weekend much thought. He likes taking things as they come without putting uncommon emphasis on winning the title.
“You never disappoint yourself, “he said, “as long as you do the best you possibly can.”
Inspirational effort
Junior Austin Kintner of Cascade High School in Everett had an inspirational effort at the Region 1 4A wrestling tournament Saturday at Snohomish. Kintner, the No. 5 seed at 130 pounds, started the event with an 8-4 upset of No. 1 seed Bryan Irwin of Everett. Then he won by a point, 10-9, in the semifinals before losing to Auburn Riverside’s Eric Jones in the finals.
But what’s remarkable is that Kintner, who advanced to the Mat Classic this weekend, has reached this level of excellence in the sport despite suffering from ankylosing spondylitis, a painful arthritic condition.
“They [doctors] said it helps with the pain if I stay active, “said Kintner, who also runs and lifts weights year round. “Right now, I barely notice it [pain] compared to what I used to have.”
Kintner had to get off a medication last year because it was affecting his kidneys. Now he injects himself once a week on one medicine and twice a week with another.
“I really don’t like shots, “he said. “I just have to deal with it.”
Karen Ebel, a school secretary who helps in the Mariner wrestling program, said Kintner “is just a great kid. He never complains. Doctors have told him this [wrestling] is the best he can do. He has to keep moving and be active. I know there are days where it’s tough for him.”
Kintner said his goal is to place at state.
Around the county
“¢ Jonny Gilbertson, a 125-pound junior, enters the Mat Classic with a 36-0 record this season and 73-2 over two seasons. Gilbertson lost in the finals last year to Moses Lake’s Anthony Vela. Vela, however, is not participating this year because of academic problems.
“I’ve been working for this basically since I was 4, “Gilbertson said. “I fell short last year, so I’m really gunning for it this year.”
Bob Sherwin: 206-464-8286 or [email protected]
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