| Mount Tabor's Dynamic Duo |
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| Written by Jamie Rutherford |
| Sunday, 10 September 2006 13:21 |
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Last February, as the state tournament was finishing up, Mount Tabor
High School crowned two champions in the finals: one at 171lbs and the
other at 189lbs. These two victories helped propel Mount Tabor to a
second place finish in the 4A individual state tournament. The
two champions for Mount Tabor were Austin Trotman and Anthony Clinton. Both young men have made huge strides in their wrestling career, considering they started later than a lot of other wrestlers. One started his wrestling career in the 8th grade, while the other didn’t start until his first year in highschool. Austin Trotman is now a two-time state placer after only wrestling for three years. Anthony Clinton’s state championship came in his first year of qualifying for the state tournament. Both wrestlers have become team leaders for Mount Tabor. Not only do they want to repeat as state champions, they also want the team to do well. They would like for the team to win a state dual championship plus win the individual state tournament, too. I recently had an opportunity to set down and talk with Austin and Anthony about wrestling, and here is what they had to say: Q - JR: How long have you two been wrestling? A - Trotman: I started wrestling in 9th grade. A - Clinton: I started wresting in 8th grade at Allen Middle School in Greensboro. I started wrestling to just stay in shape for football. Q - JR: Who would you give credit to in helping you become the wrestler you are now? A - Trotman: I have to give credit to Coach Hooker, Coach Hairston, and Coach Brown. They were the first coaches that I have ever had, and they got me started. A - Clinton: Coach Hooker mostly, then Coach Tony and Coach Brown. They push me a lot in practice. Q - JR: What do you two like about the sport of wrestling? A - Trotman: It helps me on and off the mat. It helps me spiritually; that is why I tell people, “How I found God was through wrestling.” It is a really good sport. It is an intense sport, and it gives me a challenge. A - Clinton: About the same as Austin; it helps me to be a better person. It helped me understand how to become spiritual and stuff. Q - JR: Would you name a few of your wrestling accomplishments? A - Trotman: I won States last year. I beat someone that I had lost to six times previously in the final; that was a big accomplishment for me. Every since then, I have wanted to get better and wanting to be on the mat more, and wrestle tough. A - Clinton: I won states. I have been to a lot of national tournaments and placed about six times. I have been to Rocky Mountain Nationals, The Ohio Tournament of Champions twice, and a couple more tournaments. Q - JR: Do you wrestle during the off-season? If you do, then what have you done this off-season? A - Trotman: Yes, I wrestle during the off-season. I have been to a whole lot of off-season tournaments like the Rocky Mountain Nationals. I got second up there. I also went to a lot of freestyle and greco tournaments, like the East Coast Duals and Fargo. I did okay in freestyle. I went 3-2 in freestyle and 2-2 in greco. I got to see some great competition up there. Q - JR: Was that your first time to Fargo? A - Trotman: Yes, it was my first time to Fargo. Q - JR: What did you think about the tournament? A - Trotman: It was a really good tournament. It was really tough. I plan on going next year. Q - JR: Anthony, did you wrestle during the off-season, and how did you do? A - Clinton: This off-season, I have been to Colorado. I placed 2nd at the Tournament of Champions. I have been to Virginia Beach, Ohio, and a couple more tournaments. Q - JR: What is your most memorable match in your wrestling career? A - Trotman: The state final was really a memorable match. I also wrestled a match out at Rock Mountain Nationals that was a really good match. It was somebody that was a two time or three time state champ, and I beat him, so that really felt good. A - Clinton: So far, it is the state final because I had already lost to the guy about three times, and I came back and won the match. It was special, too, because I was able to stay focused and beat this person in the state final. Q - JR: What are some of your short term goals for this year? A - Trotman: I would like for my team to not only win the individual state tournament, but also win the dual team state tournament. We didn’t even qualify last year for dual states. We ended up taking second last year in the state individual tournament, so I would like to win both this year. Q - What have you done to help achieve these goals? A - Trotman: A lot of our team has been staying on the mat, keeping each other strong. We make sure we work out together, so we can reach our goals this season. Q - JR: Anthony, what are some of your short term goals? A - Clinton: I would like to win states as a team and win individual states as a team, too. We call ourselves a family because we all hang out together, listen to each other’s problems, and do everything together most of the time. Q - JR: Austin, how is your college recruitment coming along and have any colleges contacted you yet? A - Trotman: A few colleges have: UNCG, Appalachian State, and Gardner-Webb. A couple of colleges have wanted me to wrestle for them. I want to take a visit to them. Q - JR: Anthony, have you received any letters of interest from any colleges yet? A - Clinton: No, not yet. Q - JR: What are some of your long term goals? A - Trotman: I would like to go to an NCAA Division I college, in-state or out-of-state, as long as it is somewhere. I would like to major in business management/accounting and own a business. Maybe even open up a wrestling club. A - Clinton: I would like to go to a Division I college and wrestle for four years. I would like to come back and help out at Mt. Tabor later and start my own business someday. Q - JR: How are your grades, and have you taken the SAT yet? A - Trotman: I have taken the SAT. I have gotten a 1210 on the SAT. This year my grade point average is 3.2 or 3.3. A - Clinton: Last year, I kept a 3.0 every semester. I believe my overall GPA is around a 2.9 now. Q - JR: Do you guys participate in any other sports? A - Trotman: I use to do Judo competition before I wrestled. I do not do those anymore. I am a certified Karate instructor, so I do that in the summer time also. Q - JR: Has your wrestling helped with those? A - Trotman: It has helped a lot, a whole lot. There are a lot of moves in wrestling that you can use in Judo. Q - JR: How about you, Anthony, do you participate in any other sports? A - Clinton: I use to play football my freshmen year, but I don’t play anymore. I am just concentrating on wrestling now. Q - JR: Are you involved in any club or activities at school? A - Trotman: I am in FCA, Fellowship of Christian Athletes. I am the leader of that this year. I will also become a member of the National Honor Society this year. Q - JR: How do you go about getting other students involved in FCA? A - Trotman: I mostly target people that play sports because it is the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, but athletes do not have to join. What I do is, if I see them having problems, then I will ask them to come to FCA in the morning to spread the gospel. Q - JR: Anthony, are you involved in any clubs at school? A - Clinton: No Q - JR: Finally, are you guys involved in any clubs or organizations outside of school? A - Clinton: No A - Trotman: I am in the NBS, which is the National Brotherhood of Skiers. My parents are really strong into that, so we go skiing every summer, either in Canada, Vancouver or Colorado. I have slowed down a lot because of wrestling season. I go sometimes. It’s still pretty fun. Q - JR: Have you been in any big wipe-outs while on the slopes? A - Trotman: None too serious, but I have had my fair share of falls. JR - Thanks guys for the interview. Anthony & Austin - You’re welcome. |
