Wrestling is about as individual of a sport as you can get. It’s just you and your opponent out there on the mat.

Not everyone can be a wrestler. It takes determination, guts, hard work and many, many sacrifices.

Travis Light has all of the aforementioned credentials, and then some.

The Buckeye Local sophomore lightweight was partially paralyzed last February while competing at the Panther Classic. He was slammed headfirst to the mat and subsequently taken by medical helicopter to a Pittsburgh hospital.

After undergoing months of rehabilitation, Light is back on the mat.

“There was no contemplating giving up on the sport. I’ve been born into this sport and it’s a sport I’ve been doing since I was 4 years old,” he admitted. “I’ve been around it since I was 3. It’s been a part of my life and I don’t think I could ever give it up.

“I missed it a lot. I’ve been working all summer and fall to get back out there with coach Saxton and coach Brooks,” he continued. “They helped me get back to where I was before, and I can’t thank them enough.

“I always knew it was possible. I felt deep inside myself that I could definitely have the will to get back out there. I’m definitely not back to 100 percent. I’m probably 85-90 percent, but there’s still work to be done. That gives me a reason to continue to work hard.”

The 126-pounder went 2-2 Thursday on the first day of the 28th annual Wheeling Park Duals inside WesBanco Arena, something that wasn’t overlooked by his head coach.

“Travis has come a long way. He’s only been cleared since June and he’s still not 100 percent, but you could never tell it,” head coach Willie Saxton said. “He’s wrestling better now than he was before he got injured.

“Travis has a big heart for the sport,” Saxton added. “His desire to win is outstanding.”

Saxton said Light can have a bright future in the sport because of his work ethic and determination.

“It’s just some small mistakes from him that has kept him from winning some matches, but that is to be expected,” the coach continued. “I’m proud to have him on my team. He’s very coachable. His actions motivate all the other kids. They see how he overcame a really bad injury. Most kids don’t come back from an injury like that, but most kids aren’t Travis Light.”

Brecksville Invitational Holiday Tournament

AT BRECKSVILLE, five area wrestlers received seeds as the 57th edition of the nation’s oldest continuous-running ‘holiday’ tournament begins today and continues Saturday.

Bridgeport, which is in its first year of attending the prestigious event, had three grapplers receive seeds. They included senior Garrett Duncan (7th, 182); and juniors Mason Kuneff (13th, 132) and Tino Kusic (8th, 160). All three qualified for the state tournament last winter.

Duncan will be taking the mat for the first time this season after missing the football season due to an injury. Kuneff was voted the Most Outstanding Wrestler at the Union Local Rick Link Invitational earlier this season, while Kusic is a two-time state qualifier.

Martins Ferry’s senior duo of Dalton Hoover (1st, 195) and Hunter Bodkin (3rd, 285) also received recognition.

Hoover will also be returning to action after recovering from a football injury. He was a Division III state runnerup as a sophomore and finished third last year.

Bodkin is a three-time state qualifier who prevailed at the Barnesville Doan Ford Invitational.

Forty-seven teams are entered in this year’s event, with 20 programs from northeast Ohio battling other Buckeye State squads, as well as three teams from Michigan and a pair from Indiana.

There are 157 wrestlers entered that have competed in their respective state tournaments, with 14 of those being state champions a year ago.

Elyria will attempt to repeat as team champ. The Pioneers are ranked No. 38 in the nation.

Detroit Catholic Central is the highest nationally ranked squad. The Shamrocks check in at No. 10.

Brecksville is ranked 16th.

There are five returning individual champions.

West Liberty’s Bunch Ranked No. 1 Nationally

FAYETTE, Iowa — Darius Bunch was ranked No. 1 nationally and Coach Mitch Smith’s West Liberty University mat squad landed in a three-way tie at No. 19 on Tuesday when the latest set of NCAA Division II team and individual rankings were released by the NCAA D2 Wrestling Coaches Association.

Bunch, a 133-pound transfer from Emmanuel (Ga.) College, had been unranked when the initial national rankings came out in late November but a stunning performance at the prestigious Midwest Classic earlier this month vaulted the talented junior to the top of the national heap.

The Hilltopper standout was voted the Most Outstanding Wrestler at the 39th annual event after beating three Top 10 wrestlers in his unbeaten run to the title. Bunch highlighted his weekend by pinning No. 1-ranked Dustin Kirk of King (Tenn.) just 19 seconds into the second period of their semifinal bout. It was Kirk’s first NCAA Division II loss of the season.

Bunch went on to defeat nationally-ranked Airk Furseth of Wisconsin-Parkside in the championship final, cementing his status as the tournament’s Most Outstanding Wrestler and the nation’s top 133-pounder.

Wheeling Jesuit’s D.J. Warner – who lost an overtime decision to Bunch in a dual meet earlier this season – is ranked No. 2 at 133 with Furseth at No. 3 and Kirk slipping to No. 4. Upper Iowa’s Josh Walker rounds out the top five.

In the team rankings, St. Cloud State held onto the No. 1 spot and Wisconsin-Parkside moved up to No. 2 after running away with the team title at the Midwest Classic. Ashland, California Baptist and McKendree rounded out the top five.

West Liberty, Minnesota State and Maryville were in a three-way tie at No. 19 while Wheeling Jesuit held onto a Top 25 spot at No. 24.

The Hilltoppers hit the mats again on Jan. 6 when they compete in a triangular against East Stroudsburg (Pa.) and Keystone (Pa.) College in La Plume, Pa.