WHEELING — Nathan Tomasello won four Ohio High School Athletic Association state wrestling titles while at Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy, compiling a fantastic won-loss record of 178-5 which included undefeated seasons his sophomore, junior and senior campaigns. He also won an NCAA championship and Big Ten title at 125 pounds as a redshirt freshman at Ohio State University in 2015.

However, the year between high school and college is what the senior-to-be credits for his collegiate success, which also includes a pair of third-place NCAA finishes in 2016 and 2017 and three Big Ten championships, making him just the third Buckeye matman to accomplish that feat.

“Taking the redshirt year and getting used to the culture of the room and the intensity of college wrestling really helped me,” Tomasello said while serving as a clinician at the fourth annual Wheeling Jesuit University Wrestling Camp Wednesday. “You gain a lot of experience. You get to be away from your parents. You get to be more independent and everything comes down to what you put in … how much work you want to put in.”

He said winning an NCAA championship as a freshman was a dream come true.

“That was always a goal of mine,” Tomasello said. “It was always in the back of my mind, but I knew it was going to take a lot of hard work when I got there.”

“It was awesome,” he said of winning a national championship — both individually and as a team. “The team is great. The culture is at the best I have ever been involved with. Everyone wants to compete, learn and get better. I’m just blessed to be around a good culture with great (training) partners and great coaches.

“Coach (Tom) Ryan is one of the best college coach’s around. It’s just a great program,” he added. “I get to wrestle with Logan Stieber each day and train with Kyle Snyder. I really enjoy Columbus and I plan on staying around there after I graduate.”

Tomasello qualified for the U.S. National Team and plans on “seeing the world through wrestling. Representing the USA is really exciting.”

Coming to camps like the one at Wheeling Jesuit is when Tomasello turns into the role-model type.

“I love giving back and showing kids what it takes to compete at the elite level. Whether it’s technique, mindset, nutrition, weight training … anything,” he continued. “I talk to kids after the camps and try to address any questions they may have. I try to be the role model so they can aspire to be at the next level.”

The camp continues through today at the Alma Grace McDonough Center on the WJU campus.