By Courtney Baumann
Last season, Topher Carton earned the opportunity to wrestle at 141 but lost out on the chance of finishing out the season in the starting spot when senior Brody Grothus returned from injury.
This season, he’s vowed not to make the same mistake.
“It’s a matter of not taking anything for granted and continuing to progress and continuing to get better,” Carton said. “It’s November, there’s a lot of time until March, and it really doesn’t matter until you get to Big Tens or NCAAs, anything can happen.”
Carton plans on embracing this season to the fullest. While he doesn’t know if he has taken things for granted in the past, he has learned that just because he has something now doesn’t mean it will stay that way.
The senior has made strides in both his physical and mental approach since the 2015-16 season to ensure he stays in front of the competition in his own wrestling room.
Perhaps the thing that has benefitted him the most is the new sports psychologist the team has.
The psychologist has worked with him on putting more positivity and visualizing the outcome he wants for things into his daily routine, which has helped him develop into the type of wrestler he wants to train as and be.
“Going in, I was training like I was the starter, I was training like I was the best wrestler at 141 pounds in the country,” Carton said. “That’s the mentality that we have here. We’re not training to make the spot, we’re training to win a national championship.”
It has seemed to work for him so far.
Carton earned the starting spot last weekend at the Luther Open, where he rolled through to the championship round. There he defeated teammate Paul Glynn in a 4-2 decision. Carton collected two pins, a technical fall, and a major decision en route to the gold.
“He definitely made a statement there … There’s no doubt,” coach Tom Brands said about Carton’s performance in Decorah. “He knows what his mission is. He’s been in this position before, where he was maybe a guy who maybe could have emerged or asserted himself. He’s done a good job so far, but he’s got to keep rolling.”
That’s something Thomas Gilman can relate to.
Fellow senior Gilman has experienced fighting for his position when there is depth there.
As a redshirt freshman, Gilman fought for the 125-pound spot with Cory Clark, who was also a redshirt freshman. The two flip-flopped a couple times throughout the season, but ultimately, Clark who got the nod, placing fourth at Big Tens and fifth at NCAAs.
After Tony Ramos left at the end of that season, Clark moved up a weight class, and Gilman moved into the 125 slot, where he has stayed ever since. Still, he remembers what it was like to lose out on the spot and understands the pressure on Carton.
“You have this other guy that’s very talented that could easily step in and take your place … You just have to perform,” Gilman said. “There’s a lot of pressure, but if he can learn something from me in that situation, it’s, Don’t worry about it. Go out there, compete, and everything else will take care of itself.”
