West Newsmagazine 3-21-18

20 I SPORTS I
By WARREN MAYES
March 21, 2018
WEST NEWSMAGAZINE
Whitfield senior Mike McAteer capped
off a wrestling career for the history books
by winning a state wrestling championship
in each of his four years.
McAteer joins a select group; there have
been just 29 four-time champions in Missouri
wrestling history.
It was a goal for McAteer, who will
wrestle for Army when he heads to West
Point in the fall.
“I was highly determined to win my
fourth and last state title because I wanted
to make an impression in the history books
and really make a name for myself as a
high school wrestler,” McAteer said.
He is the second Whitfield wrestler to
win four state titles. Rodney Hahn, who
went to the Naval Academy, also achieved
four championships.
“I do not know Rodney very well, but I
do know his accomplishments, and was
reminded of them often,” McAteer said.
Coach Charlie Sherertz knows he had
someone special in his program.
“He’s certainly one of the most dominant
wrestlers we’ve ever had at Whitfield,”
Sherertz said.
McAteer’s run to returning to the Class
1 state meet began with the district tournament.
He pinned Keon Hollis, of
Sumner, in 26 seconds in the championship
match at 126 pounds.
“I did this by having a clear mindset
and knowing that I would have
to go out and dominate if I wanted
to make a name for myself,” McAteer
said. “This was actually not my
quickest match. I had a match go for
8 seconds last year.”
Going into the state meet at the
Mizzou Arena in Columbia, McAteer
said he was ready; he was mentally
prepared, felt no pressure and
no nerves.
In his first match, he scored a pin
in 24 seconds when he took down
Lucas Pemberton, of Hallsville. He
followed that with a win in 27 seconds
over Zac Braun, of Lone Jack.
In his semifinal match, McAteer went
the distance in earning a 6-0 decision over
Dallas Larsen, of Warsaw.
That set up a match against Tristan Blair,
of Lathrop, in the final.
“I knew what I had to do,” McAteer said.
“I felt like I knew that my other opponent
was nervous going into the match, so that
did give me a boost of confidence.
Though he had never wrestled Blair
before, it didn’t matter. McAteer was on a
mission.
“I ended up pinning him in the finals in
52 seconds with a cradle,” McAteer said.
“The match went by very quick. I was very
calm and strategic going into the match.”
If you blinked, you might have missed it,
Sherertz said.
Could McAteer have dreamed of a better
way for his high school career to come to
a close?
“I believe it was a perfect ending,” McAteer
said. “I would have liked to get all pins
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Whitfield’s McAteer ends wrestling career with fourth state championship win
McAteer
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throughout my bracket, but I am still grateful
that I managed to win four times.”
At state, McAteer was relentless.
“He really upped his game. He was half
the practice room wrestler that he was in
a match,” Sherertz said. “He’s a game
athlete. Mike was ready to go when the
whistle blew.”
As McAteer prepares to wrestle for
Army, his success at state has given him
the confidence to succeed at the next level.
“This is very important to me because
it shows me that I will be doing just fine
at the Division 1 level when I wrestle
for West Point next year,” McAteer said.
“Coach has developed my style of wrestling
to prepare me to wrestle in college.
He has allowed me to become a smarter
wrestler and make better decisions about
my matches.”
In his career, McAteer scored 14 points
in his 16 state tournament matches. McAteer
went 51-2 as a senior. In his four years,
his record was 187-10. As a freshman, he
was a spotless 49-0.
“I think it has gone fast,” McAteer said,
of his high school career. “I can remember
very vividly when I was a freshman in the
wrestling room with all the upperclassmen.”
“He just has done such a great job,” Sherertz
said. “He’ll thrive at West Point.”
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