DANE FUELLING
WZBD.com
At the start of the 2023-24 season, way back in October and November, there was concern that junior Gavin Davis may not wrestle at all due to a shoulder injury.
After missing out on the end of his freshman season due to an injury, Davis had a superb sophomore year where he challenged some of the very best in the state at his weight.
Faced with the prospect of not having a junior season with surgery, Davis chose to gut it out through the pain and make the season work, knowing that the team needed him to accomplish its goals.
Davis and the Bellmont coaches were selective about when he stepped on the mat. At first they wanted to make sure he was available at Team State as the Braves chased the team title. This meant sitting out at Mishawaka the week before.
That first Saturday in January started an odd trend in Gavin’s season. The junior spent just 44 seconds on the mat in the first two rounds, winning both by fall. He then accepted a forfeit against Delta in the championship match.
At conference, Davis received another forfeit and had two quick falls to claim his title.
The trend continued at sectional, where Davis wrestled just one match, a total of 23 seconds of wrestling action, before receiving forfeits in the semifinals and finals.
When most people worried about what Gavin was going to be able to take, it was the pain that Davis dishes out each time he wrestles that has had many of his opponents more worried.
Davis scored two more falls to reach the regional finals before he finally got a six-minute match against Isaiah Meyer of South Adams.
At Saturday’s semi-state, there surely wasn’t another forfeit for Davis, right?
Of course there was.
Gavin took full advantage of the extra time off the mat and took care of business against Elkhart’s Brennon Whickcar, winning by major decision in the ticket round.
That set up another bout with his nemesis, Mitchell Betz of Western, in the semifinals. Davis wrestled one of his best bouts of the season against Betz and had the lead deep into the second period, but the Panther wrestler scored a takedown just before the end of the period that changed the complexion of the match.
Betz was able to get his escape to start the third period and led 3-1. He went on to score another takedown and move to the finals with a 5-2 victory.
In the third-place match, Kevon Russell of Snider seemed to have little interest in going after Davis despite trailing for nearly the entire match. Davis was, as usual, the aggressor and ironically it was Russell who was hit with stalling warnings and penalty points late in the bout.
The question of whether Gavin’s shoulder would hold out had been answered as Davis stood on the semi-state podium for the second time in his career.
Now, knowing that just a year ago he defeated the current #1 at 157 (Beau Brabender of Mishawaka), Davis has nothing holding him back. He will attack his Friday opponent with ferocity and then leave it all on the mats on Saturday if he advances.
The 157 bracket at state is rather spread out and Davis should have every opportunity to prove just how good he can be when he’s not worrying about next week, next month, etc. If the rankings hold, Saturday’s quarterfinal round will feature eight of the top nine kids in the rankings. Gavin is the favorite in his quarter to reach the semis and the other half of the bracket will feature potential quarterfinal matches like Brabender vs. Betz and #6 Silas Stits (Center Grove) vs. #5 Anthony Cashman (Warren Central).
In another bit of irony, Davis may end up wrestling his way into a top five that features four other wrestlers who all competed at 157 at the Al Smith.
Bellmont fans hope to see his signature smile on the state podium Saturday night.
