By MARC MALKOSKIE
Press Enterprise Writer
(Written after Friday, March 8)
HERSHEY — Over the past few years, Southern Columbia has emerged as one of the top wrestling teams in the state.
It starts with its oft-overlooked youth program, a large factor as to why Southern has started to produce state medalists who are freshmen.
One of the Southern’s two freshmen that are guaranteed no less than a medal is Kole Biscoe.
Biscoe, a 113-pounder, has had success in his young career, as he burst onto the scene with a 29-match win-streak against in-state opponents to start the season.
“You only get four years (of high school wrestling) of your entire life,” Biscoe said. “So while you’re here, you have to live it up, take your chances and make the most out of them.”
Biscoe earned one of his highlight wins in the quarterfinals Friday, using a five-point move to defeat Eisenhower’s Logan Jaquay in the sudden victory period.
Southern coach Jerry Marks had Biscoe ready to have a leg up in overtime.
“We try to wrestle through everything in the room,” Marks said. “The conditioning comes through the matches that wrestle in the room. We don’t wrestle six-minute matches, we wrestle 10-minute matches, because you never know how long that match is going to go. It could go a maximum of eight minutes and 30 seconds, but we go 10 minutes so that our guys are conditioned and prepared to wrestle those overtimes.”
Biscoe also likes his chances when his matches go to extra time.
“That’s one of my greatest things, I feel like I can go six minutes and beyond,” he said. “Most guys fold after six minutes, but I’m just there. I have a gas tank, I train in the room consistently, and that’s what we work on. When a match goes to overtime, you just have to win.”
Despite being a freshman, Biscoe has already familiarized himself with the big stage. He won a state title in PJWs as an eighth grader, and went 4-0 at the Giant Center last month at team states.
“Winning PJWs was a great feeling,” Biscoe said. “But this is definitely the real show, and what happens here is what we train for all year long. I think how I did in team states was a big deal. It was a big accomplishment. It definitely has helped me embrace the pressure of this arena and get used to it.”
No matter where Biscoe places today, Marks continues to be impressed at how his 113-pounder has fared in his first season.
“It’s just been a tremendous effort on his part,” Marks said. “He bought into the program right off the bat, and made a sacrifice to cut down to 113, he’s performed well throughout the year, and he’s just a great kid. The future is so bright for him.”
Marc Malkoskie covers sports for the Press Enterprise. He may be reached at 570-387-1234, ext. 1338, or by email at sports@pressenterprise.net. Follow him on Twitter at @mmalkoskie.
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