Jackson's Reisenbichler claims national wrestling title

Four-time all-state wrestler Jarrett Reisenbichler is not content to bask in the glow of a decorated high school wrestling career as the sun sets on his senior year at Jackson High school.

There are still matches to be won for Reisenbichler, who is making the most of the interlude between his recent third-place finish at the Missouri Wrestling Championships and embarking on a Division II college wrestling career at Notre Dame College in Cleveland, Ohio.

Reisenbichler, who recovered just in time from a broken hand to become the second four-time all-state wrestler in Jackson history, recently was crowned champion at the NHSCA High School National Wrestling Championships, winning the 113-pound division at the Senior National High School Wrestling Championships in Virginia Beach, Virginia.

Reisenbichler, who finished as high as second in his four trips to the Missouri Wrestling Championships but never won an elusive state title, won four matches on his way to the national title.

That came just a week after defeating a decorated representative from Illinois while competing for Team Missouri at the Border Wars Dual Missouri Showcase in an event held at Union Station in St. Louis.

The recent victories were a strong comeback for Reisenbichler, who sat out much of the high school season due to the broken hand.

"Taking third at state wasn't my goal," Reisenbichler said. "I was banged up, but I can't use that as an excuse. I just had to keep moving forward and keep training harder, and I knew this tournament was coming up. That always was one of my goals, and I just wanted to go in there and prove myself, since I didn't get to do that at state this year."

Reisenbichler's path to the title included a 5-2 decision over Lawrence "Sam" Sandoval, a state champion from New Mexico, in the quarterfinals. Sandoval had won the 120-pound division in Class 5A, posting a 51-1 record his senior season at Piedra Vista High School in Farmington, New Mexico.

Reisenbichler then posted a 10-6 decision over Jake Goldenstein, the 113-pound runner-up in Class 4 in Kansas.

"I got the first takedown, I think, on all of them," Reisenbichler said. "And once I got the first takedown, I was like, 'Wow, I can actually wrestle with these kids.' And then I started beating them, and I was like, 'Well, I went this far, I might as well just finish the job.'"

He stumbled upon good friend Lamont Wilson of Webster Groves in the championship match. Wilson also was a state runner-up this season, finishing with a 50-3 record after reaching the Class 3 title match in Columbia, Missouri.

"I was really surprised," Reisenbichler said about facing Wilson, whom he trained with last summer for the Disney Duals. "Someone said, 'Hey, you've got the kid from Missouri in the final.' I didn't really expect to see him. It's kind of cool, though, two Missouri kids getting to wrestle at the national level. It kind of shows how tough Missouri wrestling has gotten along the way."

Reisenbichler posted a 7-3 win over Wilson in the all-Missouri final for his first national title in about five years of competing nationally.

In winning on a big stage against top-flight competition, Reisenbichler was able to achieve something that eluded him in high school. He finished second in Class 4 as a sophomore on a knee that required an operation just days after the final and took fourth his freshman and junior season.

"I knew I could compete with those guys, but it was always a confidence thing," Reisenbichler said. "My coaches told me all along that I was the best, but I never really -- I just kind of let it go in one ear and out the other. So I really started to listen to them, and they really raised my confidence level a lot. So I wouldn't be anywhere without them."

He finished third this year with a 15-1 record. But his season never really got started until the district meet due to the broken hand. The cast was taken off the day before the district meet.

"You know, he got most of his season taken away," Jackson coach Steve Wachter said. "So he was still kind of on a mission to accomplish some of his goals. This was one of his goals that he set out, not only his high schools goals but also after high school. One of his goals was to place high in the national championships."

Another one of Reisenbichler's goals was to wrestle in college, and that also will happen at Notre Dame College, which finished sixth at the recent Division II NCAA Championships in St. Louis after winning the national title in 2014.

He gave the school a verbal commitment about a month ago and plans to sign later this month. He chose the school over Cleveland State and SIU Edwardsville, both Division I programs .

"It's really good academically, and it's a really small school, and that's kind of what I wanted, and the most important thing is they all really, really cared about wrestling," Reisenbichler said about Notre Dame. "Like that's their big thing. It wasn't basketball or football -- it was wrestling. And that's what I wanted to be a part of."

One of his future teammates will be three-time national champion Joe Davis, who Reisenbichler recently saw improve to 110-0 in winning the 174-pound title in St. Louis.

"He also was another reason I wanted to go there, because on my visit I got to hang out with him a lot, and he was such a good guy," Reisenbichler said. "I figured he can help me a lot when I go there, just as much as the coaches."

Reisenbichler will compete at 125 pounds, the lightest class in collegiate wrestling, and said there is a good chance he will be redshirted as he tries to beef up to the class, which he expects to compete in all four years.

"I've had a really good offseason so far," Reisenbichler said. "I just want to keep training and keep getting ready for college, because I know it's going to be even tougher than it is right now. It's going to be a whole different level, so I just need to keep working really hard."