The perfect ending: Jackson's Rouse capped a 52-0 season

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- One year later the tables have turned.

Jackson's Cody Rouse completed a perfect season by winning the 152-pound state championship Saturday night during the 2005 Missouri State High School Activities Association state wrestling championship at the Hearnes Center.

The Jackson senior wrapped up his 52-0 season with a 5-2 victory over Cameron Harms of Blue Springs.

"We had a lot of concerns [coming into the title match]," Jackson wrestling coach Steve Wachter said. "That's an outstanding athlete to go against; there's need for concern. They have a great coach in the corner with him. It was a great win."

It was just a year ago that Rouse was on the other end of a perfect state championship. He lost in the finals at 145 pounds to Marquette's Bobby Conn. That loss fueled what turned out to be the best single season performance ever by a Jackson grappler.

"Having an undefeated state champ beat me in the finals, I wanted to be on the other end of that," Rouse said. "Last year I said I wouldn't take second this season."

The 18-year-old Rouse dominated his title bout, yielding two points on escapes. Otherwise the championship never seemed in doubt.

It was another outstanding effort by a young man who has dedicated his life to the mat.

"He's been wrestling since he was 6 years old," Wachter said. "Cody has put his time in. When you get a guy who works that hard and that long, you sure like to see him wind up here his senior year."

The state title was the ultimate goal but the ultimate rush is finishing the season unblemished, unbeaten. Rouse never had visions of a perfect season when the year got underway.

"I didn't really plan on being undefeated," Rouse said. "I took that as it came and didn't think about it the whole time. Now that it's happened, I want to celebrate. Fifty-two matches in a row? I'm still amazed."

Once the victories piled up and the opponents were laid to waste behind him, Rouse started to feel the pressure of trying to keep his streak.

He arrived here with the top seed with all eyes on him. Every time he took the mat he was a marked man and his opponents could never bring him down.

"Wrestling in any tournament, whenever I got close to taken down the crowd would go nuts," Rouse said. "All weekend I felt the pressure, but you've got to put that in the back of your mind and keep on wrestling."

Rouse's individual accomplishment was the highlight of the weekend for Jackson. While it was his last tour with the squad, there is plenty to look forward to in the future. Of the seven wrestlers who qualified for the tournament only three were seniors. There should be a Jackson presence here for some time to come.

"We probably wrestled the best we have all year right here at the state tournament," Wachter said. "As far as we had pictured of what maybe we could do, they wrestled up to their abilities."

All told Jackson won four medals and finished seventh in the Class 4 team standings. Rouse took first and junior 189-pounder Kyle Rampley finished third with a 3-2 decision over Adam Meredith of Jefferson City. Junior Josh Schumacher finished sixth at 125 and senior Andy Glass was sixth at 215.