Liberty’s Roper looks to create ‘Storm’ at state meet

Storm Roper has told the story hundreds, if not thousands, of times. But the junior wrestler at Liberty doesn’t mind doing it once more.

“I get it quite a bit for sure, especially people I just meet,” Roper said. “I love my name.”

Roper’s unique first name actually dates back a generation. Roper’s grandfather wanted to name Roper’s father Storm, but his grandmother got to name the family’s second-born child.

“So my dad was named Scot,” Storm Roper explained. “When he got older, he found out that he was going to be named Storm and he thought it was cool. So he named me Storm.”

Roper is hoping to become more than just a cool name on Saturday during the Division I state wrestling tournament. He will be one of the favorites in the 145-pound weight class when the event gets underway at 8:30 a.m. at Star of the Desert Arena in Primm.

The championship finals in all three divisions are scheduled to start at 6:30 p.m. Saturday.

“His work ethic, it’s just uncanny,” Liberty coach Billy Love said. “He’s the type of kid you don’t have to be on him because he takes the initiative on his own to do those little things it takes to be a champion. ... Hopefully this will be the year that he gets over that hump.”

Roper lived up to his first name as a child — “My parents say that it definitely suited me, as far as I was a terror,” he confessed — and found an outlet in wrestling as a sixth-grader after following his older brother into the sport.

Roper spent most of his sophomore season unable to crack the Patriots’ lineup but still qualified for the state tournament as the Patriots’ nonscoring competitor at 132 pounds. He won his first match and led Dustin VanRiel of Shadow Ridge late in their semifinal match when the eventual state champion reversed Roper and scored a two-point near fall in the final 15 seconds to pull out a 9-7 victory.

Despite the disappointment, Roper battled back through the consolation bracket to finish third. But the near-miss provided fuel for the offseason.

“Starting with the summer, it motivated me beyond anything,” Roper said. “I went to three different camps. I was just training hard. Some days I was doing three practices a day, including weight training.”

Roper has compiled a 54-2 record as a junior, with his losses coming against wrestlers from California and Oklahoma. During last week’s Sunrise Region tournament, Roper went 3-0 following an opening-round bye and pinned Silverado’s Alek Aragon with 41 seconds remaining in the third period to earn his first region title.

Roper is looking to become only the second wrestler from Liberty to win a state title, joining Carlos Tautoto, the 215-pound champion in 2009. He faces a tough opening match on Saturday against Palo Verde’s Kayden Pierson, who went 1-2 at last year’s state tournament at 152 pounds, but hopes a strong showing will attract the attention of college wrestling coaches.

“I think I’m dedicated enough. I think I’ve worked hard enough that I’m able to achieve my goal,” Roper said. “I think I truly have put in enough time that I’m at that next level. I just need to continue it.”

Contact reporter David Schoen at dschoen@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5203. Follow him on Twitter: @DavidSchoenLVRJ.