Prep wrestlers set to see stars

The first three months of the year provided Travis DeGroat with plenty of wonderful wrestling memories.

The Mojave High School junior took second in the state and was one spot from placing in the national tournament at Virginia Beach, Va.

DeGroat, though, could gain just as many quality memories this week when he joins several other area high school wrestlers in the Western Junior Regional tournament.

The regional is being held in conjunction with the U.S. National Wrestling Championships, which begins Wednesday at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

At least a dozen area high school athletes will compete on the same mats as wrestlers who could represent the U.S. in the Olympic Games.

"It's going to be pretty exciting," said DeGroat, who also competed in the junior regional two years ago. "I like watching the wrestlers. You learn a lot from them."

That might be the biggest thing DeGroat gets out of the weekend. Forget wins and losses. He'll have an up-close view of some of the best wrestlers in the country and be able to interact with the sport's top athletes.

"Any time you get the opportunity to watch that caliber of wrestling, it can't help but motivate you," Mojave coach Colin Wilson said. "It gives you an idea of where you have to shoot for. It helps you set goals and gives you the visual of where you are going."

DeGroat said, "It helps me because it gives me new ways to do my moves and shows me new things."

Wrestlers will compete for national championships in seven weight classes in men's freestyle and women's flights. Veteran's and Greco-Roman titles also will be contested.

The top seven finishers in each class in the men's freestyle and women's divisions earn spots in the Olympic trials, to be held here in June.

"This is huge for the kids to be involved in this," Wilson said. "They get to be around some of these Olympic-level wrestlers. It gets them more excited about the sport."

Larry Barnson, president of the Las Vegas Sports Committee, which co-hosts the event with USA Wrestling, said more than 2,300 wrestlers are expected to compete. It will be the 19th time for the nationals to be held in Las Vegas.

"Traditionally we'll have at least 45 states represented. The wrestlers know there's a lot on the line," Barnson said.

The event runs through Saturday. Advance tickets are on sale through the LVSC ticket office at (866) 418-0372. Daily tickets will be sold at the door.