A rare Saint

CEDAR RAPIDS - A high school wrestler needs a mixture of guts, dedication and great guidance to achieve personal success.

With the University of Iowa wrestling team ranked No. 1 in the nation and Iowa State not far behind, it is no secret Iowa is full of homegrown talent.

All these factors considered, one would think achieving a milestone like 100 wins in a high school career was simply an object of imagination. Nevertheless, the odds were defied on Jan. 10 by Clint Lembeck at the 49th annual Linn-Mar Invitational. He is one of only three wrestlers who have reached the Century Club in Xavier's 17-year history.

It also might be worth considering he is only halfway through his junior year.

'When I realized I had reached my 100th win, I felt a great feeling of accomplishment,” Lembeck said. 'It was great to know I had finally reached that milestone.”

With three pins and two decisions throughout the meet, Lembeck continued his streak of strong showings. As of Jan. 17, his record was 23-2 and ranked second in the state at 132 pounds.

With the postseason quickly approaching, Lembeck has his eyes fixed on the ultimate accomplishment for a high school wrestler - a state championship.

'My goals for the rest of the season are to train hard, stay focused and hopefully represent the Xavier wrestling team at the top of the podium at the state tournament,” Lembeck said.

With Lembeck continuing to dominate, junior Jeff Vipond and sophomore Josh Gerke have stepped up in big ways, too. Vipond posted a 5-0 record at Xavier's Doug Philipp Duals while Gerke had his own perfect day in Webster City, claiming victories in all four of his matches. If Vipond continues wrestling the way he has been, he has a great shot of obtaining 100 wins by the end of the season.

'The factors that have helped these three become so successful are simply the amount of time, preparation, dedication and extremely hard work they have put in,” Coach Ryan Chambers said. 'They are a very disciplined group and have made a lot of sacrifices to become what they have become.”

The Saints are at the Mississippi Valley Conference tournament Saturday in Dubuque.