Cedar Rapids Prairie’s Chase Watkinson reaps rewards of hard work on the wrestling mat

CEDAR RAPIDS – Cedar Rapids Prairie’s Chase Watkinson said you’re either all in or you’re not in at all.

On and off the mat, in practice and the classroom and with nourishment and hydration, his entire effort has been focused on reaching his goal of a state championship.

“You’ve just got to dedicate yourself to it,” Watkins said. “You’ve got to do the right thing outside of the wrestling room, inside the wrestling room, in school and nutrition. Everything's very important, every small thing.”

Watkinson has reaped the rewards of his dedication, improving to 18-1 for his junior campaign. The third-ranked 120-pound junior posted a 4-0 record with a win over Waverly-Shell Rock’s top-ranked Kipton Lewis Saturday at the Prairie Duals.

“It justifies his training,” Ball said. “He does everything right. When you do everything right, and you get the results, then everything kind of makes sense.

“It's a great model for everyone else in the program because it's like, ‘hey, watch this guy. He does everything right.’ Look what happens.”

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Watkinson opened with a forfeit against Bondurant-Farrar followed by the showdown with Lewis. He won by the slimmest of margins, scoring a penalty point for locked hands and riding out Lewis the entire third for a 1-0 decision.

“I’ve just been working a lot of my conditioning, working a lot on having a lot of energy and doing the right things with food,” Watkinson said. “It’s helping a lot.”

Poise and confidence were on display. Watkinson was unfazed by tense, hard-fought bout.

“His composure is incredible,” Ball said. “No matter what happens, he continues to battle and continues to do things right.”

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Watkinson, the Mississippi Valley Conference 106-pound champion and fifth-place Class 3A state finisher last season, has benefited from key figures on the Prairie coaching staff. Former Highland and Solon state champion and former Northern Illinois wrestler Bryce West and Watkinson’s father, Clayton, a former Prairie state medalist. Both have made a big impact.

“Wrestling with West just really lets me know that there's other things that I can work,” Watkinson said. “There are always things that I can tweak and change, no matter what.

“My dad’s just always helping me. When I need to know when to eat, what to eat, how much I need to drink, he knows what I need.”

Watkinson added the day with a first-period pin against Geneseo (Ill.) and closed the day with a 16-0 technical fall over Pleasant Valley’s Karson Pulver. He outscored his opponents, 20-0, Saturday. This was a strong start to the final month of the regular season but plenty of work remains.

“Just continue to the right things on and off the wrestling mat,” Watkinson said. “Make sure I'm staying up with my schoolwork and make sure I'm eating and drinking the right things. Make sure I'm putting the work in the wrestling room, not taking any shortcuts and it'll pay off.”

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