State finalist cements plans for next level
Montreat – In a unique maneuver, Willie Riddle chose to sign his letter-of-intent at the college he will be attending – not the school where he became a mat star.
Overcoming a pair of nagging injuries to both his lower and upper body, Riddle looked fit as a fiddle as he flexed in front of the Montreat College backdrop April 10. His immediate family – along with Robbinsville head coach David Haney and assistant coach Weston Haney – made the trek above Asheville to watch Riddle sign with the Cavaliers, which compete in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Appalachian Athletic Conference.
“It felt really good to know that I have four more years,” Riddle said of the moment he signed.
A 145-pound state finalist for Robbinsville this year, Riddle picked Montreat over Muskingum (Zanesville, Ohio) University and Luther College (Decorah, Iowa), because of its proximity to home.
“Coach Haney really wanted to see the facility up there,” Riddle explained. “I knew that would be an easy way to get him to go and plus, we were able to use their background – which couldn’t leave their campus.”
Riddle hopes to nudge the door open far enough for other area high-school wrestlers to consider donning a Cavaliers singlet. Montreat’s wrestling program is relatively new – so much in its infancy that practices are held off-campus at a multi-purpose facility on the grounds of a church.
“It’s doing really good in its younger years,” Riddle noted. “It’s better to help build it up. They want wrestlers from Robbinsville; they’ve tried before.”
Riddle plans to pursue a degree in either outdoor recreation or education science, in hopes of returning to Graham County to be a physical-education teacher.
Just 28 hours prior to Riddle’s signing, Robbinsville alumni Aynsley Fink and Jayden Nowell both rejoined the sport after one year absent.
With a combined three state titles between them, Fink and Nowell – sister and brother – will suit up for the Ottawa (Kan.) Braves this winter.