Pictured above: Senior Andrew Mirelez celebrates his victory in the sectional wrestling meet.
On Saturday, Feb. 3 two Heritage seniors, Andrew Mirelez and Logan Teichman, will compete in the regional round of the IHSAA’s 2023-2024 Boys Wrestling State Tournament.
The regular season finished with 6 wins for the Patriot squad, in Coach Isaac Litchfield’s third year as the head coach. He has earned the respect and adoration of the team, as he pushes them to their best.
At the sectional, hosted at New Haven High School, on Saturday Jan. 27, Mirelez won his 138 pound weight class, and Teichman placed fourth as a heavyweight to advance to the regional.
Mirelez wrestled all four years and advanced to the regional all four years; however, this was his first time as the winner of the sectional. He has an impressive record of 23-2 this year.
Mirelez in action at the sectional.
“It feels great, and it’s something I’ve been working towards since my freshman year,” said Mirelez in regard to winning the sectional.
The senior also said this great season came with some adversity. “I missed two meets this year with sickness, and it was very hard to bounce back from that.”
Andrew is looking forward to the regional meet and getting a chance to compete against new people. “It’s a super exciting thing, and I’m ready to leave Carol on Saturday with a dub.”
Fellow senior, Logan Teichman, wrestled during his sophomore year, but did not wrestle during his junior year and was not planning to wrestle coming into this senior season. However, after senior heavyweight Parker Hennessy went down with an injury, Teichman decided to give it a try again to fill Heritage’s gap in the heavyweight division.
Teichman's hand raised in victory after his win at the sectional.
“I wasn’t planning to wrestle, but when Parker got hurt I decided I might as well try and see if I can make him proud,” Teichman said. “It sure did pay off.”
In regard to the sectional, he said “Honestly I wasn’t super confident going into the sectional, but I just decided to give it my all and leave it all on the mat.” His efforts resulted in a fourth place finish and a spot in the regional meet.
The regional will take place tomorrow, Feb. 3 at Caroll high school, and it will feature wrestlers who advanced from the New Haven and Carroll sectionals.