On Jan. 14, St. John’s wrestling hosted nationally ranked Augustana College and fell short as a team, losing 23-13 but performed well individually. Some standout individual performances include sophomore Brandon Seppelt, who pulled out a 3-1 win at 157 pounds over a nationally ranked Augustana wrestler. Junior Nick Schuler defeated his opponent with a score of 8-0 at 165 pounds.
After a 7-3 win on Saturday while wrestling at 197 pounds, senior Dustin Baxter holds a record of 19-0 this season. Baxter has been wrestling since age six and is originally from Fairbanks, Alaska. He has been a member of the wrestling and football team since his first year at SJU.
“The biggest adjustment from high school to college wrestling was not having the support of my family here,” Baxter said. “Even though they weren’t here, my team and coach did a good job stepping up and replacing them.”
In previous seasons, Baxter has been successful but has not won a national title. He overcame an ACL tear during the past season and went on to take 3rd place at nationals during his junior year. Baxter recently gained 13 pounds of muscle and moved up a weight class. In hopes to win a national title this season, he knows he must continue to condition in order to gain confidence.
“I feel like I have mental barriers to overcome,” Baxter said. “I have trouble trusting my conditioning and can be a bit reserved. I just need to have that confidence in my skills.”
Although Baxter’s confidence in himself may waver, he has the solid support of wrestling head coach Brandon Novak.
“Baxter has been a leader since day one,” Novak said. “His development and progress as a whole have been great. He’s that kid who I would have 10 of if I could. His biggest strength is that he is impossible to score on and has a strong desire to never quit.”
In addition to having the support of his coaches, Baxter has a very strong foundation with his teammates.
“We have been teammates since my freshman year,” senior Scott Padrnos said. “I believe Baxter’s success comes largely from his mindset. He doesn’t bow down to anyone, regardless of their ranking. He is one of the hardest workers in the room, and he never takes a break. He strives for the gold, and he’s not going to stop until he gets it.”
The team will compete again this Saturday, Jan. 28 at Augsburg College in Minneapolis as part of the MIAC Duals.
“The team has a good shot at winning as long as we all wrestle to the best of our abilities,” Baxter said. “If we do that, the win will come.”