PORTLAND — If you told most high school wrestlers they would have a pair of bronze medals from the state tournament in their trophy case midway through their careers, they would probably be pretty happy.
Portland junior Zack Elowitch is certainly proud of his third-place finishes from his freshman and sophomore campaigns, but he is looking for more this season.
“I was hoping to get to the state finals this year,” said Elowitch of his expectations heading into the season. “And then, you know, see what happens with Quinton (Richards) and hopefully I win, but you know he’s obviously a really great wrestler.”
Elowitch, who won the Class A South title at 152 pounds last weekend, could be on a collision course with Richards, the defending state champion and North regional champ. But the Portland junior also knows there will be plenty of talented wrestlers in the state bracket.
“There’s a couple really good kids in there,” said Elowitch. “I didn’t know it was going to be that good at the beginning of the year, but like every year, there’s always going to be great kids in your bracket. You’ve just got to try to work your hardest and give yourself the best shot to be there.”
One thing that has helped get Elowitch to this point is his close relationship with Portland coaches Tony Napolitano and David Elowitch, who just happens to be Zack’s dad.
While having a coach in the family is nice, it can also be a struggle to maintain that balance between coach-wrestler relationship and just being father and son. Zack believes they have been able to handle that well.
“It’s nice because he doesn’t try to pressure me to wrestle or to do things, but he does help me a lot at home,” said Zack. “He’ll watch my matches dozens of times and critique them, show me what I did wrong and what I need to do. If I do want to work harder to get better, he’ll help me do that.”
The junior loves the fact that his coach/dad will let him take time off when he needs it, but also will point him in the right direction when he wants to go to work on the mat.
“In terms of off-season wrestling, he won’t tell me to do any off-season wrestling. He’ll suggest what is out there and what I can do but it’s really up to me what I want to do or how much or how little I want to do,” Zack said.
Elowitch also credits Napolitano with helping him become a state title contender.
“I’ve known him for a long time … he’s a great coach,” Elowitch said of Napolitano. “He’s helped me a lot over the years. He drills with me a lot in practice, goes live with me a lot. He really just helps me do whatever I need to do — in practice drilling, whatever I feel like I need to work on, he’ll help me with it.”
The standout is hoping to climb to the top of the podium this year and celebrate with both his dad and Napolitano.
“That would mean so much to me. That’s something I’ve been trying to do ever since I got to high school. It would mean everything, honestly,” Elowitch said.
— Sports Editor Pat McDonald can be reached at pmcdonald@journaltribune.com or at 282-1535 ext. 322. Follow the Journal Tribune Sports Department on Twitter @JournalTsports.

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