The 2016-2017 school year brought many accomplishment in AU sports, the women’s basketball team won a National Championship and wrestler Michael Labry went on to become a National Champion in the 133 pound weight class. Now that the school year has started, that means the rise of a new generation of sports players has come to continue on the greatness of Eagle Athletics.

Redshirt sophomore, Jerry Fenner III, plans to continue that greatness in and out of the gym as he heads back to the wrestling mats to fill the shoes of success that Labry left behind.

“There will always be a little bit of pressure to have success,” Fenner said. “I just have the pressure that I put on myself and how good I would like to be.”

Fenner’s wrestling journey started way before he stepped foot into the (wrestling house name). During his time at Birch Run High School in Michigan, Fenner achieved a personal record of 211-18 and a state title. Fenner also had 808 career takedowns during his four years as a panther and recorded 240 takedowns in one season. He was a four-time district and regional champion and a four-time all-state selection.

“Jerry holds the school record for wins,” Birch Run’s wrestling head coach Mike Miller said. “He is also the first wrestler in our school’s history to be a four-time all-state wrestler. His overall career on the mat is unparalleled. You never had to worry about Jerry Fenner, he was very consistent.”

In 2013, Fenner took home a state title in Division III in the 119 pound weight class and was a runner-up in 2014 and 2015. His 2013 victory was clenched after a 3-2 overtime win against Matt Santos from Saginaw Swan Valley. His runner-up titles came in the 125 pound weight class. His first runner-up title came after a close 2-1 loss against Foster Karmon from Allegan and in 2015 he was defeated by Reiley Brown from Whitehill 3-0.

“Jerry was a very intense, hard working and prepared wrestler,” Miller said. “He embraced the mental part of wrestling too, which most guys have a hard time with. I still refer to his intensity, mental toughness and raw grit to my current wrestlers.”

Even though he had a stellar career in high school, Fenner didn’t choose Ashland based off their wrestling program but instead their academics and location.

“The reason I picked AU really had little to do with wrestling, although I liked the coaches and teammates,” Fenner said. “ The reason I came here was to get my education. I loved the campus and I wanted to get away from my hometown in Michigan.”

Since becoming an Eagle, Fenner’s collegiate career has been an interesting one.
During his freshman year, he earned GLIAC Freshman of the Year during the 2015-2016 season after recording an 11-6 record with 24 takedowns and two pins. He was also named to the second-team All-GLIAC.

The 2016-2017 season brought a redshirt season after it was apparent front-runner Michael Labry was going to go far. Fenner did earn the GLIAC All-Academic Excellence honor award. Even though he took the season off, Fenner didn’t hesitate to take notes from a National Champ.

“One thing that I learned from him was just to wrestle your style,” Fenner said. “Do not change your style based on who you are wrestling, keep it the same and keep doing what you have been doing to get you where you are now. I also learned that hard work is a huge part of how successful you are. If you want to be good, you are going to have to put in the work. That’s what I learned from him.”

While looking toward hitting the mats again this season, Fenner’s only goals that he set for this year is the same since he started wrestling, be the best that he can be. The pressure to perform and the pressure to continue what Labry left behind is not there. However, the chance to work toward being an All-American sits in the back of his mind.

“I would love to be an All-American and place at the national tournament,” Fenner said. “I would even like the team to be national champions. We all have to put in the work and keep each other motivated and work to achieve that common goal.”

This season Fenner is one of five wrestlers in the 133 pound weight class. The program also added 14 freshman and six redshirt freshman to the team as well. In the preseason rankings, Ashland is ranked 11th in the Division II Wrestling Coaches Association Top 25 national poll. The Eagles were also ranked in 11th in the 2016 preseason poll last year and finished in sixth as a team in the national tournament. Just like Fenner, the rest of the team hopes to bump up their rankings in the national tournament and have a shot at bringing home a national tournament for the first time in program history.

“We are all excited to work hard and make our run at a team national title,” Fenner said. “I’m most looking forward to this season to get under way and our team to start competing. I am also excited just to see what this season brings to me from an individual aspect and a team aspect. It should be a good and fun season. It’s great to be apart of the team and further my wrestling career.”

While the season doesn’t start until November, Fenner and the rest of the team aren’t the only ones that are looking forward to see what success this season might bring.

“As a coach, you would love to have a team full of Jerry Fenners,” Miller said. “It was an absolute honor to be apart of his career and all of us at Birch Run wrestling wish Jerry the best and are very proud of him.”

Fenner and the rest of the AU wrestling team begin their season on Nov. 5 at the Michigan State Open in East Lansing, Mich.