As a sophomore, John Ortiz has already accomplished more than any wrestler in school history. Not to mention, he’s officially out from under his big brother’s shadow.
John’s older brother Eddie is a collegiate wrestler at Cumberland University. He’s also the biggest influence on John’s wrestling career.
“I started wrestling my older brother when I was 8,” he said. “I’ve always wanted to follow in his footsteps.”
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John did exactly that at the State Championships in Lakeland last weekend.
He entered the winners bracket on Saturday and dispatched Reid Karraker of Martin County High School 7-2 in the first round, then went on to beat Johnny Frambo of Ridgeview High School 11-7. Eventual 112 pound champion Dalton Langford of Riverdale High School got the better of John in the semifinals.
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John ended up on the podium with a sixth-place medal to show his older brother. Funny thing, Eddie’s high water mark in high school wrestling was a sixth-place medal at states and John still has two years left.
The attention turns to next year’s team as John will likely return as captain, but with another year of growth and training. He went 44-7 in individual matches and has nowhere to go but up. The team itself is very young. Only two seniors will not be on next year’s team. Under coach Rus Schenk they will look to shake up Pasco County and improve on the 20-5 team record.
