Sixth grader Aiden Hanning put an exclamation point on his youth wrestling career by winning 4 straight matches, two by pin, en-route to a Junior Division championship at the 13th annual Gene Mills Eastern Nationals. The tournament, named after famous Syracuse University wrestling star, Gene Mills, was held on Apr 11th in Syracuse, NY. Teams from all along the East Coast, as far away as Florida, came to compete, nearly 1000 wrestlers in total. Hanning won the gold by a 2-1 margin over his opponent, a New York State Champion. Although the victory closes out a chapter for Hanning, one gets the sense that he is just getting started.
Hanning caught the wrestling bug by tagging along to wrestling practices at Nashua South High School where his father, Michael Hanning, was a part time coach. The elder Hanning was a Bishop Guertin wrestler who went on to wrestle for the University of New Hampshire. He says, “At age 5, Aiden was hooked! So we got him started in the MYA program. I didn’t get started until I was 14 so I didn’t know what to expect from him.”
His mother, Nicole, admits, “I did have some reservations about this sport early on. When he would come off the mat crying from getting choked out I thought there is no way I handle this!”
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But handle it she did and the Hannings became the backbone of the Merrimack Youth Association’s (MYA) youth wrestling program. Dad coached, Mom did everything from concessions to Assistant Director, and Aiden wrestled. The MYA program is for boys and girls from kindergarten to sixth grade. The program director, Gary Krupp, notes, “Merrimack’s program just finished its 9th season and Aiden has been a member for 7 of them. He is the first wrestler to go all the way from kindergarten through sixth grade. His success is no surprise to me.”
Hanning’s MYA season record was 25-6 with tournament finishes that include four championships, two silver medals, and one bronze.
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One MYA parent, Julie Forrest, when asked about Hanning said, “Aiden is such a good role model for my son, really the whole team. They are all inspired by his wrestling and the parents love the way he carries himself. You can just tell that he takes the responsibility of mentoring the younger wrestlers seriously.”
Beyond the MYA, Hanning practices in Nashua with the Gate City Wrestling Club and the Nashua Boys & Girls Club, and in Lowell, MA at the Doughboys Wrestling Club. His parents have taken him to tournaments all over the Northeast including New Jersey, Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, Vermont and New York. He amassed an impressive 38-12 non-MYA record while collecting another three gold medals and one silver.
Hanning has high goals for himself as he prepares to move on to the next level. He plans to one day be a Middle School All-American and a High School All-American, stepping stones to his ultimate dream of wrestling in the NCAA for the famed Iowa Hawkeyes.
Krupp adds, “Wrestlers at the NCAA level only wrestle about forty matches a season and Aiden wrestled 81 this year. He is the most dedicated wrestler I have ever seen at this age. It would not shock me to see him in an Iowa singlet someday.”
Photo Caption 1: Aiden Hanning with his 2014-15 Season Awards
Gary Krupp
Director, Merrimack Youth Wrestling
www.myawrestling.com
