New Faces in the Coaches’ Corner
New assistant coaches share time and talent with Louisville wrestling team
By Shawn Kavanaugh
Two Two. Cross Face. Squeeze Squeeze. Oh no. These are all common phrases that you might hear at a Louisville wrestling meet. You may also notice two new assistant coaches yelling these terms. Coach Levi Krueger and Coach Cole Batenhorst are new faces to the wrestling team.
Krueger and Louisville’s head coach Nick Schmitt crossed paths in Louisville at a slow-pitch softball game. Both wrestling coaches are from Newman Grove, Nebraska.
Krueger said, “Nick was refereeing my game, and I ended up talking to him, and we knew a lot of the same people. He said if I was interested in helping out, to show up during conditioning. I showed up once, and I kept on coming back.”
The wrestlers sure are glad that he kept showing up.
Captain Nik Sorensen, a senior whose favorite wrestling move is the Switch, said, “Levi is a great guy…I hope to see him when I come back next year and help or come to meets.”
Krueger is always helping kids practice moves and pushing them to get better and learn. He is always willing to step in so everyone has a drilling partner.
Captain Peyton Welsh, a junior whose favorite pinning combo is a Half Nelson, said, “Coach Krueger is funny, and he’s fun to drill with.”
Sitting in the other chair in the corner is Coach Cole Batenhorst. Batenhorst wrestled in high school but didn’t expect to be on the flip side of the sport.
Batenhorst said, “I never thought about being a coach. I knew that I wanted to give back to the sport of wrestling. I almost became an official, but when I got to Louisville, I found out they were looking for an assistant coach, and everything kinda fell into place.”
Sorensen appreciates Batenhorst’s perspective and his desire to help the wrestlers improve. “I like how Coach Batenhorst is knowledgeable and likes to point out our mistakes to help us improve,” he said.
Junior Mya Stanley said, “The coaches push us a lot harder, and we need that, and they add a bit of fun in there.”
Small towns are the best place to find determination and hard work. On the wrestling mat is where dreams are made and hearts are broken. Wrestlers put a ton of time into trying to better themselves and their teammates. These coaches want their athletes to be good wrestlers, but they also want them to have good character, on the mat and off the mat.