Mario Hutcherson, 15, of the Kiski area, will be heading to El Salvador to compete on Team USA at the Pan American Wrestling Championships, June 11-16.
Hutcherson earned a spot on the team by winning the U.S. Open 15U 75kg class on April 28 in Las Vegas. Hutcherson put on a dominant performance, defeating Parker Casey 13-2 in the final and winning his second consecutive U.S. Open title.
Hutcherson’s strategy was to wear Casey down, tire him out, and then beat him up. Hutcherson executed his plan perfectly and won a decisive victory.
“I felt good, but it was one of those tournaments where I knew I had to win and dominate to set myself up for the future,” Hutcherson said.
Hutcherson also won his fourth state title this year. His father, Greg, a former Division I football player at Bowling Green and Indiana State University, was impressed with his performance at state.
“He dominated the game and made it look easy, but it wasn’t easy,” Greg Hutcherson said. “The hard work and preparation for it is very hard. The weight gain, the daily practice, and the nutritional management with everything in between, that’s what a lot of people don’t realize. The end result. A lot of people look at it and think, ‘Oh, he made it look easy,’ but a lot of things happened in between to get there.”
Hutcherson outscored opponents 86-0 en route to the state title.
That momentum carried over into the US Open, where he won back-to-back titles.
Last year, Hutcherson defeated Cooper Rowe to win the U15 68kg title. This year, Hutcherson hit a growth spurt and her weight increased by 25 pounds as she grew. Nevertheless, moving up the ranks was an easy adjustment.
Hutcherson is in eighth grade and practices with the Kiski Area High School team. Wrestling with older wrestlers made it easier for Mario to adapt to his 75 kg weight class.
“My strength was different than my opponent, but it wasn’t a big deal,” Hutcherson said. “The strength there, everything was strong, but you see it every day in practice wrestling against the older guys.”
Hutcherson is currently preparing for his first international match.
Last year, there was a two-step process to reach the Pan American Championships, and Hutcherson didn’t make it. Since this is an Olympic year, his win immediately earns him a spot on Team USA, as the Pan Am Tournament is moved up on the calendar.
Hutcherson trains with Dave Sidan at the Hatchy Hammers and with John Strittmatter and Jody Strittmatter at the Young Guns Wrestling Club. He balances those two clubs by wrestling at Kiski Area and working with strength coach Jeff Jackson.
Club wrestling has allowed Hutcherson to have a number of sparring partners, including Norwin’s Landon Sidan and Jack White, Belle Vernon’s Elijah Brown and Frazier’s Jonah Erdery. Mario uses different types of fighting styles to his advantage in sparring.
“I have a lot of different types of wrestlers in my practice room,” Hutcherson said. “Whether it’s a fast pace, a slow pace, a slower type of pace, it’s a lot, but they’re going to have to adapt to my pace. I’m going to come at them all the way. .”
Hutcherson is new to the world stage, but his 11-year-old brother Marco is also climbing the totem pole.
Marco won the 12U U.S. Open in his class and will advance to next year’s 15U World Team Trials.
Greg Hutcherson said: “It’s been an amazing journey to see both of them rise to the top of their age groups and weight classes.” “This is a marathon, not a sprint, so we just have to take it one day at a time and stay consistent with our training.”
Hutcherson said Mario was a great role model for Marco. Marco also continues to hone his skills, already winning him three state titles.
“Everything Mario does, Marco wants to emulate,” Hutcherson said. “The good thing about that is that I don’t have to do anything with Marco, because he just sees Mario and chases after him. So basically Mario’s success is influencing him as well. , it’s like a kind of standard that we have, and for Marco, Mario is that standard.
Mario is grateful for the support of his parents throughout his career as a wrestler.
“They put in a lot of work, a lot of nutrition, weight loss, lifting, like they prepared everything for me so that I would do everything to be the best. ” he said. “And I’m really grateful for that.”
