Greene County opens the 2017-18 high school wrestling season in less than a week. Coach Mark Sawhill’s Rams are enjoying a big jump in the number of students out for the sport from less than 10 two years ago, to 16 last season, to 30 this year. Senior Cayden Gerdes is a senior who was in the room when there was plenty of room and he likes it better now that it’s crowded. Gerdes didn’t begin wrestling until he was in eighth grade and has some advice for others who started late. “Just have a go all out attitude. Don’t quit and don’t give up. Ninety percent of wrestling is mental and if you keep that mental toughness up, you’re going to win more matches.”

Gerdes talks about what he considers a strength of his as a wrestler. “Definitely my mental toughness. I’m determined to win and I hate losing. Lately, I’ve been working a lot on my speed and that’s helped me out a lot.”

The Rams open on Nov. 28 in Van Meter vs. both Ogden and the combined Van Meter/Earlham team. The home opener in the middle school gym in Jefferson is on Thursday, Nov. 30 vs. Carroll and Winterset.