Grapper enjoys stellar summer

WASILLA — Quace Wright doesn’t hesitate to shoot for the most challenging of goals.

“I want to try, at least, to make it to a good college, try to win an NCAA title and try to make it into the Olympics,” Wright said earlier this summer.

It’s a long road to the Division I ranks and the Olympics for any Alaska grappler, but Wright is certainly off to a good start.

Wright, who will turn 14 on Aug. 24, is currently ranked first in the country for his weight class and age group after winning a pair of national championships and earning All-American status in two different styles.

“He’s special,” said Bill Booth, Wright’s coach at Teeland Middle School. “He’s a naturally gifted kid and easy to coach.”

In July, Wright finished first in his weight class at the Asics Kids National Championships in Orem, Utah, in both the Greco-Roman and freestyle brackets. That came just about a week after Wright posted the triple crown at the USA Wrestling Western Regionals, in Pocatello, Idaho. There, Wright finished first in the freestyle, Greco-Roman and collegiate styles.

Thanks in part to his work during the tourneys, Wright is the top-ranked grappler in the 175-pound weight class of the schoolboy division.

In recent history, Alaska has produced its share of national champions and All-Americans at the youth and prep level, but Booth said Wright’s success is a bit unusual.

“For a kid his age, it’s rare,” Booth said.

Wright was one of three Mat-Su Valley grapplers to earn All-American status at the Asics event. Logan Albrecht, of Wasilla, finished fifth in the 65-pound novice class, and Andrew Shannon, of Houston, finished seventh in the 84-pound schoolboy division. Both are now All-Americans.

Caleb Pempek, of Palmer, finished second at 152 in both Greco-Roman and collegiate, and fifth in freestyle at the Western Regionals in Idaho.

Last spring, Wright traveled to Virginia Beach, Va., to compete in the National High School Coaches Association Nationals Wrestling Tournament, a historically tough prep event that also includes a middle school tourney. Wright finished second in his bracket, and based on that finish, Booth said he was not surprised that Wright captured his national titles later in the summer.

“It’s very remarkable,” Booth said.

Wright, who also plays football and basketball, started wrestling in the second grade. He said he enjoys the other sports, but wrestling is by far his favorite.

“You have to have a lot of stamina to do it,” Wright said. “You have to be mentally strong and physically strong.”

Wright won a middle school state championship as a seventh-grader and will be going for back-to-back titles in eighth grade this season. He is planning to return to Virginia Beach for the NHSCA Nationals, and will also head to Fargo, N.D., for the cadet and junior national championships next summer.

That will all happen before he even steps on to a high school wrestling mat.

Judging by his abilities, intangibles and early success, Booth feels Wright has a promising future in the sport.

“I think he’ll be right in the mix when he shows up. He’ll be a force to be reckoned with right from the beginning,” Booth said of Wright’s future in prep wrestling. “They’ll be an adjustment period, but he’ll have an impact in high school wrestling.”

Wright said his immediate goals include becoming a two-time state champion at the high school level.

“Being a four-time would be nice,” he said.

And after that, he wants to find himself a spot on a Division I roster.

“He’s a very tough kid,” Booth said. “His head doesn’t swell. He just works hard.”

Contact Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.