CHITTENANGO, N.Y. (WSYR-TV) — When it came to sports, Andrew Bailey did everything.
“Football, lacrosse, soccer, but after a few years I slowly stopped playing sports and now I only wrestle,” said Bailey.
It was something about being on the mat that got him hooked.
“I really like that it is just me. You still have the team aspect but it’s only you competing. I also just had a lot of fun at practice with my friends,” added Bailey.
Bailey was so good, that he earned a spot on varsity as an 8th grader, and his success continued. This year, he went unbeaten at 38-0 and won a Section III title and state title.
“It’s still pretty crazy to think about. I mean after I won, I wasn’t even thinking. I spiked my headgear and I didn’t realize it until after that. It’s just awesome,” said Bailey.
“It’s more surreal for me because how happy and proud I am of him so it’s not so surreal for me as being happy for him,” said head coach Nic Bacon.
Get this, Bailey had an emergency surgery to get his appendix out. He was cleared to wrestle just a day before sectionals.
“I think the biggest thing is pushing through things. It also helped to have my coaches and my family still believe that I could do it and it helped me through it and gave me support,” said Bailey.
