Staff file photo / Preston Byers South Range’s Tyson Seesholtz smiles after beating Amanda-Clearcreek’s Bodie Martin in an ultimate tiebreaker of the OHSAA state wrestling tournament’s 150-pound semifinal on March 8, 2025, in Columbus.

Up 7-0 late in the second period of the 150-pound state final against Beachwood’s Caleb Greenwood, Tyson Seesholtz appeared to be on the verge of completing a wildly improbable rebound. A week earlier, Seesholtz and Greenwood had faced each other in the finals of the district tournament, only for Greenwood to beat the South Range standout by technical fall 18-1.

Seesholtz, though, just could not hang on in the third and final period of their rematch. After surrendering three takedowns, including one to give Greenwood his first lead with 26 seconds remaining, Seesholtz ran out of time.

And it might have been the best thing to ever happen to him.

“As much as no one likes to admit it, we’re all bound to the powers that be – things that are outside of our control, like how we’re feeling that day or what our emotions are like. There’s so many things that are outside of our control that we can’t do anything about, that you just have to focus on the present moment. That’s one of the biggest lessons that my competitor, Caleb, taught me,” Seesholtz said. “As much as it hurt to lose to him, I would have never been as motivated at Fargo as I was. I would have never been as motivated at Super 32 as I was. I probably wouldn’t have even gone to those tournaments had I won the state title. … He unknowingly has completely changed my trajectory as an athlete for the better, and I have him to thank for it.”

After his runner-up placing as a junior, Seesholtz bumped up two weight classes, from 150 pounds to 165, for his senior season. He admitted that he felt drained at 150, the weight class in which he also wrestled as a freshman, when he placed fourth at state. Now, he said he can actually eat dinner before tournaments, which he “couldn’t even think about” this time last year.

His body isn’t the only thing that has changed, however. His mind has, too.

“He’s a lot more loose this year,” South Range head coach Frank Giordano said. “I wouldn’t say carefree, but he looks like he’s having a lot more fun wrestling, and he’s not putting as much pressure on himself.”

Giordano correctly theorized that much of Seesholtz’s pressure was a result of deciding where he would attend college and continue his wrestling career.

The stress, Seesholtz said, wore on him until June, when he committed to Drexel University.

“It took a lot of weight off my shoulders,” Seesholtz said of his commitment. “I was in contact with them last year, with an ex-assistant coach … and we hit it off. And they liked me for me, rather than just as a wrestler and as a number on their team. They saw me on a down year, which was my sophomore year, where I didn’t even place at the state tournament, and they liked what they saw. They saw potential in me and went with me. So when I made my decision with them, obviously, you go with the most sensible and logical decision. But with them, it felt like I was picking a home rather than picking a college to go to.

“And this year, it’s so nice, you have no idea. Everything past that decision for college so far this year has just been straight gravy and just extra, bonus fun. Anything I do now is just icing on the cake.”

Seesholtz’s mentality is unique in a sport dominated by pressure-fueled performances and title-oriented goals. Even the thought of a ‘sense of urgency’ in trying to win a state championship before the end of his high-school career does not quite compute with him.

“You go into it with the idea of having expectations for yourself. It works for some people to hold themselves accountable to a certain standard,” Seesholtz said. “But for me, last year, I found that it was kind of self-destructing. I do much better when I’m just focusing on myself, trying my best and kind of having fun with it. So I stopped really being, I guess, wound up, and just kind of letting go of expectations and just laying the match in front of me, figuring it out as I go.”

That means he admittedly doesn’t feel the pressure to win every time he steps on the mat.

“Of course, I have goals and aspirations to do that, but I don’t know – it’s just fun,” he said. “I have no other way to explain it. If I do it, then it was meant to be, and if I don’t do it, then it wasn’t meant to be. But regardless, God’s got a plan for you and God’s got a plan for me.”

Seesholtz has done just about everything right in his senior season. Entering the Division III Independence district Friday, he had won all but two of his 39 matches and, during last weekend’s sectional at Berkshire, he pinned each of his four opponents in a combined five minutes, 17 seconds.

The only hiccups came at January’s Top Gun tournament, an event at which Seesholtz suffered a knee injury as a sophomore and has historically struggled. In Alliance this year, while he avoided any injury, he uncharacteristically was pinned twice by out-of-state wrestlers while leading.

“Just poorly wrestled on my part,” Seesholtz said. “But, you know, trying your best sometimes, that’s what happens.”

To qualify for the state tournament in Columbus next week, Seesholtz needs to avoid any more surprise pinfall losses, and instead, secure a top-four finish in Independence today. Both he and Giordano emphasized the importance of not overlooking any opponent at districts.

If he does make it into the top four, he will be on his way to further adding to his resume as the “most decorated wrestler that’s ever come out of South Range,” according to his coach.

For Seesholtz, it would also give him one last chance next weekend to fully express his gratitude to the people that have helped him the most and, potentially, cement that you can learn more from a loss than a win.

“Winning states, for me, would be emotional because you work so hard for something, and you don’t know if you’re going to get it or not because it’s a sport and anything could happen, right? God forbid, I could step outside and break my ankle getting into my car, you know what I mean?” Seesholtz said. “So to me, winning states would be for my village, so to speak, and be for all my people who have helped me get to that point. It’s not necessarily about me. It’s about my father who’s pushed me all 18 years of my life to be exceptional. It’s about my mother who supported me unconditionally all 18 years of my life. It’s about my youth coaches. It’s about my middle school coaches. It’s about Coach Frank. It’s about Coach Dave. It’s about Coach Chad. It’s about all the people who have helped me get to this point in my career.

“That’s what winning state would mean for me. It’s not for my sake. It’s just to prove to them and to say thank you.”