The Covington Catholic wrestling team is about to make northern Kentucky history with an appearance next month at the Catholic Invitational Tournament at Elder.
CovCath is the only Catholic school in northern Kentucky with a wrestling team.
Coach Dave Johnson's three-year-old squad is in the beginning stages of its development, but the Colonels want to get on a fast track to success.
Toward that end, they will be the first non-Ohio team to compete in the annual Catholic Invitational Tournament.
"It's big," Johnson said. "We have a good relationship with Elder, and they were interested in adding us to the meet. We're at a point in our program where we don't have a lot of history, but this gives us a chance to see other Catholic teams, which is important."
Senior Jacob Lentsch, ranked 22nd in the state at 160 pounds by kentuckywrestling.com, is all for it.
"This is great for our program going up against these Catholic schools," Lentsch said. "I'm really looking forward to it."
Lentsch is tied for the team lead in wins. He is 7-0 with five pins. Freshman Derek Gray is 7-0 at 132 pounds.
Senior Luke Rolfsen is 5-1 at 152. Senior Dan Branch is another leading Colonels winner with a 5-2 record at 145 pounds.
The coach said the upperclassmen are showing the way for his youthful squad.
"We're young. I have four seniors and no juniors," Johnson said. "We have 13 freshmen and eight or nine sophomores, but they're all capable.
"The value of our young guys seeing the Catholic schools up close with all the success they've had is something we want them to strive for."
Johnson said emulation of similar quality teams is a way to help build a young program like CovCath's from scratch.
"I think it's very beneficial for our wrestlers to see that," the coach said. "It's another step to establish the right kind of culture here at Covington Catholic."
The Colonels entered the week with a 4-3 dual record. They finished 7-15 last season. Their numbers are at an all-time high, with 26 wrestlers on the roster.
"One of the big turning points was when I joined the football coaching staff," Johnson said. "Working with coach (Eddie) Eviston and his staff has allowed me to get to know the football players, and some have joined the wrestling team, which is great for us. My numbers are the most I've had so far."