Getchells keep family wrestling tradition alive

Sidney Herald

A trio of brothers and sisters are in competition this weekend at the State AAU wrestling meet for Sidney's wrestling club. Included in this cast of wrestlers are Dace and Shaylyne Fisher and J.J., Mercedes and Chris Klein. Wrestling runs in the family for these five young athletes as the two Fishers and three Kleins call themselves cousins.

However, for the final brother-sister team of Tori Getchell and brother Trevor, wrestling is somewhat more of a family tradition. Relatives to legendary Sidney wrestling families of the Prevosts and Melbys, wrestling is more than a sport - it's in the blood.

Wrestling at 215 pounds for Sidney High School this past season, Trevor fought his way to a divisional championship as well as fifth-place state finish. He is also competing at this weight in the Elite division this weekend at the State AAU tournament. Ten-year old sister Tori wrestled her way to a second-place finish this season at a tournament in Williston and pinned an opponent at that tournament in seven seconds to claim the quick pin trophy from her division. She is in competition in the 95-pound Midget division this weekend.

Trevor, though, is more than just a teammate to little sister Tori. Helping coach Sidney's AAU program, he's an important part of Tori's young wrestling career. When asked whether he gets nervous watching his little sister going up against boys, Trevor responded confidently to Tori's abilities.

"Since my little brother decided not to wrestle this year, I guess I kind of think of her as a boy. I know she can handle it because she's tough," Trevor said. "I tell her before every match to stay in her stance, low and balanced. She just needs to work on being a little more aggressive."

And tough she is. At an early age she has learned to accept pain as just part of the sport. "In practice sometimes I'll get the wind knocked out of me," Tori said. "The first few times it kind of hurt, but you get used to it."

Wrestling against boys, to a lot of girls, can be somewhat intimidating. However, wrestling with her younger brother Tate at home and knowing your moves, according to Tori, has helped her see her male counterparts as 'just another opponent.'

"I like to use the head and arm takedown. It works for me quite a bit," Tori said. "I've only wrestled one girl and it's not much different than wrestling against boys. It's more fun, though, when I beat a boy because wrestling is supposed to be a boys' sport. I really like the feeling of winning because it makes everybody happy - especially my brother."

Although Tori remembers one bad instance following a match victory over a boy, most of her opponents have treated her with respect and showed good sportsmanship. "One boy kind of got mad at me when I told him good job after a match, but most tell me good job back."

Although Tori is uncertain whether or not she wants to compete at the high school level someday, the certainty of her and girls like her competing in the sport is changing the face of wrestling.

sports@sidneyherald.com