Josh Snell was embarrassed.

He didn’t have any reason to be, though. At the 2022 Division II Wilmington District Wrestling Championship tournament, on his home mat, Snell lost his state “go-to” match by a slim 8-7 margin. His goal of qualifying to state as a junior was shattered.

“All I remember is how embarrassed I was losing because I felt like I worked hard all season but I humbled myself and just knew I had to work harder and that’s what I did,” said Snell.

Snell, a senior at Wilmington High School, made that hard work pay off this season by qualifying for the OHSAA Division II Wrestling Championship tournament which begins Friday afternoon at Ohio State’s Schottenstein Center.

In the 190-pound weight class, Snell enters the tournament with a 35-11 record and will meet Max Ray, a senior from Tiffin’s Columbian High School, who is 38-4.

“My goal for this season was to make it to state,” said Snell, who finished fourth at last week’s district tournament on the WHS mats. “The 8-7 match last year hurt me so after that match I started to work harder, started to lift more … really just trained harder to make it where I am now.”

Last year, the WHS coaches would say with a smile Snell was a great athlete who was just learning the ins and outs of high school wrestling as a first-year participant. This year, though, with an equally big smile on their faces, the coaches say Snell is now a great wrestler who also happens to be a great athlete.

“It’s a big transition because usually in sports I was always one of the best players,” Snell said. “Then wrestling, I had to start from the bottom not knowing anything, like how to get in a wrestling stance.”

Snell like his Hurricane teammates will be looking for that finish to get them in the, at the very least, the top eight. Snell doesn’t see a problem with going to such a huge tournament for the first time as one of the least experienced wrestlers.

”I think I’ll handle the atmosphere well,” he said. “I like being on the big stage.”