Here comes winter, everyone! Whether you like it or not, Jack Frost will be nipping at your nose before you know it, and where there are cold winds and snow, there are winter sports! This winter promises to be an exciting one around the gyms of Columbus High, and we've got your preview of each sport right here!

Wrestling:

One item you'll see on the mats this winter is more female wrestlers! Coach Adam Keiswetter hopes that more girls will go out this year and more girls will qualify for the state tournament. Keiswetter advises girls wrestling enthusiasts to keep an eye out for CHS Anchor News's best reporter and Rokfin wrestling preseason No. 8 girl's wrestler Marissa Anderson, as well as Rokfin's preseason No. 11 Danica Taylor. Keiswetter hopes the girls will get their first-ever female medalist for the wrestling team. 

For the boys, Keiswetter says the top athletes are Adrian Bice, Brenyn Delano, Liam Blaser, and Cayden Kuchera. Keiswetter also has high hopes for juniors Carter Fedde, and Kasen Grape, and the many freshmen starting in varsity spots. Coach thinks the returners with the most experience can pull off another successful state tournament this season. 

"Boys can be a title contender if everyone performs their best at the end of the season. Millard South is heavily favored, but they are not quite as dominant as they have been the last few years." 

The ultimate goal for both teams is to help each other grow and use lessons they learned from inside and outside the wrestling community. 

"Nothing is more satisfying than a long-term goal that takes several years to achieve and finally doing it! Those are the things that have long-lasting effects on a person and help drive them to success for the rest of their life."

Basketball:

Next up… Girls' Basketball! 

Head coach Scott Schaefer says his wishes for this year's team are to compete at a higher intensity level and improve defensively. The team's role models and top athletes are the seniors: Ellie Thompson and Kelyn Gerrelts. Schaefer says the team is unselfish and can play a high-quality game.  

While Schaefer is only in his second year coaching at his alma mater, he coached for 38 years as a head coach and a few more years as an assistant coach. He has qualified teams for state 19 times.

For boys' head coach Jordan Hitchcock, offensive flexibility and the ability to score consistently promises to bring home several dubs. In addition, Hitchcock encourages his team to love each other and to love the game. "Love is the most powerful driving force." 

Defensively, rebounding is a crucial area for the team. Hickcock hopes that most of the guys put on 10-15 pounds of muscle to gain an advantage on the boards. For Hitchcock, a physical defense plus a flexible offense is the winning formula.

Bowling:

Lastly is Bowling and Unified Bowling! The goal for bowling is having as many bowlers qualify and win at the conference, championship, district and state tournaments. Some top bowlers on are Ryland Prokopec, Colin Jaster and Gavin Unger on the boy’s team and Emma Moore for the girls. One area Coach Jaster would like to improve on is eliminating open frames during individual games and bakers. One thing coach says they do best is working as a group to help elevate all participants to their highest level.