Blades of Glory

Would you believe we have never taken the kids ice skating. It came up in conversation the other day and we decided to take them when we had a chance. Well, today we had opportunity and they did really well. I don't think the boys were too impressed, in fact, Tyler said ice skating is "overrated." Trenton and Tyler did entertain themselves (and others)...trying to do cute little moves and spins and playing tag with their dad. Gabi, on the other hand, had a fabulous time and wants to go again. Ben was the brave one and ventured on the ice with her. After a few falls, she got the hang of it pretty quickly. All in all, it was a good time as a family.

Al Smith Awards

A good friend of mine caught this on tape - Ben was busy taking pics (as you can see in the video) and I was busy enjoying the moment and clearing the happy tears from my eyes. It all went by so fast that I couldn't catch it all. In fact, Kathy also caught Trenton's last part of his match and all the hugging and celebrating afterwards...a definite keepsake. Unfortunately, I couldn't put that on youtube because it is too long, but it is priceless. Note - Trenton is believed to be the only unseeded wrestler to win the Al Smith. History has been made.

In The News

In the newspaper this morning...front page of the Sports section (picture included)! Also, pics of the Al Smith that I took - here.

Article published Dec 29, 2007

Going the distance

Unseeded Reinoehl works overtime for win

TIM CREASON

Tribune Correspondent

MISHAWAKA -- Trent Reinoehl could be a poster boy for the phrase, "Never Give Up."Given his unseeded status and previous history at the huge Al Smith Wrestling Invitational, the Mishawaka junior really had no business capturing a 130-pound weight class championship Friday afternoon.For that matter, he really had no business even wrestling on the second day of the 32-team tournament.But there he was, on the center mat at Mishawaka High School's gym, locked in an overtime battle with Bellmont's Will Sheets for the 130-pound title.Trailing 4-1 after one period, Reinoehl scored a crucial takedown with 23 seconds remaining to send the bout into overtime. Then, with 24 seconds left in the extra period, he locked up a wing and spun to Sheets' back, scoring the winning points and claiming the title, 8-6.A year ago, when he was wrestling for Penn High School, Reinoehl didn't even get through the morning of the tournament's first day. He lost his first two matches in quick succession.This time around, he was a monster on the mat, dispatching top-seeded Jake Leitch of Elkhart Memorial in the semifinals and giving Mishawaka a huge lift on the way to its second consecutive Al Smith team championship."After I beat Leitch in the semifinals, I knew I could win it," said the first-year Caveman, who improved his season record to 14-3."I knew I had to wrestle six minutes non-stop, and as it turned out, I had to go even longer (in the final)," said Reinoehl. "I actually felt stronger as the match went along. I was unseeded, so I knew that people probably didn't think I would win. I'm glad I had a chance to show them otherwise."Reinoehl was not ranked in the most recent state power poll. Look for that to change in a hurry, as finishing first in the state's most prestigious mat tourney carries a lot of recognition with it.In all, five Mishawaka wrestlers won individual titles, and two others took runner-up honors, as the No. 1-ranked Cavemen ran away from the field.Though 145-pound senior Neal Kostry was ejected and all his points were lost due to a flagrant misconduct call in the wrestlebacks, the Cavemen still won by 92 1/2 points over runner-up Bellmont. They scored 274 1/2.No. 7-ranked Bellmont nipped No. 11 Elkhart Memorial for second place, 182 to 180 1/2."We wrestled really well," said Mishawaka coach Darrick Snyder, whose team had the title mathematically wrapped up before the finals ever began."We're aware that being ranked No. 1 puts a target on our back, and everybody is shooting for us," said Snyder. "That's OK, we have to learn to deal with the pressure if we are going to win a state championship this year."Paul Beck at 103, Josh Harper at 125, Caleb Norville at 171 and heavyweight Randy Morin joined Reinoehl in the winner's circle for Mishawaka, while Steven Sandefer (140) and Brandon Mersich (152) were second-place finishers.Beck knew that a victory in the first match of the day could set the tone for his teammates, so he quickly knocked out Merrillville's Zach Stevens, 7-0, in the semifinals before beating Lawrence North's Brandon Nelson in the finale, 4-0."I went 100 percent the whole time," said Beck, who gave up no offensive points during the tournament. "I wanted to get things rolling for the team."In a rematch of last year's 112-pound state title match, Harper pinned Lawrence North's Cashe' Quiroga in 3:05 for the 125-pound championship. Norville topped Bellmont's previously undefeated Ben Bultemeier, 8-4, at 171.Morin then finished the day in possibly the tourney's roughest showdown, pinning Riley's Mike Palmer following an extremely physical first two periods.(Palmer) and I get pretty intense," said Morin. "It's been building more and more the last couple years. But it was a lot of fun. It really felt good to seal the deal for the team."Jimtown's Ryan Konrath won a championship at 189, edging Elkhart Memorial's Steve Stahl, 3-2, in the finale. Riley's George Malone, meanwhile, took a 4-2 decision from Jasper's Jeremy Steinhart to win the 215 title.And what to make of Warsaw? The Tigers, who have lost most of their dual meets this season, walked out with three champs -- Justin Brooks at 112, Matt Elvidge at 140 and Andy Keener at 152."I know, it's weird," said Keener, who improved to 23-0 with a 5-2 victory over Mishawaka's Mersich in the finals. "It's kind of discouraging to lose as a team all the time, but individually, we've got some pretty good guys. I'm really happy to win today, because I didn't wrestle my best."

AL SMITH WRESTLING INVITATIONAL

At MishawakaTeam scores: Mishawaka 274 1/2, Bellmont 182, Elkhart Memorial 180 1/2, Lawrence North 165 1/2, Merrillville 157 1/2, Peru 151, Riley 150, Hobart 147 1/2, Warsaw 128, Jimtown 114, Prairie Heights 106 1/2, Chesterton 103 1/2, East Noble 98, LaPorte 96 1/2, Jasper 80, Valparaiso 80, Lowell 74, Lake Central 69, Rochester 69, Penn 68, Lawrence Central 64 1/2, New Prairie 62 1/2, Princeton 57, Goshen 56, Benton Central 52 1/2, Adams 52, Calumet 45 1/2, Southport 38 1/2, Wawasee 37, Clay 36, Bremen 32, Fort Wayne Bishop Luers 20.

CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND103: Paul Beck (Mishawaka) dec. Brandon Nelson (Lawrence North), 4-0.112: Justin Brooks (Warsaw) pinned Ben Williams (Chesterton), 5:31.119: Anthony Napules (Merrillville) pinned Caleb Smith (Princeton), 1:43.125: Josh Harper (Mishawaka) pinned Cashe' Quiroga (Lawrence No), 3:05.130: Trent Reinoehl (Mishawaka) dec. Will Sheets (Bellmont), 8-6 in OT.135: Eric Galka (Hobart) dec. Zack Corpe (Elkhart Memorial), 10-4.140: Matt Elvidge (Warsaw) dec. Steven Sandefer (Mishawaka), 6-4.145: Brennan Cosgrove (Hobart) dec. George Markou (Peru), 5-2.152: Andy Keener (Warsaw) dec. Brandon Mersich (Mishawaka), 5-2.160: Ryan Baker (Bellmont) dec. Jordan Schultz (Rochester), 14-7.171: Caleb Norville (Mishawaka) dec. Ben Bultemeier (Bellmont), 8-4.189: Ryan Konrath (Jimtown) dec. Steve Stahl (Elkhart Memorial), 3-2.215: George Malone (Riley) dec. Jeremy Steinhart (Jasper), 4-2.285: Randy Morin (Mishawaka) pinned Mike Palmer (Riley), 4:55.

CONSOLATION ROUND(For 3rd place)103: Travis Barroquillo (Prairie Hts) maj. dec. Zach Stevens (Merrillville), 8-0. 112: Carlo Martinez (Merrillville) pinned Miguel Perez (Riley), 4:01. 119: Ryan Stahl (Elkhart Memorial) dec. Aaron Garretson (Peru), 1-0. 125: Frankie Porras (Hobart) dec. Brandon Harvey (Elkhart Memorial), 6-4. 130: Jake Leitch (Elkhart Memorial) pinned Jacob Plesac (Hobart), 1:58. 135: Tom Churchard (Valparaiso) dec. Jeremiah Edwards (Lawrence North), 10-5. 140: Johnny Dillon (Hobart) dec. Matt Goodwin (Lawrence North), 5-2. 145: David Oviatt (LaPorte) dec. Braden Barkus (Goshen), 7-5. 152: Sam Mitchel (Peru) dec. Mike Roberts (LaPorte), 2-0. 160: Quinn Kurtz (Prairie Hts) dec. Tim Forte (Mishawaka), 3-0. 171: Derick Nesvold (LaPorte) pinned Damon Jones (Lawrence Central), 0:52. 189: Jake Salas (Merrillville) dec. Billy Baker (Bellmont), 4-3. 215: Dylan Forbes (Prairie Hts) dec. Braxton Riley (Wawasee), 8-2. 285: Bart Bugay (Southport) dec. Nick Polson (Lawrence North), 5-2.

CONSOLATION ROUND(For 5th place)103: Nick Neilsen (Riley) pinned Mike Moore (Elkhart Memorial), 2:37. 112: Matt Guerra (Mishawaka) dec. Cameryn Brady (Lowell), 3-2. 119: Adam Guerra (Mishawaka) dec. Mark Olsen (Adams), 1-0. 125: Jeremy Hill (Jimtown) won by forfeit over Taylor March (East Noble). 130: Paul Manbu (Warsaw) dec. Frankie Valdivia (Merrillville), 12-8. 135: Trace Hall (Riley) pinned Braden Happ (Benton Central), 1:54. 140: Doug Linthicum (Bellmont) maj. dec. Tyler Lymburner (Riley), 14-1. 145: Joel Spaw (East Noble) won by forfeit. No 6th place. 152: Trent Busse (Bellmont) won by injury default over Jordan Martin (New Prairie). 160: Bryce Grimes (Lawrence No) dec. Elliot Carner (Peru), 3-0. 171: Zach Groves (Jimtown) dec. Henry Waring (East Noble), 2-1. 189: Nick Poplawski (New Prairie) pinned Jake Urednick (Bremen), 2:15. 215: Derrick Shire (East Noble) won by injury default over Zach Spurgeon (Jimtown). 285: Clint Wurm (Bellmont) won by injury default over Kyle Edlund (Goshen).Officials: Bob Foster (South Bend), Roger Griffith (Middlebury), Ken Gradeless (LaVille), Ray Aldrich (Mishawaka), Andy Wood (Elkhart), Jeff Colborn (Granger), Mark Miller (Rochester), Mike Faulkner (Mishawaka), Mike Overmeyer (Warsaw), Mike Golando (Valparaiso).

Al Smith Invitational

One of the biggest tournaments in the state was held yesterday and today. Trenton went 5-0 to win his weight class! Some of the toughest wrestlers, some even ranked, were there. It was exciting! Trenton had a forfeit the first round and beat Jimmy Larowe from East Noble 6-4. His last match of the day yesterday was against Brian Williams of Jimtown, winning 6-5 putting him in the semi final round. This morning he beat the number one seeded wrestler for his weight class (Leitch) from Elkhart Memorial 3-2 putting him in the final round today at 1:30. His final match was against Sheets from Belmont and he won in overtime 8-6. You can actually watch the final round online here! Just click on "Al Smith Invitational"and go from there to hear it or watch it. Trenton is on cloud 9 knowing he won the "Al Smith" today and we couldn't be more proud! A huge thank you to everyone who came to watch and support Trenton over these past two days. We are lucky to have such wonderful friends and family. In the words of one of Trenton's buddies from the wrestling team, "Here comes the leg train and Trent's the conductor!" Pics to come soon!

**Complete results here.

Merry Christmas!

Busy, busy day....we started our day by opening gifts as a family and finding what Santa left for us in our stockings. Santa left Gabi the Eyeclops and a new MP3 player under the tree. He also left some sweet treats and other small goodies in our stockings. The kids opened their gifts...some highlighted gifts for each included - Trenton (jeans, a flannel shirt, a new Mishawaka Wrestling hoodie, a tranformers t-shirt, CSI for nintendo DS and a pair of cowboy boots as his big gift), Tyler (camouflage shorts, a Mishawaka Wrestling hoodie, an electric shaver, some Vans shoes (red and black) and his big gift was the Zune. Gabi got a Pokemon game for Nintendo DS, an aquarium for tadpoles to grow into frogs, lots of books, and Life's What You Make It (Hannah Montana) DVD. We had fun trying out the Eyeclops (see a short video here). From there we went to Chad and Amber's house for brunch - egg casserole, hash brown casserole, cinnamon rolls and muffins, fruit and sausage was on the menu. We opened gift and enjoyed Star "brughs" cappucinos. We were able to visit with Ben's side - Dave, Dad R., Jeff, Pam and Bren in the afternoon where we also exchanged gifts. Lots of family time today, indeed. Now it's time or some R & R - playing with some of our gifts, checking them out and sitting around, eating leftovers from Christmas Eve at my parent's house. Merry Christmas to all and to all a great night! Enjoy pics from the holiday here.

Special Gifts

As shared last year, we open "special gifts" on Christmas Eve. This year we opened them a day earlier than usual...we opened them yesterday and read our letters along with them. Trenton got this from Gabi, Tyler got these (for wrestling) and a t-shirt sporting this from Trenton, Gabi got this (except a cute pink one) and some earrings from Claires from Ben, Ben got this and a git card to here from me, and I got these -chestnut color (not the real ones because they cost too much - fake ones are still very cute) from Tyler. All in all, it was a good time opening our gifts together as a family. Looking forward to our annual get together with my mom's side of the family this evening...lots of fun, food and laughter!!!

New Prairie

Tyler had a tournament at New Prairie yesterday (pics here). Didn't get home till almost 6 pm...it was a long day for him to only wrestle 3 times. He teched his first two opponents in the second period (18-3 and 19-2) and his last match 6-0. Very proud once again. Looking forward to the Al Smith tournament on Thursday and Friday - biggest tournament in the state! Trenton will be wrestling in this one. Tyler gets to work the tables, etc. because it is at their home school. Go Cavemen!

Let It Be Christmas

Favorite Christmas song by one of my favorite country artists. Click here. Two more days...

"All I want for Christmas is my 2 front teeth"

The tooth fairty visited last night...now there are two holes in front (one on top and one on bottom)!

Cavemen

For those of you who do not have the history of Mishawaka wrestling...check this out!

St. Joe - Varsity!

Tyler's first Varsity match! Tyler was able to go 125 for the St. Joe dual meet. He pinned his opponent in 30 seconds, while Trenton got a forfeit. Tyler said he was a little nervous about this being a varsity match but he went out and did his thing! We were so proud!

Santa

Look who we saw on Saturday! Just as the winter storm was blowing in...we ended up with about 7 inches of snow on the ground!! Seems we will have a white Christmas!

Gabi asked for a Nintendo DS and some games to go with it...Almost finished shopping...just a few more to go.

Penn

64-0

the final score from last night's varsity match. What an awesome atmosphere-with so much family and friend support, we just couldn't have gone wrong! Trenton won his match 15-3 and it was exciting to say the least. Enjoy pics of Trenton here. Support crowd included, but not limited to...my parents, Ben's dad, Jeff, Pam & Bren, Dave, Marissa and her entire family, Mike, Shannon & Briella, Aunt Annie, Aunt Becky, Bill and boys, Kathy and family, (Chad and family cheered at home...Chad was not feeling well but kept informed throughout the meet) - THANK YOU for loving us like you do! We love you all and appreciate your support.

Things got pretty crazy when Trenton and Tyler were wrestling on different mats but at the same time! Catch pics of Tyler here. Tyler pinned his opponent in 5:28 (third period). We were so proud of this video moment I captured with my camera - two boys wrestling at the same time (Trenton's match on far right of screen and Tyler's on the left)!

Friends and Traditions

Gabi and I met up with Lina and Emma for their annual gift exchange at McDonalds this evening. When we set this up Lina asked Emma about meeting us and Emma said, "we have to do it at McDonalds, it's tradition!" How cute! I think at one point during the evening Lina also made a comment, "do you think we'll be meeting here and exchanging gifts when you girls are 16?" Boy, that was a silly questions because both girls looked at us with serious faces and replied, "yes." Gabi got "Meet Miley Cyrus" CD and a Barnes and Noble gift card while Gabi got Emma "High School Musical 2" CD and a Borders gift card. Great minds think alike!

Reinoehl Christmas Party

We had the Reinoehl Christmas Party today after church at DeAmici's. Marissa was invited and she graciously accepted. She was able to meet alot of Ben's side of the family. The one thing my kids absolutely LOVE about the party is the food. Some famous dishes include Aunt Becky's shrimp dip and crackers, my hash brown casserole, and Aunt Becky's taco dip. Those being only a handful amongst the two tables worth of food from chicken and meatballs to cupcakes and jello salad. We also have an ice storm warning till 10 pm so the streets and parking lots are sheets of ice. Ben fell at least 3 times, Tyler, a couple of times, and Gabi, more than 5 times! The kids were having fun with this though on our way out to leave from the party. Caught it on tape. Good food, good times!

Calumet

Trenton went 3-2 yesterday at Calumet. It was certainly a LONG day for him as they did not get back till almost midnight. The team won the tournament as a whole so it was a great day for them! Unfortunately, Ben is not as talented as me so he was unable to film, keep score and take pics. We opted for the keeping score and filming, so that is all we have. Very proud of Trenton. You can read more about this tournament here.

Goshen Invitational

Today we headed to Goshen for Tyler's tournament while Ben and Dave went to Calumet for the Varsity tournament (more on that later). This Invitational was individual so Tyler went 130 lbs. and won out, pinning the first two opponents and winning the Championship round 8-4. My parents, along with Dennis, Kristi (Marissa's parents) and Marissa stayed the whole time with us to watch and support Tyler. We were also excited that Grandpa, Aunt Jenny, Travis and Mackenzy all came to watch his last two matches. So glad they got to watch Tyler!

Elves

My sister in law gave me this idea...thought it was cute, so I tried it.

Click here to enjoy!

18 more days to shop!

First Big Snow With Cousins

Gabi was able to enjoy the snow with Mackenzy (her cousin from Texas). Today she had half a day of school and because Mackenzy and Travis are with Grandpa while Jenny is in Chicago till tomorrow (at a conference), she was able to share some fun times in the snow with her! They had a great time outside and warmed up with a cup of hot chocolate! I asked Mackenzy if she had snow in Texas and she answered, "no, not really." I think she had a fun time with Gabi today playing Barbies, throwing snowballs at Tyler, eating snow, playing grocery store, talking about High School Musical 2 and Hannah Montana...girl stuff. They certainly enjoyed each other's company!

Elkhart Rookie Classic 2007

We were able to catch Tyler's last match (championship round) after leaving Plymouth (Trenton had a forfeit). Tyler went 5-0 for the day!! Tyler had 3 pins (one in 13 seconds!) and 2 decisions. We were so excited that we made it just as soon as the championship round was starting. I think Tyler was happy we made it also. Earlier in the day, a friend was able to catch photos for me as well (she was watching her son there also). It makes it nice to have someone catch the pics you can't - it's greatly appreciated! Uncle Dave and Marissa made Ben company at Tyler's tournament. Enjoy all the pics we have from that day here.

Plymouth Invitational

My parents, Gabi and I went to Trenton's tournament in Plymouth yesterday (and we will switch with Ben next weekend) since it was closer than next weekend. He did awesome! Trenton's only loss was to the Plymouth kid (3-4) and it was mostly from penalty points Trenton gave him. He'll get him next time. Other than that Trenton won his other two matches, and got a forfeit win from the third. Enjoy pics here.

What Matters...

Can I tell you Gabi was too cute yesterday as we went to two, yes, we made it to both tournaments yesterday. After Trenton's one loss Gabi and I went to the bathroom and she said to me, "it's okay mommy, it doesn't matter if you win or lose, what matters is that you have fun....but, it didn't look like much fun out there, it looked like hard work."
Only words from a wrestler's sister.
**Pictures to be posted later...