Wrestler Luke Odom is on target, looks forward to post-season action

EDWARDSVILLE – Edwardsville wrestler Luke Odom has set some strong goals for himself this season.

He was 33-0 and unbeaten until a loss in the main event of the meet between the Tigers and CBC last week at the Jon Davis Wrestling Center. Odom, the number one ranked wrestler in Illinois at 145 pounds, lost to Joshua Saunders, the top-ranked wrestler in Missouri, 7-4 on late points. The Tigers still won the meet 36-27.

Odom at 145 pounds and Noah Surtin at 126 pounds and Lloyd Reynolds at 285 were individual champions in the Columbia Hickman Tournament this past weekend.

It is a certainty Odom would love a rematch with his Missouri opponent Saunders. Odom was happy with the team’s win.

“Yeah, it was nice that we won; it’s a big step in our program,” Odom said in a post-match interview. “It was a big win for us tonight. Obviously, I didn’t get what I wanted, but it is what it is, and back to the drawing board, I guess.”

Odom thought the key to the match was not being able to score points while on his feet, and he felt it made a difference.

“To score,” Odom said. “I had to score on my feet, and I didn’t do that. I had multiple opportunities, and that’s what the match came down to, scoring on my feet. And it just didn’t happen.”

Odom placed at last year’s IHSA state meet, and is considered a top contender in his weight class this year. He feels that he’s been wrestling very well this season

“I’m wrestling well,” Odom said. “That loss is gonna help me at the end of the year. I need to figure some things out, what I’m doing wrong and I’ll be ready by state.”

The Tigers will have their Senior Night meet on Thursday at 6 p.m. in a triangular meet against both East St. Louis and Chatham Glenwood, then host the Tigers Duals on Jan. 26. Edwardsville will wrestle in the IHSA Class 3A regional at Granite City on Feb. 2.

And when the state series comes about, Odom wants to place high.

And Odom is going to go back to the practice room and making the adjustments needed to enable him to get better.

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