Sept. 21, 2015
By Ryan Hickey, GoPSUsports.com Student Staff Writer
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.- Being asked to sit out for a year is tough for any athlete to agree with. That decision is made even tougher when that athlete has previous success. Both senior Nico Megaludis and sophomore Zain Retherford were two wrestlers with past success that were asked to take a redshirt season this past season.
Megaludis was a three-year starter for head coach Cael Sanderson. He was the national runner-up in both his freshman and sophomore campaigns. In the 2013-14 season, the junior finished in third place at Nationals as well as earning All-American honors for the third consecutive year.
For Megaludis, he thought sitting out was going to be tougher than it actually turned out to be.
"Every time I saw a match, I wanted to wrestle in it. But I realized I was doing this for a reason," said Megaludis. "Obviously I wanted to compete last season, but I sat out for a reason and there was a purpose behind it."
Retherford started his collegiate career by winning his first 29 matches, with his first loss coming in the Big Ten Championships to eventual national champion Logan Stieber of Ohio State. The true freshman placed fifth at Nationals in his rookie season.
"It was exciting being able to start my freshman year and I was definitely grateful for that opportunity," said Retherford. "We had guys like Matt Brown, Ed Ruth, David Taylor, so I looked up to them."
Retherford went into the offseason preparing to wrestle his sophomore year. It was not until October that Retherford was informed he would indeed be redshirting the upcoming 2014-15 season.
"I was prepared to wrestle. I had no idea I was going to redshirt until Cael [Sanderson] came up and told me one day before practice," said Retherford. "I am one hundred percent in on the program and in on our coaches, so I didn't question it at all. Looking back, I am glad I did it because now I have an extra year to wrestle."
Both Megaludis and Retherford echoed the same message when it came to the biggest advantage of sitting out the year. The break from competitive wrestling at the collegiate level allowed both wrestlers to take a step back and be able to break down what each of them can get better on.
"I was focusing on technique more than just focusing on the grind. It's sometimes hard to learn during the season," said Megaludis. "I was able to focus on areas I needed to work on."
"I was trying to add new things. I wasn't focused so much on the week to week as instead, I just worked on adding more technique to what I already have," said Retherford.
The grind Megaludis references is the daily scouting and practice to get ready for the next opponent and focus on their techniques more than his own technique.
Megaludis also credits the maturity he's gained from his three years of wrestling for the blue and white that allowed him to really analyze what can improve. Another aspect Megaludis participated in this past offseason was taking up coaching. The Murrysville, Pa., native credits coaching for giving him more maturity, which he looks to bring into the upcoming season.
"I was able to learn the sport more. Coaching helped me to see things from a new angle as well as helping other wrestlers," said Megaludis.
Retherford's training also differed from normal as well, getting a chance to learn intensely with one of his coaches.
"I had a full year to wrestle with Frank Molinaro, which was great because he is my weight and won Nationals, so he was a great partner. It was great just to get that year to really work on my technique."
Both wrestlers preached how excited they are to get back on the mat and compete competitively again for the Nittany Lions.
"I'm hungry to compete again. That's what you need to have if you want to wrestle well. You can have all of the technique and strength in the world, but if you aren't hungry to wrestle and win, then you aren't benefitting the team and yourself," said Retherford.
"I can't wait to wrestle. I want to come out looking to score every second," said Megaludis. "I want to make my opponents hate wrestling me."
Megaludis and Retherford will get their first chance to get back on the mat when the season opens on Nov. 13 when Penn State hosts Lock Haven for a 7 p.m. dual. The Nittany Lions will host two Bryce Jordan Center Duals this season, competing against Wisconsin on Dec.13 and Ohio State on Feb. 5.