Minto, Watts Take Home Individual Post-Season Honors
ESTHERVILLE, Iowa - Sunday, February 16 marked an historic day for the community of Council Bluffs, specifically, the Reivers' wrestling team. They stood atop the leaderboard finishing with 149.5 points winning the 2020 Central District Championship for the first time in school history, dating back to 2011-12.
Guiding them throughout this season was 2020 Coach of the Year, Josh Watts. Watts and his staff produced 10 National Qualifiers including three champions in their weight class. In the 133-pound weight class, LaDamien Sturdivant came out on top, followed by Chance Fry (157lbs), and Michael Waggoner (174lbs). Watts is in his ninth year at the helm of Iowa Western's wrestling program, producing 83 National Qualifiers and 25 All-Americans during his time.
The Reivers' highest ranking this year was 4th, and they are currently ranked No. 5 in the country. With the NJCAA National Championships looming on March 6-7 in Council Bluffs, the Reviers hope to make noise and build off of their
Christian Minto, a freshman from Mariner, Fla., was named the 2020 ICCAC Wrestler of the Year. Ranked No.1 in the 165-pound weight class, Minto took down Cameron Nesbitt of Ellsworth in the semifinals, then defeated No. 2 ranked wrestler from Iowa Central, Ashton Eyler (Dec, 9-6) in the championship match. It was the second time this season defeating Eyler.
Minto had a jam-packed season, placing first at the Luther College Open, first at the University of Dubuque Invite, and first at the Central College Under Armour Invitational. His regular season stats finished with a record of 19-0 with 4 pins, 3 technical falls and 3 major decisions.
Minto was coached by his older brother, Basil Minto, entering his second season as an assistant coach. Basil was a fellow Trojan, earning All-American status two years in a row, (2012,2013). He wrestled at UNI for two seasons and qualified for the NCAA tournament.