Hard work turns Wyoming wrestling commit Kevin Anderson into one of state’s best
CASPER, Wyo. (BVM) — Kelly Walsh High School head wrestling coach Travis Peak couldn’t envision Kevin Anderson as a future NCAA Division I wrestler three years ago.
Now there seems to be no stopping the University of Wyoming commit.
“He was able to go from not even being a state qualifier as a freshman, which in Wyoming, that’s pretty bad, to being the absolute best wrestler by his junior year,” Peak said. “By his junior year we were going, ‘Wow, this guy has gotten so good, so fast, like where is the ceiling? Where does his potential stop?’”
Walsh made a big jump to become the best wrestler in the 160-pound class in a span of two years, but he still had to overcome adversity in order to claim an individual state title. As a junior, he entered the state tournament ranked No. 1, but he was pinned in the quarterfinal round.
“He had a great junior season and absolutely should have or could have been a state champion then,” Peak said. “He’d beaten everybody pretty badly all season and just had a lapse in judgement in one match and ended up getting third. He was pretty bound and determined to win it this year.”
Determined as he was, Anderson had to endure a setback this past January when he suffered a spiral fracture in his hand which required surgery.
“At first it was super discouraging,” Anderson said, “but then as time progressed and I was healing up good and working hard and getting my mind right, I was getting more confident.”
Peak was initially concerned about the injury, but he had little doubt that Anderson would do whatever he had to in order to come back.
“A lot of kids I might question, but not Kevin,” Peak said. “He works hard, he’s tough, he’s very focused and determined and he kind of had a bitter taste in his mouth after his junior season.”
Anderson returned in February and claimed that elusive individual state title with a 6-4 decision over Cheyenne East’s Jackson Hesford, and he also helped the Trojans claim their second straight state title as a team. It was the culmination of a lot of hard work by Anderson, who had come a long way since missing the state tournament as a freshman.
“It was just working hard, as cliché as that sounds,” Anderson said. “It was every morning working out, going to practice every afternoon and working hard and doing summer stuff, going to offseason tournaments. There was never a time that I wasn’t trying to get better and trying to excel at what I was doing.”
Peak believes Anderson’s ability and willingness to learn helped him make big strides as a wrestler.
“He’s really smart and he’s like a sponge,” Peak said. “He’ll soak up things. You’ll teach him something and he’ll drill it a few times and then he’ll be able to do it in a match.”
The smarts and work ethic that Anderson displayed while at Kelly Walsh will only benefit him at the college level, and there’s no telling how far those qualities will take him.
“I think that’s what’s kind of intriguing about him the most and I think that’s maybe what UW sees in him,” Peak said. “He’s come a long way in a short amount of time and it doesn’t really seem like he’s slowing down so maybe they see a lot of potential and he can still get a lot better. … He’s such a hard worker and a quick learner that we don’t really know what his potential is right now.”
Anderson is hopeful his potential will lead to more titles at Wyoming.
“I see myself achieving quite a bit,” said Anderson, whose high school teammate Analu Benabise, a three-time individual state champ, will also be joining the Cowboys after his senior season next year. “I think I’m going to pick up where I left off and keep climbing and hopefully one day end up on the podium as an All-American or national champ.”
