Renaissance grappler

FHS senior a winner on, off the mat

The last week of Colter Lane's wrestling career at Flathead High School started with the possibility of realizing his dream to place at state. He had earned berths to the big dance twice before, but he had never made it past the first day.

He went to divisionals determined to set himself up with a good spot for state, and he came out as the West's No. 3 seed.

And to start Friday in Billings, he won his first-ever, first-round bout with a 7-3 decision over Billings West's Nathan Kobold. Finally, the years of hard work were paying off.

But for some reason, Lane was more fatigued than usual after his first match. His conditioning was a major reason he went 19-6 during the regular season.

Before his second match, he had already made a trip to the bathroom to throw up. Some stomach bug was very much interfering with his day.

Lane's face was pale, and his body language told the story of his sickness throughout his second match with Billings Skyview's Andy Kohn. Lane went the distance, but fell 6-2.

Lane's confidence was still up. He was still talking about staying focused for the medal rounds on Saturday, but he had one match left to overcome.

He then made another trip to the bathroom as his stomach plagued him.

The announcer called Lane's name - he was on deck for the consolation quarterfinals. Lane made his way down to the mat and began warming up. The coaches talked him up. This was it. This was the match that would determine whether or not Lane would be standing on the podium the next day.

Missoula Big Sky's Brian Morree stood across from him on the mat. When the ref got the show rolling, the two battled on their feet, fighting for takedown position.

As the first period drew to an end, Morree got inside position and took a shot. Lane tried to fight him off, but Morree got the two points as the buzzer sounded.

Morree took bottom position to start the second, and hand-fought to keep Lane from scoring, but didn't try to score any points of his own. The ref dinged Morree for stalling for the second time to give Lane one point.

Lane then managed to get Morree curled up and ran a cradle to put him on his back. The ref got to the count of three to give Lane two near-fall points when Morree suddenly slipped out and scrambled for a reversal. Lane found himself down 4-3.

In the third period, Morree did enough to hold Lane down to keep him from scoring the winning points.

Time wound down and the ref's piercing whistle signaled an end to Lane's wrestling career. Lane paused for a second to look at the scoreboard, not sure whether to believe it or not.

After shaking the coaches' hands, Lane put his back against the Metra's concrete wall and slid to the ground. Flathead coaches Jeff Anderson and Dallas Stucker stood on each side of him - like two columns over a collapsed building.

This dream just wasn't going to come true.

"I was really just disappointed and frustrated," Lane said. "The realization that I had never placed at state kind of hit me.

"It was not a very good match for me. He didn't do much, but I screwed up and he rode the lead. Fighting from behind was a problem for me this whole year."

Lane, the ultimate team cheerleader, was also upset by the fact that he hadn't added more points to his team's total.

"You just feel like you let your team down," he said. "You think about how it affects the team score."

Lane started wrestling when he was 9 years old.

"We never promoted wrestling to him," Anna, Lane's mother said. "He wanted to do it."

His parents have watched him devote himself to wrestling, and have watched him grow from a Little Guy grappler to an important leader on a state-championship Braves team. He finished the year second on his team for most technical falls and third with the most near falls.

"He puts a lot of effort into it," Lane's father Warren said. "He's really had to work at it."

And despite never becoming a wrestling superstar, he stuck with the sport with a dogged determination. His hard work and leadership helped him to be voted as one of the team's captains for his senior year.

"Colter's just an all-American, great kid," Flathead coach Jeff Thompson said. "He goes so far above and beyond with his work ethic. He's one of those guys who is the first to show up and the last to leave at practice. We've been very fortunate to have a young man like him in our program."

Lane's work ethic spreads to every facet of his life. He's been a four-year 4.0 student and was named as an alternate for Montana State's Presidential Scholarship.

When the team traveled to Minnesota for the National Duals during Christmas break, Lane was chosen to receive the Wellstone Award for scholar-athletes. Coming up, he has an interview with Abilene Christian University in Texas for their Presidential Scholarship.

Behind his bruised eyes there is a whole lot of brainpower. Lane is one of those renaissance men who is good at just about anything he tries, whether athletic or academic.

"He's any parent's dream," Thompson said. "He's so well-rounded. He's great in the community, does so much for his church and student government. He's a great athlete, and he got great SAT scores."

When he isn't wrestling or studying, Lane is busy pursuing a myriad of outdoor sports from kayaking to rock climbing or hunting. He also keeps busy as a leader in church's youth group. When he has the time, he occasionally leads a Saturday night devotional.

"I have to back off a lot during wrestling season because I'm not around a lot," he said.

So in the grand scheme, not placing at state this weekend will hardly derail Lane's future success, but for now the sting remains, even as he watches his team run off with the state title for the second time in three years.

"I won't ever regret putting in the time," Lane said. "The work ethic and discipline of the sport prepares you for life. And it's exciting to see my friends in the finals and doing well.

"If winning was the only objective, then maybe it was a waste of time. But I always knew it was more than just winning."