Pictured is Easley High School’s Henry Mastersonb (front row) as the only senior wrestler for the Green Wave on Senior Night. His varsity teammates include: Luke Arrowood, Ryker Shields, Novie “Brannon” Phillips, Riley Felmet, Kavon Smith, Ricardo Valencia, Milton “Gage” Fisher, Leiland Hawthorne, Bryan Gonzalez, Toby Capps, Timothy “Cole” Coker, Braden Lewandowski, Clayton Goodacre, Josue Melendez Guevara, Thomas “Granger” Hawkins, DeAndre Taylor, Dylan Crooks, Tracy “TJ” Williams, James Mauldin, Jonathan “JP” Wright, Jaylen Parks, Tyshun Mitchell, Josh Harvey and Elijah Owen.
Jeff Holt | The Easley Progress
EASLEY — It didn’t take too long to introduce everyone on Senior Night last week for the Easley wrestling team.
Henry Masterson … the lone senior for the Green Wave. And uniquely, it’s his first season out for wrestling.
“Wrestling is such a mental sport,” said the 6-foot-4 and 215-pound Masterson. “Psychologically, it pushes you. A lot of these young guys are starting to figure it out. This isn’t a sport where you can blame the offense or blame the defense. It’s one-on-one and that’s a big reason why I wanted to start wrestling this year. The mental toughness and the work ethic will stick with me the rest of my life.”
A starting lineman for the football team, the 18-year-old Masterson is quick to say how much the sport of wrestling helps with football.
“I do not think there are enough words that I know … everybody should do it,” he said. “It’s unbelievable. The leverage that you learn and the grit that you learn.”
Beyond that, Masterson could not be happier than wrestling for first-year coach Jordan Hawthorne.
“He (Hawthorne) is the definition of put your head down and work,” said Masterson. “Any time I need some help. Like today, I was injured with my shoulder and he’s a very understanding guy. If something was going on in my life, Hawthorne would be one of the first people I’d talk to. He’s a laid-back guy, but he also understands the value of work. I can’t think of better values in a coach.”
And about his wrestling teammates at EHS, Masterson said, “I love each and every one of these guys. Every time I come to the gym I get a new reason to keep going. Obviously, it would be hard to see why being the only senior. But every time I come to the gym, these guys tell me why.”
At press time, Masterson had an overall record of 12-5.
“He is probably the smartest kid I’ve ever met in my life,” said Coach Hawthorne. “He’s going to Chapel Hill — which is already a high academic institution — but he’s also studying neuroscience there. He has a great support system and is a multi-sport athlete. He’s got his head on straight. While he may not be the most vocal kid on the team, he leads by example.”
Masterson is currently ranked third in his class at EHS with a 5.2 grade point average. He lights up, too, when talking about his future plans to attend the University of North Carolina.
“I’ve always been pretty competitive in the academics,” he said. “I wanted to find a school that could mix my love for academics with sports. Every time I talked to teachers and researched it – it was Chapel Hill. I hope to help athletes in the future, and hope to be an orthopedic surgeon.”
Reach Jeff Holt at 864-855-0355.