Junior wrestler Maddox Garbis claimed his 100th win on the mat on Dec. 29 at the Red Schmitt event. Garbis is an athlete who has established an outstanding wrestling career during his time at North. 

“It felt pretty good to get my 100th win, but I didn’t really even know until my dad told me that it was my 100th,” Garbis said. 

With the loss of former coach Jody Bodi, the wrestlers had to adapt to new coaching strategies and abilities.

“It was really hard for me to lose Bodi as a coach because me and him were extremely close,” Garbis said. “He was a great coach, but the new coach Adrian is great and has gotten me to be even better.”

Though only a junior, Garbis hopes to guide his teammates with the wisdom and knowledge gained from the dedication and hard work that he has invested into the sport. 

“Watching him taught me a lot of things about my mindset and how to become a better wrestler,” junior Samuel Zito said. “His hard work really shows in the room and on the mat he helps the coaches and consistently wins and qualifies for state and he is truly a good athlete.” 

All eyes are on Garbis as he comes off a 6th place Class 3A  state win last season. On the mat there is a lot of drive from competitors to defeat Garbis. 

“Of course there is pressure going into the season and during, but I don’t let it take control of me or the way I wrestle,” Garbis said. “But, dealing with the pressure is hard.” 

After losing some of last season’s star seniors like Jared Gumila and Jacob Macatangay, all heads turned to Garbis.

“I would describe Maddox as one of the toughest wrestlers at Plainfield North,” Zito said. “He has a great mindset and pushes himself harder than anyone.” 

Devoting himself to the sport has been shown on the mat time and time again. With multiple wins under his belt and excelling at such a rapid rate, the common denominator is Garbis’ wholeheartedness of love to the sport. 

“I would tell all my fellow teammates that it takes time and constant dedication to excel,” Garbis said.