MALE
Graham Rooks, Columbus East senior wrestler
Rooks won one match Friday and three Saturday to win the 132-pound state championship and help lead the Olympians to a third-place team finish. He beat Cathedral’s Alex Mosconi 4-1 in the final to finish the season 48-0.
His performance last week: “I felt really good. I think it was one of the best tournaments I’ve had all year. I just did the right things in practice to prepare myself and focused on one match at a time.”
Do you do anything special to prepare? “The last couple of years, I thought about winning each round. I needed to win this round, I needed to win the next round. This year, I just went in with the goal to score as many points as possible, get to my stuff … I can’t really focus on winning the match. I had to focus on getting to my positions and winning all of the position battles.”
Favorite drink: “Sweet tea”
Favorite food: “A burger”
Favorite book: “’A Wrestling Life’ by Dan Gable”
Favorite class: “Math”
Role model: ”My Dad (Ben Rooks) and my grandfather (Lester Perkinson Jr.)”
Best advice: “Just try your best in everything you do, and that’s pretty much it.”
Athletics goal: “To be an NCAA champ next year (for Indiana University).”
If you could travel anywhere: “Probably Florida, because it’s really nice down there.”
FEMALE
Taylor Gaskill, Columbus East junior gymnast
Gaskill won the floor with a 9.5 and finished third on the bars (9.0) and fourth on the beam (9.1) on her way to a second-place all-around finish with a 36.2 in the Olympians win against Owen Valley.
Her performance last week: “I felt pretty good, but I thought there were a few places where I could have done better. I just have to make the corrections (this) week.”
Do you do anything special to prepare? “I just try to keep a positive mindset and listen to music and get excited.”
Favorite drink: “Milk”
Favorite food: “Pizza”
Favorite book: “To Kill a Mockingbird.”
Favorite class: “AP Biology”
Role model: “My mom (Tina Gaskill)”
Best advice: “Never take anything for granted, and practice like it’s your last day you’re doing it.”
Athletics goal: “We want to place top three at state.”
If you could travel anywhere: “Probaly Costa Rica, because I’m in Spanish, and I just want to be immersed into the culture.”
