THE FRONT ROW WITH JASON ELLIOTT: Wednesday, Aug. 10, 2016

If you were to ask Post Falls freshman Ridge Lovett just how many matches he’d won in a row, he’d likely might not have that answer right away.

Then again, when that’s all he’s done since joining the Post Falls program, you’d lose count as well.

EARLIER THIS year, Lovett capped an unbeaten season at the high school level, winning the 98-pound state 5A wrestling title at Holt Arena in Pocatello, also helping the Trojans to a second straight state team title.

Then he qualifed for the ASCIS Cadet Freestyle and Greco-Roman national championships in Fargo, N.D.

In Fargo, he just dominated, winning the national title by technical fall over Lucas Byrd of Ohio 13-3.

“It was a great feeling,” Lovett said. “Just getting there and having the chance to be part of the team, it was a great experience. It has been my goal for a couple of years. I’d finished second last year, and that was kind of the start of my freshman year. This was a big capper for me.”

Lovett won each of his matches by technical fall at nationals.

Lovett lost in the event in 2015 — the last time he tasted defeat in Greco-Roman style — and went on to win 41 straight high school matches in 2015-16.

“My main goal right now is to go all four years of high school unbeaten,” Lovett said. “That’s the main goal right now.”

In order to qualify for nationals, a wrestler must win at the western regional tournament or state tournament.

Lovett finished second in freestyle nationals, losing to Julian Tagg of Ohio 8-2 in the finals.

ALREADY LOOKING to the 2016-17 season, Lovett knows exactly where he’ll get better to continue his run.

“I think the best way to go is to keep that going and keep working with (Post Falls and Real Life club coaches) Abel De La Rosa, (Pete) Reardon and my dad (Lonnie Lovett),” Ridge said. “I kind of think we’re going to get going. Our incoming freshmen are tough. A.J. (De La Rosa) and the other guys I’ve been with, these guys are tough. Our older guys like Brad Noesen and Cody Cantrell, and the juniors are all amazing.

Our club team has always been good and have been winning tournaments. I really didn’t think about having that success in high school, but now that I think about it, it was pretty obvious that it was going to turn.”

“He’s meant a lot to our program,” Post Falls coach Pete Reardon said. “He’s not the typical freshman kid, and came here after winning several national titles. We’ve had a lot of great kids come through our program, and he’s just as good as them, and maybe a little better. He’s just one of those kids that when he walks onto the mat, he’s the next best thing to a sure thing. But he’s a very humble kid. For as accomplished as he is, he’s just a super, humble, kind kid. He’s a tender-hearted kid that will go up to you if someone isn’t having a good day, throw his arm over them and talk to them.”

Even with all his accomplishments at the club level — the national titles and wins — Reardon wasn’t sure what he was getting once Lovett joined the high school team.

“You’ve always have questions, but don’t really know until he gets there,” Reardon said. “At the same token, you see a lot of kids go hard like he has, and they burn out. It’s really hard to go at that kind of level. It takes a special kind of kid to hold onto that desire. It’s a very unique desire, but the fact is, he’s human like anyone else. It’s hard to remain focused and train all the time. But he’s had a balanced live and has always been balanced. When he was a kid, he played baseball. He hunts, he fishes. Ridge is one of those kids that his parents have always provided him the chance to do whatever sport he wants, but he’s the one that wanted to be the one to do this.”

AND IF it requires him, Lovett will address the entire team.

“We were at a club tournament in Spokane a few years ago,” Reardon said. “We had a few kids that had bad days, and where throwing their headgear after the match. He approached the coaches and asked if he could talk to the team, like the coaches do. He proceeded to tell them how we do things, and that wasn’t it, and called some kids out. Off the mat, he’s a really, really cool kid. But on the mat, he’s a stone cold killer.”

Jason Elliott is a sports writer for the Coeur d’Alene Press. He can be reached by telephone at 664-8176, Ext. 2020 or via email at jelliott@cdapress.com. Follow him on Twitter @JEPressSports.