By Jayden Mies
Freelance reporter
Special to the Tribune
As the winter sports season approaches, teams at PHS will soon begin practice for the 2024-25 campaign. One of these is the girls’ wrestling program, which features several returning regional and state qualifiers, as well as a new head coach.
This would be Kendall Miller, who was hired to fill the vacant spot, which was previously held by longtime teacher and coach Tate Thompson. However, Miller is coming into this program amid an immense growth in popularity, and he has several girls that are dedicated to chasing state placements.
According to Miller, there are 21 girls out for wrestling this year. These are split between six freshmen, six sophomores, three juniors, and six seniors. These numbers spell current and future success for this program, as they are very balanced across the board. They have a great senior class this year and will continue to have those underclassmen going out for future years.
Next, Miller discussed some of his goals that he is wanting accomplish in his first year at Pratt.
“For year one, generally you want to build a strong sense of relationships between the team and coaching staff in general. This year, we have a totally new coaching staff, so it is going to be important to set standards and expectations early to be successful,” he said.
Miller also talked about the wrestling side itself, saying that he wants to attack each detail mechanically in every practice.
He said, “Once we master the little details, we can pick up intensity and focus more on conditioning and being the best versions of ourselves. Mindset training will also be vital for the program, and I really want to instill the ‘next match’ mentality. Oftentimes, we worry about rankings, and that can get us into trouble. One of my favorite quotes from a mentor is ‘A ranking never won a match’.”
Miller then transitioned into talking about how the community in Pratt has welcomed him so far.
“I am very blessed to inherit a program that has had this much success. Whenever my family and I moved to Pratt, we got straight to work and held multiple practices in the summer. I also want to thank men’s coach Anthony Brown for making all our practices possible. He has helped tremendously with the transition,” he said.
He then spoke praises of the team, as he said that they are a tight-knit group that has a great passion for succeeding.
He said, “If we focus on one practice at a time, one meet, and one tournament at a time, good things will happen in the postseason.”
Miller closed by saying that he is very excited to begin his first year as the head coach at Pratt.
“I am most excited to get to work and see what we can accomplish. Anybody can tell that this group has a desire and wants to be the best wrestlers possible. As a coach, you can’t ask for a better mindset than wanting to be successful. If we work hard, I believe that special things will happen for this group. Another aspect that the community and I are excited about is the re-opening of the Frog Dome. This gym has a special place in the community and alumni’s heart, and we will be able to host duals there to create a special atmosphere,” he said.
The team, which is set to begin practice soon, will have their first tournament on Friday, December 6. This will be their annual home tournament, and they will hope to start the 2024-25 season off right by claiming a first place title.
