Centennial senior Calvin Kraisser has grown accustomed to hearing his coach and father, Cliff’s, simple instructions before a wrestling match. That’s because they’re basically the same directions Cliff has repeated over the past 17 years coaching Calvin’s four older brothers.
“Wrestle for the entire six minutes,” Cliff Kraisser said. “I’ll just tell him to go out there and have fun.”
That family fun begins yet again on Thursday, December 12 at Howard County League rival Reservoir High, when Calvin Kraisser, 18, takes the mat for the first time in his final high school season.
A three-time state champion, Calvin Kraisser is the sixth wrestler and the fifth sibling in a legacy of brotherhood that has spanned four decades and produced 15 individual state titles for Centennial.
Cliff Kraisser was a state title winner for the Eagles in 1983, and Calvin’s elder brother, Nathan, 31, earned four each in county, regional and state crowns before graduating in 2012.
Austin Kraisser, 27, won four each in county and regional crowns as well as three state titles in four championship berths through 2016, and Jason, 24, graduated in 2019 with four each in county, region and state titles.
The eldest Kraisser sibling, Brian, 32, graduated in 2010 with two county titles and fifth and sixth place finishes at states. Brian was also second and third at counties and twice a runner-up at regions, where he also placed third and fourth.
“For me to win a 16th state title would be amazing, and my family would be proud. But as I’ve said before, that just comes as a perk from working as hard as I can right now in the training room,” said Calvin Kraisser, who is ranked No. 2 at 150 pounds by Legacy Wrestling.
“I do feel pressure like anyone does, but I do embrace it, especially when I get to wrestle someone who is good. Wrestling is hard, but when you go out for a match, that’s when it gets fun. That’s when you get to use all of the things you’ve been working on to go out and try to win.”
Calvin Kraisser has unique relationships with each of his siblings beyond the mat.
“My relationship with Brian is good because I share a lot of interests with him in sports, hobbies and shows. Getting to spend time with him is a lot of fun, especially because he doesn’t live at home anymore. I look up to Nathan a lot because he’s very disciplined. Nathan is organized and dedicated to everything he does, and I’m trying to be more like him,” Calvin Kraisser said.
“Jason feels like a best friend to me. Jason is actually the one who has helped me to get closer to God. Seeing Jason express himself publicly and going to Bible study really makes me love him. Austin has lived with me most recently out of all of my brothers. He has been teaching me how to treat people and to be a respectful young man. I’m trying to learn as much as I can from him.”
Calvin Kraisser was named the Outstanding Wrestler for winning his third straight Howard County crown last season. Kraisser did so with a fall in 1:50 against Glenelg's Collin Szczepanski, having reached the finals on pins in 3:07 and 1:48.
Also a three-time regional champion, Calvin Kraisser won a pair of Class 4A-3A state titles during his freshman and sophomore years. Calvin’s career record is 97-3 (77 pins, four technical falls) with last season’s Class 2A-1A state title. Jason's career record is 159-4, Austin's is 154-8, Nathan's, 152-6, and Brian’s, 126-39.
“All I can say about the ability of my family is that I’ve seen how hard they worked to achieve what they did,” said Calvin Kraisser, who carries a 3.43 grade point average and is undecided concerning where he will wrestle in college. “They always worked the hardest in the room, and they always tried to get better. Even if they were already the best in the room, they were always learning new skills or perfecting their old ones. They were always focused on whatever they were working on.”
Jason went 39-0 as a junior and 40-0 as a senior. Austin went 40-0 as a senior. Calvin went 27-0 as a freshman and hopes to go undefeated during his final season.
“Of course, going undefeated is also one of my goals, but that doesn’t mean I want a bunch of easy matches. I’ve worked out a lot with my brothers,” said Kraisser, who is on pace to earn his 100th career victory at the December 13-14 Walkersville High Tournament.
“They’ve helped me to improve the most out of anyone. Having them to help me one-on-one and helping me to perfect my own technical skills while also giving me new techniques to work on has really made me a better wrestler.”
Among Kraisser’s other offseason workout partners have been St. Mary’s Ryken senior Evan Boblits and Mount St. Joseph’s Carter Nogle, the latter of whom is attending the Air Force Academy after graduating high school as a three-time Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association and Maryland Private Schools State Champion as well as a three-time National Prep All American.
Named Legacy Wrestling’s Middleweight Wrestler Of The Year last season, Boblits has a career record of 113-14 (76 pins, two technical falls), is an honorable mention in the SB Live National Rankings, and is ranked No. 1 at 150 pounds by Legacy Wrestling ahead of the second-ranked Kraisser.
Committed to the Naval Academy, Boblits is a three-time Washington Catholic Athletic Conference title-winner who has earned one Maryland Private Schools state title in a pair of championship bout appearances and placed fourth and fifth in the National Preps Tournament.
“I’ve worked with Evan Boblits and Carter Nogle a lot in the offseason. Wrestling Evan is very good for me because the way he wrestles is different from what anyone at my school or county does,” said Kraisser, who worked out with Boblits as recently as this past Sunday, December 1, at the HeadHunters’ wrestling practice in Columbia, of Howard County.
“Evan mainly focuses on technique, which, in turn, helps me to get better at my technique and helps each of us to improve. I’ve wrestled with Carter Nogle mostly in the Freestyle and Greco styles. With his impressive background in those styles, especially in Greco, I’ve learned how to improve my control of opponents and how to use my strength to the fullest.”
Boblits’ first-year coach is Austin Kraisser, who competed at 157, 165 and 174 at Campbell University from 2017 through 2020, and Iowa State University in 2021. A Southern Conference runner-up at Campbell University in 2017, Austin Kraisser broached the subject of his younger brother facing Boblits at the January 3-4 War On The Shore Tournament at Stephen Decatur High in Berlin, Maryland.
“Calvin is a great wrestler who has a mindset that he will win every match when he steps foot onto the mat. Calvin constantly looks for new ways to improve, and is dangerous from every position,” Austin Kraisser said. “As for a possible matchup with Calvin this year, it would definitely be a fun, competitive match. I look forward to the possibility of them wrestling this season. It would be one that is guaranteed to have two guys fighting hard to come out on top.”
Calvin suffered two of his three career losses by narrow decisions to graduated former MIAA and private schools champion Judah Aybar of Loyola and Gilman senior Emmitt Sherlock, a University of Virginia-bound, 6-foot-3, 175-pounder.
Emmit Sherlock is top-ranked by Legacy Wrestling, seventh-ranked nationally by SB Live, and is in pursuit of his third straight titles in both the MIAA’s A Conference and the private schools state tournaments.
Sherlock has also placed third, fifth, sixth and second at the National Preps Tournament as an eighth grader, freshman, sophomore and junior, meaning he can become a rare five-time All-American by placing in this year’s event.
Gilman graduate Tyson Sherlock, Emmitt’s older brother, is a common opponent shared by Kraisser and Boblits. Boblits is 3-1 against Tyson, who is 1-0 against Kraisser.
Now a freshman at Davidson University, Sherlock finished second, first and first at MIAAs as a sophomore, junior and senior, third, first and second at private school states during those same three years, and fourth, second and first as a freshman, sophomore and junior at the National High School Coaches’ Association National Wrestling Tournament.
“I believe when I wrestled [the Sherlocks and Aybar,] I poured my everything into those matches. From time to time, I think of those losses. Of course, I was upset and mad at myself, but I couldn’t let those losses hang over me forever. I’ve wrestled with all three of them on club teams before, so I knew they were very good,” Kraisser said. “I wasn’t mad at them or anything like that. I try to find the things I did well in those matches instead of the things I messed up. In fact, I was excited to see if I was able to wrestle them again. Unfortunately, I wasn’t, but I still believe that getting to wrestle good guys like them is what it takes to make me a better wrestler.”
Calvin Kraisser came from behind to win each of his first two state titles, the first, as a 132-pound freshman in 2022, and the second, as a 138-pound sophomore in 2023.
In 2022, Kraisser overcame a 2-0 deficit for a 3-2 victory over previously unbeaten senior Elijah Mills of Old Mill High, who entered with a record of 41-0. Kraisser secured the go-ahead reversal late in the second period against Mills to secure his first state championship. Kraisser ended the year with a record of 27-0, including 17 pins.
In 2023, Kraisser planted Clarksville of Montgomery County junior Jonathan Chang with 21 seconds left, using a bar-arm pinning maneuver to turn and deck Chang. Kraisser trailed, 2-0, entering the second period after Chang’s takedown 30 seconds into the match, but he reversed Chang in the second period to tie the bout at 2-2 entering the third. Kraisser finished that season with a mark of 34-2, including 27 pins and two technical falls.
“Winning states just comes as a perk for everything that I have done up to that point. I train throughout the season to try to win states, but my main goal is to just get better. Practicing hard each day and getting better step-by-step is way more important to me,” Kraisser said. “As far as the degree of difficulty, winning states is one of the hardest things I’ve had to do. It’s physically straining, but most of it is mental. Going out there on a huge stage in front of hundreds of fans can be very exciting, but, also, scary knowing that if I mess up, everyone will see.”
Kraisser had an easier time winning last year’s Class 2A-1A state title at 144 pounds. Kraisser used falls in 85 seconds and 3:57 along with a 15-0 technical fall before winning his championship match by fall in 3:13 over Liberty junior Dylan Ohler, who was fourth at states as a freshman. Kraisser’s season-ending record was 36-1, including 33 pins and two technical falls.
A third-place state finisher as a sophomore, Chang won last year’s Class 4A-3A state title at 144 pounds, finishing with a record of 46-1.
Also among Kraisser's victories last season was a 3-2 decision over Northeast junior Beau Schmidt, a two-time Anne Arundel County champion who has been runner-up in the Class 1A-2A and Class 4A-3A state tournaments over the past two seasons.
Others who have lost to Kraisser include North Point graduate Conner Huff, Chesapeake-Anne Arundel graduate Dawson Hoover, Clarksburg senior Owen Pelaez, and Walkersville junior Rhys Ferguson.
Huff, who won a state title as a senior, finished third at states after losing his semifinal bout, 10-5, to Kraisser, then a freshman. Hoover finished fourth in the states after being pinned by then-sophomore Kraisser in 1:52 of their semifinal bout.
Pelaez was a quarterfinal, 5-4, loser to Kraisser during the latter’s freshman year, but has since placed fifth and fourth in the states. Ferguson finished fifth at states after being pinned by Kraisser at 3:47 of last year’s semifinal bout. Pelaez, Ohler and Ferguson, in order, are ranked third, fourth and seventh at 150 pounds.
By season’s end, Calvin Kraisser will have heard Cliff’s admonitions on numerous occasions.
“Just go out and compete,” Cliff Kraisser said. “I don't want to put any pressure on him about this being his senior year, the Kraisser legacy or anything like that.”
Calvin Kraisser welcomes the support, just like his elder brothers did.
“My Dad has taught me the importance of wrestling and why he had us all do it at a very young age. It gives us discipline and a mindset of working hard,” Calvin Kraisser said. “My Dad has been with me every step of the way, and not just in wrestling. My Dad has taught me values, and to always hold God above everything, for he is the one who has given me strength.”
Calvin Kraisser At A Glance
Calvin's career record/stats: (97-3 record, 77 pins, four technical falls, four major decisions, six decisions, six forfeits)
Calvin Kraisser's State Title Runs At A Glance
Freshman Record: (27-0, 17 pins, two majors, five decisions, three forfeits)
Class 4A-3A States
Josiah Oduyoye, Eleanor Roosevelt (Fall, 1:32)
Owen Pelaez, Clarksburg (Decision, 5-4)
Conner Huff, North Point (Decision, 10-5)
Elijah Mills, Old Mill (Decision, 3-2)
Sophomore Record: (34-2, 27 pins, two techs, two majors, three forfeits)
Class 4A-3A States
Drew Ritter, Catonsville (Technical Fall, 18-2)
Jason Beale, Northwest (Major Decision, 17-4)
Dawson Hoover, Chesapeake-AA (Fall, 1:52)
Jonathan Chang, Clarksburg (Fall, 5:39)
Junior Record: (36-1, 33 pins, two techs, 1 decision)
Class 2A-1A States
Devin Creitz, Loch Raven (Fall, 1:25)
Cody Sandefer, Kent Island (Technical fall, 15-0)
Rhys Ferguson, Walkersville (Fall, 3:47)
Dylan Ohler, Liberty (Fall, 3:13).
State Tournament Record Total: (12-0, six pins, two technical falls, one major decision, three decisions).
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