Why he was selected:

Brady Fisher won the 220-pound championship at the Sycamore Invitational.

Fisher, ranked fourth in the state by the illinoismatmen.com rankings, currently holds a 32-3 record. He talked with Record sports editor Joshua Welge about his season. Here is an edited version of the transcript:

Welge: How significant was your championship at Sycamore?

Fisher: It was a great confidence-booster going into conference and the state series. It was nice to get some good matches in.

Welge: Did any matches stand out?

Fisher: My last match in the championship was definitely a hard one. It was a kid from Kaneland that had dominated his way through the tournament. I locked up a 5-2 decision, that was big. It was a pretty close match. I was able to use my technique over his strength.

Welge: You're 32-3, ranked in the state. Is this what you expected?

Fisher: Yes, I put in a lot of work in the offseason with all my partners in the room. I was expecting to be ranked this high. I wrestle with Nick [Stemmett] every day in practice. He's a great wrestler. I give a lot of credit to him.

Welge: How does it help having a state-ranked practice partner?

Fisher: It helps you prepare for the hard matches. It's basically like having an intense, state-quality match every day in practice. We feed off of each other and make each other better.

Welge: How long have you been wrestling?

Fisher: I actually started pretty late, around fifth grade. My football coach recommended that I try it. I quit basketball and went out for wrestling instead. It was a great decision.

Welge: How are you a better wrestler this year?

Fisher: I'm a lot more aggressive with my attacks. Last year I would sit back. This year I try to control the match.

Welge: What did you work on in the offseason?

Fisher: I went and did offseason practice for the high school team, for the club, and I also went to Overtime and competed at nationals in Fargo. I went 2-2 there. It really gave me some hard matches. It humbled me and showed me how hard I need to work.

Welge: What big matches do you have coming up?

Fisher: Conference is big. I'm pretty excited. I had to sit out conference last year with impetigo, a bacterial infection. I'm excited to have a chance to compete.

Welge: If this year finished the way you'd like, what would happen?

Fisher: It would definitely finish with us as a team going to team state and hopefully placing high individually.

Welge: Do you feel your team has opened some eyes with your success?

Fisher: We've definitely drawn more attention. We're a pretty young team, too. We're going to have most of our guys back next year.