Ruschell’s take-on-all-comers attitude has enabled the Raiders to win the last three regional titles and under him Ryle has been the only Northern Kentucky school to finish in the top 10 in the state each of the past six years.  Ryle has also produced four of the six wrestlers to take home individual state championships the past three years, including returning seniors Mason Reid and Bryan Peace.

With Reid back to wrestle at 171 pounds and Peace looking to become Northern Kentucky’s first five-time regional champion at 140 pounds, the Raiders have sensed big things coming for this season following a ninth place finish in the state last year, best among Northern Kentucky teams.

“Everyone’s been coming out in the summer,” Reid says.  “Probably my sophomore or junior year not that many came (tried out), but now more people are showing up.”

In order to make sure the Raiders are ready by the time the state championships roll around in February, Ruschell has once again set up one of the toughest schedules in the area, a slate that includes tournaments against the top teams in both Ohio and Kentucky.

“We tend to wrestle our first part of the season in Ohio,” Ruschell says.  “Then we go to the South Oldham tournament the week after State Duals.  It’s like a warm-up.  Most of the teams in the state tournament will be there.  We also go to a tournament at (defending state champion) Union County.  We try to look at everybody throughout the state so there are no major surprises.”

“Our schedule is harder than most teams in Northern Kentucky,” Peace says, noting the depth and competition from the Ohio teams adds an element the Raiders don’t often see from their Kentucky foes.

Reid and Peace will also have additional chances to raise their profile among college coaches in December when Ruschell plans to send the duo to the Beast of the East tournament in Delaware that features some of the top wrestlers in the country.

Ruschell says Peace is already drawing interest from schools like Wisconsin, where his son Kyle nearly qualified as an All-American last season, and Harvard.  Reid says he’s generated some interest from local colleges, but is interested in earning a spot with a Division I school.

Reid and Peace should be prepared for the increased competition because of the challenge they say they face from their assistant coaches on a daily basis.

“They actually get their hands on us and wrestle,” Peace says.  “They usually get the better of us, but you keep on getting better.  They’ve been where we are now; they’ve just got more experience.

“I highly doubt other programs in the state have as many guys as we have,” Peace added.

Ryle’s staff includes Rick Barker, a three-time state champion at Newport Central Catholic from 1973 to 1975, former Miami University wrestler Larry Mikkelson, and Dave Barnes, an All-American wrestler in college whose presence Ruschell says convinced him to take the high school coaching job.

“I told them if you could get Dave Barnes you got me,” Ruschell says.

“Wrestling against them wasn’t fun at first, but I just understood they were helping me out,” Reid says, adding the coaches are among the toughest competition he faces during the season.  “Their style is different.  They just wait until you make a mistake.”

While Ruschell doesn’t get onto the mat to face his pupils in practice, Peace says his impact is always evident at practice as well.

“Coach Ruschell puts us through the grinder,” Peace says.  “He teaches us lots of different techniques and always has something for everybody.”

For the Raiders to match or better their best finish ever, a tie for second in the state in 2005, they will be counting on improvement from Will Hogben and Jacob Bradford, juniors who both placed eighth in the state at 189 and 215 pounds, respectively, last season. Michael Osborne, a regional runner-up at 103 pounds as a freshman, and 160-pound Alex Pickett, a senior returning from a torn anterior cruciate ligament last season, will also be important contributors if the Raiders are to offset the loss of five senior state-qualifiers from a season ago.

The greatest challenge, however, will be for Reid and Peace to duplicate their success from a season ago.

“Coach Ruschell always tells us the only thing harder than being a one-time state champion is being a two-timer,” Reid says. With Ruschell’s guidance, Reid and Peace are certain to face the challenge head-on.