First Posted: 2/22/2015
ADA – There are certain courses required for a college major.
Then, there are courses that are classified as electives.
When Allen East grad Cody Lovejoy enrolled at Ohio Northern University to pursue a career in pharmacy, four years ago, he wasn’t expecting to see “wrestling” listed as one of his classes.
Lovejoy, who competed in wrestling all through high school, was heading to Ohio Northern with only pharmacy school on his mind.
However, after going through college orientation, he noticed that “wrestling” was listed on his course list.
“When I applied, he (ONU wrestling coach Ron Beaschler) knew I wrestled in high school,” Lovejoy said. So, they had put it on there initially. But, they forgot to take it off by orientation. He said it was an accident.
“The last time he saw me wrestle was when I was wrestling at 171 pounds (senior year at Allen East). Watching me wrestle at 171 pounds wasn’t anything spectacular (finished sixth in Division III at the state tournament). I didn’t have the physical maturation yet. Then when I came in over the summer, I started that process where I started to mature. He saw me and told me that maybe I could fill out to be a heavyweight. He told me that if wrestling affected my grades, he would understand.”
Lovejoy cautiously accepted Beaschler’s offer and joined the wrestling team.
Now, a senior at ONU, Lovejoy is 38-0 with 24 pins (most in NCAA Division III) and ranked No. 1 in NCAA Division III in the heavyweight division. His career record at ONU is 139-35.
However, Cody isn’t the only Lovejoy that’s making a name at ONU.
Cody’s brother, Colt, a junior who is majoring in Criminal Justice, is 30-4 and ranked ninth in the nation in the 165-pound weight class. Last season, Colt went 22-8 with six pins. However, last season ended early because of an injury.
Colt was a two-time state-placer at Allen East. As a junior, he placed seventh at 130 pounds. Colt then closed out his high school career with a sixth-place finish at 138.
On March 1, both Lovejoys will begin their quest for an opportunity to wrestle at the NCAA nationals, as they compete at the NCAA Division III Mideast Regional Championships at Messiah (Pa.) College.
As a team, ONU is ranked 29th in the nation.
There are six regions for Division III. The top three placers in each weight class at each regional, will advance to the nationals on March 13, 14 at Hershey, Pa.
For Cody, competing as a heavyweight meant finding that ideal weight.
“My freshman year, I was an undersized heavyweight. I sat right around 230 (at 6-foot-3),” Cody said. “Then, I put in the time and work over the summer into building myself into a true heavyweight.
“My sophomore year, I was right around 280 pounds. At 280 pounds, I was big and strong. But on the same note, I didn’t move how I had moved previously, and that slower pace didn’t match with me. So, I realized I needed to get some weight off. So last year, my junior year, I sat around 260 most of the season. Then at nationals, I was right around 250. Right now, I sit around 250, 255 pounds.”
Last year at nationals, Cody finished seventh and earned all-America honors. He also won the Elite 89 Award as the participant with the highest GPA at the 2014 NCAA Division III Championships. On the season, he went 43-5 with 24 pins.
Cody feels that making the transformation from a lighter weight to heavyweight, does give him an advantage over most of the heavyweights.
“There’s definitely an advantage (being smaller in high school),” Cody said. “In the heavyweights, you see a range of different body types and styles. With me once being a lighter weight, I’ve learned all the basics of wrestling. Sometimes, that’s where some of the heavyweights run into problems, because they don’t know how to adjust to someone smaller and it makes them wrestle a true wrestling match.”
Like his brother, Colt, competed at a lighter weight during high school.
“Initially, coming in from high school, I thought I might wrestle at 141 or 149,” Colt said. “But, I grew a lot and got bigger. So, I thought that wherever my weight is, I’ll wrestle at that weight. I had to cut weight all four years of high school. When I got here, I managed my weight a lot better. I used to have to cut six or seven pounds in a week. Now, it’s like two or three pounds.”
Beaschler has nothing but praise for the Lovejoy brothers.
“Cody and Colt exemplify the true student athlete,” Beaschler said. “They excel, both athletically and academically. They are goal-oriented individuals who understand the focus, determination and work ethic that has to occur in order to achieve their goals.”
For Cody, being tabbed No. 1 in the nation is an honor he doesn’t take too seriously.
“I try to keep that (the ranking) out of my mind and take it one day at a time,” Cody said. “So, the next person I step out there against, it’s my job to beat them. Quite simply, the rankings mean nothing, until like the coach says, the day after nationals. …That’s what matters.”
