Story Photos
 Kelso High's Brandon Sitch roars his approval after winning his fourth consecutive state championship in 2006 at the Tacoma Dome. Bill Wagner / Daily News file photo
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Doctors tell Sitch his wrestling career is over
Tuesday, July 29, 2008 8:55 AM PDT
By Rick S. Alvord
Printable version
E-mail this articleFormer Kelso standout Brandon Sitch, one of the most dominant high school athletes in Cowlitz County history, saw his wrestling career come to an end last week when doctors at the University of Minnesota determined it is too dangerous for him to continue to compete.
Sitch, the four-time state champion who has spent two injury-plagued seasons at Minnesota, has spinal stenosis (narrowing of the spine) in three spots. Sitch underwent surgery for the condition in May, but doctors said it still remains and therefore it is too risky for him to wrestle at such a high level.
“As expected, Brandon is devastated and crushed,” said his father, Dennis Sitch. “He was finally ready to go before this happened. He won’t get that chance to chase his wrestling dreams and goals.”
Sitch was not available for comment on Monday. He was busy working with his Golden Gophers teammates at a two-week University of Minnesota wrestling camp at Southern Oregon University in Ashland, Ore.
“He’s staying busy, which is good,” Dennis Sitch said. “I know what kind of kid he is. He’ll bounce back, but it will take time. He has wrestled most of his life. He’s going to miss it tremendously, especially when the season starts back there (at Minnesota).”
Sitch’s injury surfaced during a match at a Junior Freestyle National tournament in Las Vegas in May. Team physicians at Minnesota had hoped that surgery would help correct the narrowing of the spinal cord in the C4-C5 vertebrae region of the neck, which was swollen after the injury in Las Vegas.
“A normal spinal column is 12-13 millimeters (of space). And on those three spots on Brandon, it’s 6-8 millimeters,” his father said. “The surgery went well. He’s healed, and he can lift weights and run. He can wrestle with any kids he coaches, or even his own kids one day. He just can’t compete at that level.”
Sitch, who has been wrestling since he was a toddler, became the fourth wrestler in Washington history to capture four consecutive state titles in 2006 when he pinned Sedro-Woolley’s Patrick Janicki in 43 seconds in the 160-pound finals at the Tacoma Dome.
He also won state championships as a freshman (119 pounds), sophomore (135) and junior (145), and graduated from Kelso with a 134-5 career record.
After signing with the Golden Gophers, he arrived on campus in the fall of ’06 and tore his anterior cruciate knee ligament a week into workouts. After a successful surgery, he went on to post a 14-5 record last season in mostly a backup and fill-in role behind Minnesota’s fifth-year senior 174-pounder.
The spot at 174 in the Gophers’ lineup would have belonged to Sitch entering fall workouts at Minnesota.
“In Vegas, he was finally getting out of the gate. He was looking like the old Brandon, even a better Brandon,” Dennis Sitch recalled.
Sitch landed awkwardly on his head during a match early in the Las Vegas tourney. Later, in another match, he “took a weird shot, where the kid came into him like a tackle — a typical freestyle shot,” Sitch’s father said.
Sitch’s entire body went numb for several seconds. Doctors found the injury when he returned home to Minnesota.
The university initially planned to re-evaluate Sitch’s condition in September, but moved up the date to the summer. Now that the ex-Hilander great has given up his full-ride wrestling scholarship, the university will assume the remainder of it so his education is still paid for.
“Brandon is going to want to be around the mat in some capacity. Hopefully he’ll still be able to be with the team,” his father said. “The day they made the decision, I told the trainer to call me before he talked to Brandon. Later on, Brandon texted me and said the doctor told him he was done wrestling forever — and that he didn’t want to talk about it.
“We still haven’t talked about it, but we will when he’s ready,” he added. “I think Brandon prepared himself for the news, whether it was good news or bad news.”
It was only last year when Sitch’s career seemed to be flying high. He won the 185-pound class of the Junior World Trials Greco-Roman wrestling championships in Colorado Springs, Colo., to earn a spot on the United States Fila Juniors World Team and a three-week trip to the Junior World Championships in Beijing, China.
That was 12 months ago, almost to the day.
For now, Sitch is entrenched in the Gophers’ camp in Ashland, and will take a brief trip with his teammates and coaches to Cancun, Mexico, when it is over.
He will return home Aug. 9, then make plans to return to Minnesota as a student.
But not as a Golden Gophers grappler.
“He’s walking away from wrestling way before he was ready,” Dennis Sitch said of his son. “He’ll be fine, but when the season starts ... that’s going to be the toughest time for him. This is something he has grown up doing. This is something he loves.”
Related articles:
Neck injury threatens Sitch's wrestling career (May 17)
World-class pursuit: Kelso's Sitch heads to China with U.S. Juniors team (Aug. 15, 2007)
The fourth is with him: on-mat and off, 4-time wrestling champ Sitch is a class act (Feb. 21, 2006)
Sitch captures fourth state title (Feb. 19, 2006)
Golden opportunity (Nov. 10, 2005)
mia wrote on Jul 29, 2008 6:15 AM:
Best wishes to Brandon, continue your education and there is a life after competative wrestling. Stay involved in the sport as a coach, official or mentor, the sport needs you.
signed;
A former Pac 10 wrestler with a simular problem. "
duckguy wrote on Jul 29, 2008 8:12 AM:
Keep your chin up Bub! You can be very proud of what you accomplished. "
Kelso Grandma wrote on Jul 29, 2008 9:20 AM:
kelso83 wrote on Jul 29, 2008 11:59 AM:
dooglep wrote on Jul 29, 2008 1:32 PM:
this sucks, i'm just not going to believe this till i here it from you but your still my hero!! maybe you should go to your real calling QB! "
lola wrote on Jul 29, 2008 2:03 PM:
Beer&Skittles wrote on Jul 29, 2008 3:07 PM:
The Grateful Dad wrote on Jul 29, 2008 6:26 PM:
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