The wrestling rivalry between Southfield High and Southfield-Lathrup is officially dead.
Southfield-Lathrup’s wrestling program was shut down this year due to minimum participation. So three wrestlers from Southfield-Lathrup (S-L) swallowed their Charger pride and joined Southfield High’s Blue Jay team.
“It is not that deep, I just want to wrestle,” said senior Lorenzo Jones, who competes in the 171-pound weight class.
Jones attends Southfield-Lathrup for classes by day and then travels to Southfield High after school to attend wrestling practice.
Two others S-L wrestlers changed high schools in order to continue wrestling. Dequan Taylor and Jalen Jones switched schools from Southfield-Lathrup to Southfield High this year to be on the team.
Athletic Director Tim Conley says that the joining of student athletes from different schools is common when little participation of a sport is the case.
Conley also said that the Southfield-Lathrup wrestlers who wrestle at Southfield High must transfer their sports eligibility to Southfield High. This means that if a Lathrup student wrestles at Southfield High, he or she must only play sports at Southfield High.
Wrestling is one of many teams in Southfield Public Schools to experience a joint school membership. Southfield High students who wish to swim or play soccer must join Southfield-Lathrup’s teams because Southfield High offers neither sport.
Conversely, Southfield-Lathrup students who want to wrestle or run cross country have to join Southfield High’s team because S-L offers neither, Conley said.
So far both school still offer football, basketball, tennis, track and golf, Conley said. Neither school, however, offers a ski team or a bowling team.
And then there’s University High School, which is part of Southfield Public Schools, and offers none of its own teams. So University High students can play for either school, Conley said. In fact, the starting quarterback for Southfield High’s football team this year was Justin Danzy of University High School.
Senior wrestler Antonio Echols, who was close to being a state qualifier at the 215-pound weight class for the Blue Jays, says he’s all for S-L wrestlers joining Southfield High’s team. “The diversity that Lathrup contributes can help me become a state qualifier,” Echols reasons.
Senior Darius Durrant says, ” They (S-L) has some good athletes, so I know it will only help our team be successful.”
Durrant was second in the county tournament for the 230-pound weight class last year and had to end his season early due to family issues. But he returns to wrestling this year with one goal in mind, he says: winning the state championship.