Men's Wrestling | 2/18/2021 9:52:00 AM
Written by Tim Gallagher, BVU Assistant Director of Communication
STORM LAKE, Iowa (February 18, 2021) -Ron Peterson '80 will have many thoughts during his induction into the Iowa High School Athletic Association Wrestling Hall of Fame at 5:45 p.m. Saturday, minutes before the Grand March that opens the Iowa High School State Wrestling Tournament at Wells Fargo Arena.
He may have visions of the 12 siblings he wrestled against while growing up in Webster City. There could be his high school Lynx teammates, his Triton teammates at Iowa Central Community College.
Peterson will reflect on three team state titles he and his Clarksville High School wrestlers earned, or the two he was fortunate to guide while coaching at Cedar Rapids Prairie. He might also have memories of the student-athletes he coached at Simpson College, then later at Knoxville High School.
He'll also envision his time spent at his alma mater, Buena Vista University, where Coach Al Baxter and the members of the BVU Athletics Department guided him by their example into a career as a teacher and coach.
Ron Peterson (1978-79)
"Whenever I return to Siebens Fieldhouse at BVU, I glance up at the banner that commemorates the 1980 Iowa Conference Championship we won with Coach Baxter," Peterson says. "That was his second year with the Beavers. In back-to-back years, we went from worst to first."
Peterson was the team MVP in 1978-79, his first year on campus, which was also Baxter's rookie year with the Beavers. The team's fortunes turned dramatically in Peterson's senior year as BVU claimed the league title and Peterson earned an NCAA Division III Nationals berth.
"I came to visit Buena Vista after my sophomore year at Iowa Central and Coach Baxter had started like one week prior," Peterson recalls. "After 10 minutes of visiting with Coach, I was ready to drive home to Webster City, get my belongings and drive right back to Storm Lake to get started in building the wrestling program.
"Al Baxter had the ability to convince us we could beat anyone," Peterson recalls. "He made me believe. I tried to carry that on for years as a coach."
Beyond Baxter, Peterson says the examples set by other BVU coaches helped set his career in motion; people such as the late Jim Hershberger, Dr. Jay Beekman '42, Dr. Al Lewis, and retired softball coach Marge Willadsen.
"The individuals who worked in the Athletics Department were great role models," Peterson remembers. "I looked at how they taught and led their lives and I said, 'I want to be like them.'"
Peterson's first coaching stop at Clarksville proved fortuitus. He says the local school board voted to drop wrestling in 1979, then changed course after students staged a sit-in protest in the lunchroom. Peterson directed three state-championship efforts at Clarksville, Class 1A dual team titles in 1989 and 1990, then the traditional tourney crown in 1991. The history/government teacher added a pair of championships at Cedar Rapids Prairie in 1994 and 1995, then began a successful coaching run at Simpson College, where his teams placed in the NCAA Division III top 10 on five occasions.
Ron says he'll be surrounded by family members at his induction, a group including his wife, Martha, two daughters, Traci (Chad) Brewer and Kris (Chris) Birkland, and five grandchildren.
He'll also be immersed in memories, overjoyed and humbled by the many people who became his friends thanks to the sport of wrestling.
"When I was told about my induction into the Hall of Fame, I had trouble finishing the call," Peterson says. "It was emotional. To me, this is the most prestigious hall of fame someone could be inducted into. I know so many of the people in the Iowa High School Athletic Association Wrestling Hall of Fame. It's overwhelming for me to think I'm included with them."
