A-K Valley Senior Spotlight: Highlands’ Tyler Bender

By: Abby King
Monday, December 19, 2022 | 9:57 AM

Being a senior comes with responsibilities, and one of the biggest ones is leadership. It’s something Highlands’ Tyler Bender views with the utmost level of importance.

“Leadership to me is doing everything you are supposed to do,” Bender said. “That means you don’t talk back to the coaches, make weight no matter what and always be a reliable person on the team.”

Tyler is the son of Tom and Rochelle Bender. He is a member of the National Honor Society, a thrower for the track team, an all-conference defensive end for the football team and the recipient of the Scholar Athlete Award. He has been wrestling since his freshman year in high school.

“My coach came up to me and told me I should try out,” Bender said.

Bender took some time out of his busy schedule to sit down and answer a few questions for a Senior Spotlight Q&A:

You’ve made tremendous progress throughout your years of wrestling. What do you believe helped you this whole time?

I’d say good coaching and the constant support from everyone around me. Both of those things give me the motivation to keep pushing forward.

Do you consider yourself a pinner?

Yes, the majority of my wins come off of my pins. My strengths in the match are definitely the top and bottom. That helps me get more pins.

What does your pre-match routine look like?

I stretch with the other heavyweights and then do some takedowns. Before my match is up, I like to stretch and bounce just to get the blood flowing through my body.

You led the football team in tackles this season. Tell me a little bit about that.

Football went a lot better than expected. Even though we lost a decent amount of starting seniors and had to start fresh with a new coach and gameplan, we worked hard all summer and when our season came around, we did extremely well.

You opened wrestling season with a runner-up finish at the Eastern Area Invitational at Gateway. Do you consider that a good start?

The highest I’ve ever placed in that tournament before this was sixth place. So, it was a huge improvement for me, but I want to do better in my next tournament.

What are your goals for the season?

My goals are to make it to the PIAA state tournament for individual and as a team.

You wrestle at 189 pounds. Do you have to cut weight after football?

After football, I was weighing in around 197 pounds, so it was not that hard of a weight drop.

How do you feel about it being your final season with Highlands?

It went by so fast, but I am excited to see where we can go as a team and how I can do in the postseason.

Tell me a little bit about your team.

We have a great team attitude and are all very good with each other. I feel like that helps us out the most.

What is your favorite memory from wrestling?

My freshman year, we were at Canon Mac for the postseason and we were wrestling in the hotel pool.

What is one thing you’d say to someone who was considering trying wrestling?

It can be a lot, but in the end, it is worth it because it will benefit you in so many ways.

Do you follow any superstitions?

If I have to wear a green or red tag for a tournament, I always put it on my left leg.

What is one thing you want your teammates to continue doing after you’ve graduated?

I want them to continue going out to eat after the tournaments. That is something everyone that wrestles in the future should experience.

What are your future plans? Is wrestling included?

I would like to play football in college. Wrestling isn’t my first option for a sport at the collegiate level.

What is one piece of advice you’d like to leave with your teammates?

If it gets hard, push through to the end or you will regret it forever. Just never give up.

Tags: Highlands