In the end, it wasn’t a mere mortal who dealt Whitman senior Eren Civan his first high school wrestling loss. It was Civan’s own knee.
Hurt in the first period of the 160-pound title match in the Mount Mat Madness Saturday night, Civan wrestled on. He earned a point for an escape, taking a 1-0 lead on Luke Rebertus of Caravel Academy (Del.).
But later in the second period, when Civan tried to put weight on his right leg, he collapsed. Face down on the mat, Civan had suffered his first defeat in four years and his high school career was over.
Civan got the bad news officially Monday morning when an MRI exam revealed a torn ACL and partial tears of the MCL and meniscus in his right knee.
“Of course, it’s disappointing, devastating,” said Civan. “But injuries are bound to happen. Saturday night, it was my turn. I can’t dwell on this thing. I have to look to the future.”
In a few weeks, after the swelling in his right knee subsides, Civan will undergo surgery. Recovery will take eight to 12 months. Two months ago, Civan committed to wrestle for Columbia University.
“Whether I wrestle next year depends on my recovery,” said Civan. “Normally you can’t redshirt in the Ivy League. But you can get a medical redshirt.”
Civan finished with a 135-1 record and three Maryland championships. He was trying to become the second wrestler in state history to go undefeated for four years.
In Saturday’s highly-anticipated match, Civan “heard a pop” in his leg when it was twisted by Rebertus. But Civan didn’t realize he was seriously injured until his leg collapsed under him.
“When it first happened, I guess I had so much adrenaline going, I didn’t feel much pain,” said Civan. “But when I went down, I knew it was serious. I was thinking then, I hope I can at least get back for the state championships, maybe wrestle with one of those big braces on. But that’s not going to happen.”
Close Calls
» Ironically, Rebertus previously suffered a similar knee injury that cut short his sophomore season.
» The lone loss for Rebertus (25-1) came in the rugged Beast of the East Tournament.
» Rebertus and Civan have been practice partners for several years as members of Team Maryland, competing in the annual national championships in Fargo, N.D.
