Ben Nosal still remembers his eighth-grade wrestling season. He lost all of his matches and quitting the sport suddenly became an option.

However, his older brother, Jared, convinced him to stay with the sport.

Now, five years later, Nosal is on the top of his game as one of the top wrestlers across the Lehigh Valley in the 220-pound bracket and also is one of the senior leaders for the Catasauqua program.

“It was tough,” recalled Nosal. “I thought about quitting, but my older brother talked me out of it. When I was a freshman, he was a senior. I had a few matches as a freshman and it was a great experience for me.

“I got beat up a lot when I was younger, but it really helped me along the way.”

Those experiences helped shaped him into his current state. Beginning this week, Nosal had an overall 14-2 record in his weight class and finished the previous weekend’s action at the Coal Cracker Duals in Berwick with a sterling 5-0 mark. He accomplished the feat with a nagging knee injury and moved up to the heavyweight bracket.

“It’s good to wrestle against guys who you don’t know,” said Nosal. “But it can be very tiring. By the fifth match, I was ready to go to sleep. Still, it is good to have an experience like that. It can only make you a better wrestler.”

Head coach Kyle Rusnock has high expectations for him.

“Nosal has a great weekend,” said Rusnock. “He (Nosal) battled through a knee injury and gained some good experience wrestling strong competition. He stepped up for the team and wrestled up.

“It is good to see that type of unselfishness on the team.”

He appreciates his coach’s support.

“Coach Rusnock is a good coach and a great guy,” said Nosal. “He is always talking to us and keeps us on the right track.”

Nosal hopes to stay on track and wrestle deep into the postseason. His season ended abruptly at districts last year when he was beaten in the semifinal round and then upset in the consolation bracket.

So far, it has served as a prime motivation.

“That was rough for me,” he stated. “It really has motivated me this season. I am really pushing myself this season and I know I can get far.”

Nosal has a similar vision for his team, as they remained among the top four teams in the Colonial League. The league duals will feature the top four teams battling each other Monday night at Catasauqua.

“We talk about getting better as a team every day,” said Nosal. “We are all working very hard to be a strong team over the next few weeks. We’ve had some big matches and we had been looking at them since the beginning of the season.”

This season is an extra incentive for Nosal, as his wrestling career will come to an end. He plans to attend Bloomsburg University in the fall, but will not wrestle nor play football.

In the meantime, Nosal will make the most of the rest of the season ahead.

“It will be an exciting time for us,” said Nosal. “We all have a lot to prove in the new few weeks.”