Steven Malloy was one loss away from an undefeated season. But the talented 189-pound wrestler from Morley Stanwood still has the cherished distinction of being a Division 3 state champion at 189 pounds.

Malloy’s toughest matches at the finals were his first and his last. He nipped Connor O’Rourke of Ida 6-5, decisioned Kendall Betteridge of Caro 10-6 and, in the semifinals, dumped Jamie Curtice of Chippewa Hills 6-3. In the finals, he met up against Donavan Fouchey of Oscoda and scored a 7-6 win. His final season record was 46-1.

Malloy showed his promise way back in December at the Chippewa Hills Invitational, where he came in first at 189 pounds and was the heavier division’s MVP.  At the time, he said that it felt “pretty good. I feel I’m wrestling solid,” and his coach, Jeff Davis, said that Malloy “wrestled very well. Hopefully he can keep it up for the rest of the season.”

And that’s exactly what Malloy did.

Coming into the Division 3 district at Chippewa Hills. Fouchy and Malloy were both undefeated, with Fouchey ranked No. 1 in the state and Malloy No. 2. Prior to the district championship, Malloy said the last time the two had met was when he beat Fouchey in overtime in the eighth grade.

I had a good chance,” Malloy said at districts when asked what he considered his prospects for beating Fouchey. “One match at a time.”  Malloy  pulled out the win, 9-7.

However, fates were reversed at regionals. Fouchey would win the regional championship match, with Malloy settling for second. 

Fouchey’s loss to Malloy in the title match at state ended his season at 52-2.

The good thing is that Donovan had two losses and they were both from Steven,” said Davis. “They were all close matches and they were pretty evenly matched. I personally think Steven is a better technical wrestler than Donovan.”

Malloy didn’t qualify for state a year ago after losing in the regionals.

For me it’s overwhelming, but I noticed a difference in the way he was performing this year compared to last year,” Davis said. “I knew he wanted to win state. So he put his mind to it. He had another year of maturity to deal with the high pressure that’s out there. He beat some top-ranked kids.”

A year ago, Malloy was at 171 and was league champion at 160. But 189 seemed to be a perfect fit.

He’s agile at the lower weight classes but strong at the upperweight classes,” Davis  said. “He has great shots and excellent takedowns. At the upperweight classes, you don’t normally see that aggressive offensive wrestling style. He was excellent on his feet and he scored a lot of points from the top position. He was strong all the way around, but definitely, he was strongest on his feet.”

Both Malloy and Donovan were juniors and could continue their rivalry next year, depending on their weight classes.

He spends a lot of time in the off-season in the weight room,” Davis said. “He’ll get stronger. I’d like to see him at 215.”

Malloy also played for a Morley Stanwood football team that went to the third round of the state playoffs.

He’s a very good middle linebacker,” Davis said. “I wish all of our football players would wrestle. It improves the agility and their strength and determination. They go hand in hand.”