MURPHYSBORO — Murphysboro’s Arojae Hart is the Orthopaedic Center of Southern Illinois Player of the Week for January 3-8.

Hart was named the Outstanding Wrestler at the Murdale Tournament after dominating the five matches in his weight class. Hart says that kind of performance at a tournament he grew up watching means a lot.

Hart admits it has been difficult the past two years dealing with everything surrounding the pandemic. They did get to wrestle last year, but the season was shortened, moved to late spring, and there was no postseason. This year is back to a normal schedule, but the possibility of a team pause constantly lurks.

Hart qualified for state as a freshman but came up a win short at sectional his sophomore year. After missing out last year, Hart says he’s ready to earn a trip back to Champaign. The road to Champaign starts with regionals next weekend.