It’s hard to imagine that Luke Fugazzotto wasn’t always a great wrestler.

As a youth wrestler he struggled to make varsity lineups.

But he stuck with it. He kept trying, kept working hard and eventually started to see his potential.

Then the flood gates opened and his potential was realized.

By high school he was the competitor that most wrestling fans know. The one who earned a district title as a freshman, his first of three District 11 crowns and three state medals.

The one who is this year’s Times News/Lehigh Valley Health Network Boys Wrestler of the Year.

But it wasn’t always that way.

“I had friends that were starting first year, kindergarten and first grade, making the lineup,” said the Northwestern Lehigh senior. “I just couldn’t make the lineup until fourth grade.

“Then I started placing at the [youth level] varsity tournaments and stuff. That made me feel good. I was excited about it. It felt like leaps and bounds from there.”

While his youth career started slowly, his high school career began with a 37-win season and a district title as a freshman.

As a sophomore, Fugazzotto took second at districts but went on to finish as a state runner-up. He won a second district title as a junior and finished seventh at states in a 50-win season.

He capped his high school career with a 34-5 season in 2025-26, while winning his third District 11 title. He was a runner-up at the PIAA Southeast Regional for the second straight year, and earned the fourth regional medal of his high school career.

He followed that by picking up his third state medal with a fifth-place finish in Hershey.

Fugazzotto, a four-time Times News Wrestler of the Year, was hoping to place just a bit higher in Hershey but is still pleased with his final season as a Tiger.

“I made the podium,” he said. “It wasn’t my overall goal, but I didn’t come out of the season with nothing. There’s some things I wish I did better at states and throughout the season.

“Coming out with a medal is a big thing, especially in Pennsylvania. It wasn’t quite what I wanted, but still made a good effort at the end of the season.”

He finished high school with a 161-26 career record and 122 pins. He is second in wins in Northwestern program history behind Evan Yenolevich’s 167.

That success didn’t come easy.

Fugazzotto’s training regimen includes some type of workout seven days a week, whether it be lifting, cardio or work on the mat. During the season he’s on the mat practicing every day. In the offseason it drops down to 4-5 days on the mat per week, but some type of daily workout is year-round.

When not practicing at the high school, Fugazzotto worked out at the wrestling facility his parents built at their home. It has a weight room and wrestling room where he and friends are able to hone their skills anytime they want to.

“It’s a great facility,” Fugazzotto said. “My parents built it for anybody that wants to come down and wrestle, mostly the Northwestern guys. They wanted them to come in for the offseason stuff, and for a lot of years it’s been pulling a lot of kids in from around here. Recently it’s started to bring a lot of girls wrestlers in too.”

Fugazzotto’s high school career coincides with a resurgence in the Northwestern program.

The Tigers went 10-3 last season, but suffered an early loss in the district team tournament when their lineup wasn’t at full strength. They bounced back at individual districts by earning the team title at the event.

“Once we had everybody healthy again we showed it at individual districts and came out and won it,” said Fugazzotto, the only senior in this year’s Northwestern lineup. “Our coach said at the beginning of the year that we could be district champs, but we had to hold up our end of the bargain.

“Coming out of high school with a team trophy, that meant a lot. I was really proud of that.”

Another source of pride is that his high school career ended with a win. After a loss in the 189-pound state semifinal, Fugazzotto lost in overtime in the consolation semifinal to fall into the fifth-place match.

Heading into his final high school match at Hershey’s Giant Center, where all four of his high school seasons ended, Fugazzotto took a minute to focus.

“It was like ‘this is my last match so I better go out and wrestle,’” he said. “It was good to come off with a win. After that it was kind of like ‘it’s all over now.’ It was kind of like taking a deep breath.”

Fugazzotto will continue his wrestling career at James Madison University in Virginia.