The three brothers from Nitro - Matt, Anthony and Seth - own over 500 prep victories and 10 individual state championships.
Matt and Anthony already have graduated from Nitro High, while Seth is finishing up his senior year. Don't expect to see another wrestling family in this state as dominating as the Easters anytime soon.
That doesn't mean, though, there aren't any skilled siblings out there to keep a close eye on. In fact, a pair of brothers at - where else? - Nitro is beginning to make some noise in Class AAA.
Wildcat freshman Matt Dunbar is ranked third in the state in his weight class (112 pounds) by the West Virginia Coaches Association and WVmat.com. His older brother, Sam, is ranked No. 8 at 125 pounds.
Both have the potential to wrestle for state championships down the road, said the Easters' dad, Chuck, who also serves as Nitro's head coach. "If I can keep them doing what they need to be doing," the elder Easter said, "both should definitely be place-winners (top six finish at the state tournament). If they continue to work, state championships are within reach."
Saturday, the Dunbars will compete in the Mountain State Athletic Conference Tournament at George Washington High. Then, they'll start thinking about regionals and the state tournament, scheduled later this month in Huntington.
Sam qualified for the state tournament last year as a freshman, but didn't place. "He's improved a lot," Easter said. "He's gotten a lot tougher and has become a consistent place-winner. "Sam's strengths are that he's just a really hard-nosed, aggressive wrestler. Guys underestimate him a little bit. He'll go out there and fight hard."
It doesn't hurt any that Sam wrestles regularly against three-time state champ Seth Easter in practice. "It helps me a lot," said Sam, who's moving in on 30 victories for the season against 12 losses. "He works me hard. If he realizes I'm not going hard enough, he pushes me harder."
Nitro assistant coach Chris Johnson, a former state champ for the Wildcats, does the same for Matt Dunbar in practice, often sparring with the ninth-grader. The results have been impressive.
Dunbar has placed in every tournament he has entered this year, including the highly competitive Winner's Choice in Fairmont and the Nitro Invitational. In both of those events, Dunbar advanced to the championship match.
East Fairmont's Hunter Wood, the state's top-ranked 112-pounder, beat Dunbar in the Winner's Choice final, while Huntington's Ronnie Luther, No. 2 at 112 pounds, defeated Dunbar at the Nitro Invitational. Dunbar (30-9) also lost to Luther in the WSAZ Invitational in Huntington.
"His strength is probably his ability to scramble around," Chuck Easter said. "He just has a good tenacity about him. Matt is a little bit small for his class. He's kind of being an over-achiever right now."
The Dunbars, who were both county champs at Andrew Jackson Middle School, quit playing baseball and took up wrestling as grade-schoolers.
What did Matt like about it? "Just the intensity ... how hard you have to go at it," he said. "It was a lot harder than I thought," Matt added. "It was amazing how tired you got in five minutes."
"I remember the first practice," Sam said. "We were just dead after it was over."
It wasn't long before the Dunbars were watching the Easters wrestle at Nitro and dreaming of state titles.
But while earning a championship trophy is certainly a goal, the Dunbars aren't necessarily taking the same route as the Easters to get there. Seth, like his brothers did before him, competes year-round in national tournaments.
The Dunbars plan to stay fit during the off-season and work out on the mat whenever they can. But they likely won't compete. "You've got to have a little break," Sam said.
