Call me biased, but being part of any high school sports team helps that student to develop character.

That is extremely true in wrestling.

Two prime examples are Butler wrestlers Santino Sloboda and Ethan Babay.

On the surface, they couldn’t be more different. Santino is a 107-pound freshman. Ethan is a senior heavyweight. But both have grown in terms of discipline, self-confidence and maturity through their time on the mat.

Santino is completing a remarkable freshman season for the Golden Tornado at the state tournament this weekend. He won his first 37 matches this season — nearly every one in dominant fashion — before getting pinned in the second period of his WPIAL Finals match.

The loss was a bit of a shocker. He was the No. 1 seed at his weight class, though he only lost to the No. 2 seed. He left the mat in extreme disappointment, showing a lot of emotion.

Under normal circumstances, as a reporter, I wouldn’t think of approaching a high school freshman after such a difficult defeat. Give the kid some space, after all.

Then again, this kid is a wrestler.

Santino composed himself for the podium photo minutes after the match. As he left the podium, I approached him and asked for an interview, making sure he knew it was OK if he didn’t want to talk.

We had a conversation about the match, he gave me some insight and I thanked him.

This was a high school freshman.

By comparison, when Pitt’s basketball team lost a close game to Miami (Fla.), costing the Panthers a share of the Atlantic Coast Conference title, Pitt coach Jeff Capel denied the media access to his players because of the difficulty of their defeat.

That line of thought is understandable as well. But, again, wrestlers are cut from a different cloth.

Ethan got a relatively late start in wrestling and did not crack the starting lineup until this season. Jake Pomykata was Butler’s starting heavyweight in Ethan’s earlier years. The two became good friends and Ethan himself said he learned a lot about self-discipline through practicing with and befriending Jake.

In Ethan’s only year as a starter, he wound up winning 36 matches, tying the program record with 26 pins, and came within one victory of joining Santino at the state tournament.

This is a kid who stuck with the sport, waited for his opportunity and was ready for it. The storybook ending there would have been a trip to Hershey.

Ethan is taking the next best thing. He plans to continue his wrestling career at Fairmont State University next year.

One freshman, one senior. Under different circumstances, both demonstrated mental toughness they gained through wrestling.

Great sport. Great kids.

John Enrietto is sports editor of the Butler Eagle