MOUNT HOLLY––As Steve Perry once sang, “Don’t stop believing.”

And for former wrestler Chais Schenck, his athletic career was one of never giving up that belief. According to spokesman Gary Neely, Schenck, 42, is among this year’s inductees into the Mount Holly Sports Hall of Fame.

As Schenck recently informed, he was a member of East Gaston High School’s wrestling team a quarter-century ago. He trained under head coach Scott Goins.

“My parents and my coach believed in me,” Schenck said, adding, “I still carry that with me to this day. I can overcome, and that taught me a lot. Keep believing.”

Schenck wrestled at 112 pounds his senior year and at 103 as a junior when he was Four-A state runner-up. He was a three-time conference and regional champion and finished his East Gaston career with a Four-A state championship title in 2000 and a 139-20 overall record. He was also a three-time conference and regional champion.

He shared his happiness at being chosen for the hall of fame.

“Honestly,” he said, “it’s an honor. It was a surprise to get that call (from the committee), but at the same time it’s amazing to be recognized. That’s not why I was wrestling––to get into the hall. But it’s great to know I had that impact in that short a timeframe.”

Schenck learned how to wrestle by watching, studying and reviewing moves in his mind.

“You hear about football players watching film, and I was essentially watching film without realizing it,” he said.

His older brother, Tius, wrestled for Stanley Junior High, coached by Randall Fortenberry.

“And my brother allowed me to start going to practice, so I started learning from watching him when I was in fifth grade,” Schenck said. “I fell in love with it, and watching my brother and Coach Randall gave me the work ethic I had.

“My dad wrestled in high school, so that’s how we found out about the sport,” he added. “My brother is five years older than me, and he came home after learning wrestling moves and practiced them on me.”

Who needs mats when you have a living room floor?

“It was fun,” the younger Schenck recalled. “Looking back at it now, a lot of my accomplishments were because of my brother and Coach Randall. I’d also watch my brother’s teammates and study and learn the whole time.”

While wrestling is an individual sport because of weight classes, it’s also very much the union of a team, and that camaraderie and bond motivated Schenck through high school.

“Winning conference tournaments and regionals, that was always a big deal,” he said. “Even though I won or placed at (state championships), any time the team accomplished great things, that was good. Sophomore year, we had the state record for pins. Things like that involve the whole team, and that meant a lot to me. To this day, I consider all of them family. If they called me today, I’d be there tomorrow if I could. All the practices, all the travelling, seeing each other outside of school, us pushing each other to be the best we could be––it’s really a family.”

Schenck didn’t pursue wrestling after high school. He lives in Greensboro now, with wife Courteney and 12-year-old daughter Zoë. He works for Apple and plays drums in a band or wherever his music is needed. In June, he traveled to New York City to play two shows with singer Maia Kamil at the Bowery Electric nightclub.

“I’ve always been a musician and in chorus,” he said, “so I still play.”

These days, Schenck doesn’t wrestle anymore. But he’ll always have his fond memories of those glory days. He has people to thank for those high school victories, the teamwork and the friendships.

“I want to thank my parents, Earnest and Judy, and Coach Randall Fortenberry and all my high school coaches and all my teammates,” he said. “Even when I won state, I felt like I was winning for everyone.”