Randy Boswell has been a little bit of everything for North Idaho College in his 30 years on campus.

He’s been a coach.

He’s been a cheerleader of sorts.

And, maybe most importantly, he’s kept those athletes on the field as an athletic trainer.

BOSWELL ANNOUNCED recently he will retire as head athletic trainer at NIC at the end of the school year.

“It’s been on my calendar for the last few years,” Boswell said. “My wife (Jennifer) retired last year and it was something that I’ve been thinking about doing. I spend a lot of weekends at the school, and now it’s time to spend some time with the family.”

Boswell, 61, was the head coach for the first three years when NIC began a men's and women's golf program in 2008.

“I kind of helped get that off the ground,” Boswell said. “But we knew at the time that wasn’t where I needed to spend my time.”

Boswell was honored before Thursday’s wrestling match against Division II Simon Fraser at Christianson Gymnasium.

“It was a really special moment for all the years I’ve been here,” Boswell said. “All of the wrestlers came out with shirts with a photo of me on them and I was presented with a frame with some photos of previous years’ teams.”

Coaches from a few other NIC sports also had the shirts on as well.

“It really meant a lot to see the softball and soccer coaches with those shirts on,” Boswell said. “It’s really a family here and for them to come and support means the world to me. I didn’t get into this profession for this, but it was nice to see some of the other coaches and athletes here that have been a part of it as well.”

While he’ll be stepping away as head athletic trainer, Boswell will still be involved in some capacity with the school, as well as with USA Wrestling as time allows.

“I love the institution and people here,” Boswell said. “My last day will be one of the saddest and happiest days of my life. But I’m looking forward to spending time with my family. The train will keep rolling without me. But you won’t find someone as passionate about NIC as I am. I love working with the athletes and coaches here.”

WHILE IT is still a month away from the state wrestling tournament at the Ford Idaho Center, you can’t help but pay a little closer attention when some teams venture north from the southern part of the state.

For Meridian, the two-time defending state 5A champions, it was kind of like a fact-finding trip for the River City Duals last weekend at Post Falls High.

“Everything is just about learning and getting better,” Meridian coach Brad Muri said. “I don’t get too high and low on tournaments to be honest. If we’re continuing to get better and building toward something, that’s what I want to see happening.”

As for those teams chasing Meridian, such as Post Falls, it could be identifying who could be a guy that could pick up some points at state.

“Tanner Piper stepped into a big weight for us at 138 and had a really great weekend,” Post Falls coach Pete Reardon said of the sophomore. “And it’s really cool to see that he’s getting better as the season goes on. He’s really explosive and works hard in the wrestling room. It’s just good to see that come together for him.”

Post Falls won its third River City Duals title in the last four years, avenging a loss to Meridian in the semifinals in 2021. As for Piper, he caught the attention of teammate Jose Laguna, who himself had a big win in the 36-27 win over Meridian in Saturday's championship dual.

“I was happy that we were able to come away with the win,” Laguna said. “It’s a team sport, especially in dual tournaments. It wasn’t just me this weekend, it was everyone contributing. I was watching Tanner a little bit this weekend. He’s been putting in some work and pinned a guy that was pretty tough.”

Jason Elliott is a sports writer for The Press. He can be reached at 208-664-8176, Ext. 2020 or via email at jelliott@cdapress.com. Follow him on Twitter @JECdAPress.