Greater Lansing Sports Hall of Fame: Chris Henderson made big mark on mat at Sexton

Chris Henderson grew up needing to be tough.

There were a lot of times where Henderson and his siblings had to fend for themselves in their neighborhood in Lansing. He also needed that toughness in his own home, being the sixth youngest of eight kids.

"Having siblings — five brothers and two sisters — clearly that was part of the experience of fending for yourself and standing up for yourself," Henderson said.

That toughness formed at a young age was critical for Henderson as he went on to make his mark as a decorated high school wrestler at Sexton in the late 1980s. Henderson will be recognized for his success in the sport when he is inducted into the Greater Lansing Sports Hall of Fame on Aug. 8.

Henderson was a three-time state champion wrestler at Sexton and went on to continue his career at Edinboro, Grand Rapids Community College and Eastern Michigan. He is one of two wrestlers in Sexton history to win three state titles.

"It's a true honor and privilege," Henderson said of his induction. "It's really just a culmination of people in the community in Lansing that have influenced me in a positive way and that have engaged and poured into my life. Many of those coaches and neighbors and community friends were all from Lansing and all local and they inspired me.

"It's been my goal to just kind of pass that on and try to inspire and encourage the youth in our community."

A strong sophomore season on the mat in 1987 set the stage for Henderson's success. He contributed to Sexton capturing a team state title that season and also pulled off an upset while finishing as the individual state champion at 119 pounds.

Henderson said that title helped establish where he needed to be as a wrestler and was a catalyst for his future success.

"The guy I was wrestling was a senior and 55-0," Henderson said. "I was a sophomore and I think I had 12 losses on my year. I just felt really accomplished at that point. Somewhere in that match, in my head, I felt I'm keeping up with this guy, what is holding me back? I just kind of turned it up, hit him with a head lock, scored some points and ended up winning that.

"That was that beginning journey and establishing excellence and the success we had as a team and as individuals on a wrestling team and as a school."

Henderson went on to win a state title at 132 pounds as a junior in 1988 and was the champion at 135 pounds in 1989. He went 41-0 that season, earning high school All-American honors while capturing a third straight state title.

With his wrestling experiences in high school and college, Henderson has made it a focus of giving back to a sport that provided so much to him. He spent time helping coach at Eastern Michigan and later returned to Sexton where he was the varsity wrestling coach from 2005-2020.

"I moved into education and started teaching and it has been a great journey," Henderson said. "I've been so blessed to be able to have an opportunity to experience and be exposed to not just wrestling but all athletics and the great administrators and coaches and parents and kids that we've watched go through our schools and our clubs. It's been really fun."

Contact Brian Calloway at bcalloway@lsj.com. Follow him on X @brian_calloway.

48th Greater Lansing Sports Hall of Fame

When: Aug. 8; 4:30 — Welcome; 5:30 — Dinner; 6:30 — Induction ceremony

Where: Lansing Center

Tickets: $40 per person, call (517) 484-0677 or email everyb21@gmail.com for information.

2024 inductees: Mike Griffith, Chris Henderson, Fred Heumann, Kelly Holland, Molly Peterman, Tiffanie Shives, Tony Trierweiler, Roge't Ware, Roger Wing, 1991 East Lansing football, 1978 Laingsburg softball

Sponsors: Dean Transportation, ASAP Printing, Roland Carter Enterprise, Shaheen Chevrolet and Cadillac, The Bleacher Denizen, One North Kitchen & Bar, Applegate Home Comfort, The Accident Fund Group, Edward Jones Investments, Karoub Associates, Dan Henry Distributing, Magic Johnson Enterprises

This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Greater Lansing Sports Hall of Fame: Chris Henderson made big mark on mat at Sexton