Warrior wrestlers discuss what goes into the sport

By Ahmir Reynolds

Reporter

Freshman Colyer Bland said he joined wrestling at the beginning of the school year because he wanted to be part of a sport and was encouraged by his friends. Although he knew little about wrestling at first, he decided to give it a try.

The Warriors practice for the season. Photo by Claudia McIntyre.

“At the beginning of the school year, I was looking for a sport to join and decided to try wrestling. I did not expect it to be as difficult as it is, but I stayed because I was trying to get better.”

Since joining the team, Bland said he has focused on staying consistent with practices and setting goals for himself. He attends practice on the scheduled days and puts in effort each time. “My goal this season is to keep getting better and feel more confident during matches. I go to practice on the scheduled days and try to give my best each time.”

Bland also said wrestling has helped him build mental strength and not quit when things get hard. “I think one of my strengths is that I try not to give up, even when practice gets hard. Wrestling has helped me stay focused.”

Another freshman wrestler, Luis Mancillas, said he joined wrestling because he wanted to challenge himself and try something new. He heard wrestling was a difficult sport and wanted to see if he could handle it.

 “I joined wrestling because I wanted to try something new and challenging, and I wanted to push myself and see if I could handle it.”

 Mancillas said he takes practice seriously. He believes learning from mistakes is an important part of improving.

“I take practice kinda seriously and try to learn from my mistakes.”

 He also said he is not involved in any other sports right now, so he can stay focused on wrestling. “My goal for this season is to improve my record and gain more confidence during matches.”

Freshman Favian Humes said he decided to join wrestling because he wanted to try a sport and work on improving himself. At first, he did not know much about wrestling, but he stayed with it as he learned more.

 “At the beginning of the school year, I was looking for a sport to join and decided to try wrestling. I didn’t expect it to be this hard, but I stayed because I wanted to get better.”

 Humes said he attends practices consistently and wants to improve his endurance and strength so he does not get tired as quickly during matches. He also said wrestling has taught him discipline and responsibility.

 Talking to these freshmen shows that wrestling is more than just competing on the mat. For wrestlers like Bland, Mancillas, and Humes, the sport has helped them stay focused, work hard, and push themselves to improve. Even though wrestling could be challenging, it has helped them grow both as athletes and as students.