Wrestling season has officially begun and with the help of new coach Clay Goodloe, the journey to the State tournament has too. Even though State is in February, the wrestlers have been working towards that goal since their first match at the end of November.

“It’s a lot of pressure,” senior and co-captain Sean Vengas said, “but I’m also excited for the season.”

Wrestling is held during first period every morning, but the boys practice more than what is required. In order to reach the goals they have set for this year, the boys run, lift weights and do drills.

“Our team has been preparing [for State] by drilling for an hour and wrestling live for 30 minutes on Monday, Wednesday and Friday,” junior Ari Haatanen said. “On Tuesdays and Thursdays we run a mile, sprint and then hit the weight room.”

With the loss of last year’s seniors, the team had some adjusting to do. The addition of this year’s new recruits has changed the dynamic but not the hard work.

“It’s a different experience having the juniors there,” senior and co-captain Jake Ward said, “but now all of the seniors are teaching them what we’ve learned from previous seniors.”

The juniors are not the only new members to the wrestling team. Coach Clay Goodloe is also a new addition to the team and he is more than ready to help the team put in the work that is necessary.

“Our biggest strength is that we have depth and a group of kids willing to work hard,” Goodloe said. “This will help us win a lot of matches.”

Despite the fact that only a few select boys are co-captains, there are multiple chances for anyone to contribute to the team.

“People have stepped up,” Venegas said. “People that have always been leaders have just continued their position.”

Although Allen is the team to beat, senior and co-captain Jeremy Warren is number five in the state. Although Warren’s contributions will help in defeating Allen, the other boys have had numerous years of practice to prepare them as well.

“We have a lot of young talent,” Vengas said, “and we are ready to perform.”

Wrestling is actually an individual sport, which means the boys only have themselves to rely on. Even though matches can be fierce, the boys really enjoy participating in them.

“I really like the intensity of the matches,” Ward said. “I don’t want to say fun because it’s not a very exciting word, but they’re just fun.”

Either way it is looked at, there seems to be a general consensus that the ultimate favorite part of wrestling is watching their work pay off.

“What you’re going to get truly depends on how hard you work,” Venegas said.