The WRHS wrestling team will begin its season officially tomorrow as they take to the mat at McNair High School. The Cougars, led by coach Benito Guardiola who is also our school’s IT specialist, will arrive at McNair and prepare for the first matches, which begin at 9 am.
The wrestling team here at Weston Ranch, unfortunately, goes mostly unnoticed. First, they don’t get to wrestle in our gym often, which is an issue when trying to promote the sport and gather fans to watch. Second, traditionally, wrestling is not a sport that receives much attention both in coverage and glamour like other winter sports like basketball and soccer. Finally, because wrestling has dwindled in popularity, dual-meets have been replaced with meets where all VOL schools who have a wrestling team meet in a one-day tournament. To grow the sport, schools need to have full teams, but Weston Ranch struggles with numbers.
However, coach Guardiola has amassed a squad of 22 wrestlers (16 boys and six girls), and they will get their first test tomorrow at McNair. Each wrestler is classified by weight, and the Cougars will cover weight classes of 120-195 pounds for boys and 101-189 pounds for the girls.
“The wrestling team is mostly made up of those that are new to the sport,” Guardiola told The Prowl from the Weston Ranch wrestling offices. “I do have a couple of returning wrestlers that are rising to become leaders and help their fellow wrestlers out as much as possible.”
Along with Guardiola, Cougar wrestlers also draw on the expertise from assistant coaches Steven Watan, former Cougar standout wrestler Karina Loya, Mia Hill, Joey Andrade, head Female Tonia Reyes.
To get ready for tomorrow, the Cougars got some early practice with Lathrop.
“We had a scrimmage on November 20th against Lathrop High at home,” Guardiola said. “We also have a lot of help on the edge of the mat, including former Weston Ranch High Wrestling team members who have made it to state and so on.”
So, the athletes are ready, the coaches are prepared, and the season will begin. Tomorrow will be the first of seven opportunities to showcase the hard work, sacrifice, and talent.
On a final note, Guardiola told The Prowl about fundraisers currently taking place after school and in the future.
“We are currently working on raising funds so that we can earn enough money to attend the Argonaut High Tournament in January. We are selling snacks in room 102 after school only; we are putting together a teacher/staff luncheon, and we are also looking to earn money from the snack bar at this year’s VOL’s which will be hosted at Weston Ranch High this year.”
The Prowl wishes the best of luck to our wrestlers. Check @WRHSjournalism Twitter for the upcoming schedule.
