With Selma High’s boys’ and girls’ wrestling season coming to a start, the least to say is that athletes and coaches are looking forward to what the year will bring.
“Wrestling season officially starts in December and we have our first tournament this weekend at Porterville,” says Coach Gracie Figueroa.
Having so much time to prepare for the season physically and mentally Coach Figueroa is confident in all the wrestlers of them meeting their goals. This is now officially Figueroa’s second year coaching at the high school level, however Figueroa is not shaken one ounce about her goals and intentions for the team.
“As a wrestler you’re dedicating every ounce of yourself to this sport and only you can produce the outcome. Being able to fully dedicate yourself to something only creates hard work ethic and leads to success,” says Coach Figueroa.
This is a prime example of Figueroa’s mindset when it comes to what wrestling can do for a player and how much effort an athlete needs to put in to receive the outcomes they want. In all honesty, wrestling is a mind game, where most of the time your mindset is the only thing that stops you from getting to your achievements.
“The team has been working hard all summer and fall preparing for the season and I’m excited to see the hard work pay off this season,” says senior Marina Hernandez.
This is now Hernadez’s third season with the girls wrestling team. Herrnandez has shown much improvement throughout the years, as well as seeing her teammates become stronger and more confident.
Coach Figueroa has explained how the wrestling community and people surrounding them is what helps them become such strong athletes because of the impact that they have on them, as they are always being pushed to better themselves and to stay committed.
“Wrestling has given me the ability to push myself to my limits and to keep pushing no matter what in any situation I’m in,” says senior Caden Hurtado.
This year is Hurtado’s first year on the high school’s wrestling team and has nothing but positive things to say about the community. He has stated how if he could he would’ve come out to play this sport earlier. For Hurtado wrestling was something that was different and out of his comfort zone, but also something that he has been interested in for some time.
“My favorite thing about coaching is being able to share my experience and encourage other athletes to aim high in their wrestling career and in life,” says Coach Figueroa.
When coming out of wrestling whether it was for the wrestling career or just the experience, the coaches want their athletes to come out of the mindset of never stop improving in what you do or what you love in life.
