Don’t bother sitting down because you’d want to stand up and cheer when you hear that this year’s Imagine Prep wrestling team has put their hearts on the mat and is prepared to tackle this season to the ground! This year’s team has dedicated their mornings every day before school to train hard and learn to be the best wrestlers that they can be.

On this team, not every member is the same. Each member has a different level of skill involving their knowledge of the sport.

Sophomore Angel Acevedo III, a member of the wrestling team, described some of his previous accomplishments as a wrestler.

“This is my third year wrestling,” Acevedo said. “I won state championship in 8th grade and I placed 4th in state my freshman year.”

However, there are some members on the wrestling team that haven’t had any experience in the realm of wrestling, but are still hopeful for the season.

Sophomore Ian Mason, explained some good news about his experience and how the team is doing so far.

“This is my first year,” Mason said. “I like it a lot and it’s really fun. The season has been great so far, even though we haven’t played in any meets yet. The team is actually doing really well during practice.”

Wrestling is known as a predominantly male sport, but that didn’t stop girls from trying out and showing what they’re all about.

Tayah Rubio, a sophomore at Imagine Prep, explained the message that each female wrestler is trying to say when they are out on the mat.

“I think there are not a lot of women in the sport and I feel like it’s very empowering for someone like me, my age, and with my skill, which I have none, to just go in here and prove that not only men can do it,” Rubio said. “That it’s not just a male dominated sport but also females can do it and they can do it well and sometimes better than men can.”

In addition to that, Rubio also gave inspiring advice to all females that are considering joining the sport of wrestling.

“When you go in there, it’s a little discouraging because you see so many men and you think ‘oh how could I compete with someone like that’,” Rubio said. “But as long as you have skill, determination, and you’re very passionate about what you’re doing, you can do anything no matter the gender or whatever you classify yourself as.”

Our wrestling team’s enthusiasm will definitely show when they begin to go into competitions. Their positive thinking and upbeat spirit is what’s going to take the team far this season. No matter what gender they are and what previous experience they’ve had with wrestling, the skillful and energetic team will surely pin this season to the ground.