By MARIO AGUIRRE | STAFF WRITER
EDINBURG — If Joshua Cuellar could pin his opponents early, he’ll take it. But the Edinburg North wrestler prefers to take his time.
Over the course of the past couple of seasons, Cuellar has established a reputation as a technician. He’s patient in the circle, studying his opponents and developing a plan to methodically take them down. It’s helped the 195-pound regional finalist amass a 12-4 record this year, while growing his confidence about potentially making it to the state tournament.
“Every match, he’s always on it. He’s waiting to see what the other kid will do and expose his weaknesses,” Edinburg North coach Rene Garcia said. “He knows what he’s looking for, and how he’s going to go about getting it done.”
Garcia believes there’s an added benefit to the approach. If Cuellar were to qualify for regionals once again, with wrestlers of similar skill level, the senior would be better prepared for a grueling three-round match, as opposed to wrestlers who were accustomed to quick take-downs during the regular season.
“Once you get to that level, you’re trying to wear your opponent down,” Garcia said. “As far as technique or style goes, they’re aggressive at regionals and state. But if you could beat your opponent down the stretch, and you could wear them down, you can put yourself in a better position to win.”
Garcia has a saying — one that Cuellar recites verbatim — that he feels best describes each set. It goes: the first round is for the aggressive wrestler; the second is for the conditioned wrestler; and the third one goes the competitor with the biggest heart.
That’s where Cuellar sees himself, “as the guy who’s going to dig deep and who’s going to push it in the end when he’s worn down,” Garcia said.
For years now, the sport has been so much a part of Cuellar’s day to day life. Since competing at the high school level, he’s dialed back his workload with MMA, kickboxing and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu to carve out a five-hour window in the afternoons for wrestling.
The work ethic comes from his time growing up in Minnesota, where wrestling was more a part of the culture than it is here. Where wrestlers in the Valley may not receive formal instruction until the high-school level, Cuellar grew up in an environment with middle school feeder programs, and others beginning at a much earlier age.
By being immersed in that, Cuellar had a leg up on the competition when his family decided to move from Minnesota to the Valley, where his mother is from. He enrolled at Donna North for a semester before transferring to Edinburg North, where he has been the catalyst for the up-and-coming program.
Very quickly, Cuellar proved himself not only as the team’s undisputed leader, but its most ardent recruiter. For a program only three years old, Cuellar’s arrival has helped accelerate its development.
“Trying to get the general population here to participate in something new like this, it’s a little bit hard,” Garcia said, “but he’s helped bring in wrestlers. He tries to get them to understand the sport. He’s been a big part of the program, and we’re blessed to have a unique athlete like him.”
Cuellar doesn’t seem it as a hard sell. He pitches prospective wrestlers about the physical and mental challenges that come with the sport, and they generally give it a shot, sometimes even switching around their class schedule to incorporate practice into their athletic period.
“I tell them, ‘Wrestling is a sport where your body’s tired but you have to be going, no matter how tired you are,” Cuellar said. “There comes a point where it’s the third period or overtime and you want to quit, but you don’t want to lose.’
“‘I’m guaranteeing you’ll love it.’”