By MARIO AGUIRRE | STAFF WRITER
Each day, PSJA Memorial’s wrestling teams roll out mats on the school’s cafeteria, a mere 20 feet from the benches and tables, and begin practice.
“Kids are eating, walking in and out and conversing with others while we’re trying to conduct practice,” coach Joe Clark said. “I liken it to being a baseball player and having to cut your own field and chalk your own field.”
“Here we are in 2014,” Clark continued, “and the kids have to do this everyday.”
By necessity, his team has worked with this situation since 1997. And though there’s no telling how much it directly influences their overall record, Memorial’s boys are enjoying a 4-0 start to this season.
“I think what it does is, it toughens them up a little bit,” he said. “Whatever they do, they have (other students) that they don’t even know right there watching them. Sometimes they’ll try to poke at them a little bit. It’s not really a favorable situation. But like anything else, I think there’s pluses and minuses.
“All we can do is just stay focused. If you focus on me, you focus on your coaches, you won’t see or hear them too often.”
Even to him, the 4-0 start came as something of a surprise to Clark, whose team has beaten McAllen High, McAllen Memorial, Mission High and PSJA Southwest. His junior-laden squad took their lumps as freshmen. Last year they began showing some progress. And now, as Clark says, “they’re beginning to see the fruits of their labor.”
Early on, it’s senior Eddy Escamilla (113-pound weight class), junior Adan Reyes (145) and junior Jacob Escobedo (heavyweight) who have made an impression.
Escamilla, who stands 5-foot-10, is in his fourth year wrestling and also boxes in his free time. Clark refers to him as a “legger,” saying, “once he sets those legs in, I equate it to an octopus devouring a sardine.”
Reyes, who has an MMA background, works out closely with Escamilla. Reyes is one of the quicker wrestlers on the team. So far, he hasn’t been scored on. “His shot is just strong,” Clark said. “He has a very powerful, quick shot. You don’t know if he’s going to hit you with a sweep or tie you up or hit you with a trip. His fluidity is his greatest asset.”
Escobedo, a starting nose guard on the football team, has shown a knack for escaping the bottom position, maneuvering his 281-pound frame to his advantage.
Soon enough, as Clark understands it, Memorial will move into the weight room, which will be relocated to an outdoor facility. Clark calls it a “pretty humbling experience” having practiced under those circumstances, but one he believes has helped shape his program.
“It’s a test of your personal fortitude,” Clark said. “Like any sport, you’re going to have people heckle you (when you’re practicing in the cafeteria) but you have to keep moving. Some guys get totally freaked by it, but thank God we have pretty tough guys.”
REBUILDING
After graduating a bulk of his team, Eddie Gonzalez’s McAllen Memorial’s boy squad is in transition.
Two years ago, they were regional champions, the only Valley school to ever accomplish that. In returning 10 wrestlers last year, they finished second in district and seventh in regionals, higher than any Valley school.
But now, Memorial essentially starts over again. Gonzalez isn’t reading too much into the boys’ 5-2 record, knowing some teams were short-handed because football season was in progress. More than anything, he’s looking for progress.
Senior Pete Eguia (182), who is 7-0 so far, has helped set the tone. A returning regional qualifier, Eguia is relentless on the mat, armed with a stone-cold demeanor.
“No matter the situation, he keeps wrestling. He’ll go the whole 6 mins. and he’s ready for overtime,” Gonzalez said. “He’s constantly pushing and pulling and he does whatever he has to do to win a match. And that’s what makes people worried about him. They don’t know if he’s going to quit or not. You can’t read an impression on his face.”
Teammate Ira Kasofsky (113), who owns a 6-1 record this year, has shown exceptional speed on the mat. And fellow junior Sergio Treviño (138) has improved his technique to the tune of a 7-0 record.
“He knows how to transition from one move to the next,” Gonzalez said. “He doesn’t panic. If he finds himself in a bad spot, he doesn’t freeze up. He’s probably the most sound guy I have. He handles the heavier guys just as well as the guys in his weight class.”