On Jan. 11, Beverly had its second home league dual with Peninsula High School. Although we lost 42-27, we made a decent comeback after losing the first couple of matches.

Ryan Kwon is a sophomore varsity wrestler who won his match that day. He explains that although he was glad to have won his match, he didn’t have time to celebrate because he had to focus on the upcoming matches and ways to improve the next time.

Kwon lost the first period but scored two points in the second with a reversal –switching from the bottom position to the top. In the last period, he lost his top position but performed another reversal which scored him an extra two points. From there on, he kept his top position until the timer ended. Kwon won his match with four points.

He explains his victory, saying, “I won by points, different moves in wrestling offer a certain amount of points depending on the difficulty.” To improve his skill, he needs to practice certain moves such as pinning his opponent down, which is an automatic win. Additionally, Kwon wants to work on his mentality, as he often doubts himself before matches. “I tell myself that even if I lose, this was an experience that helped me improve my skill.”

Dominic Clark is the head JV and Varsity wrestling coach. Before working at Beverly, he was a professional MMA fighter and currently owns a private training business. He talks about how high school wrestling was a big part of his athletic journey and how it opened him up to a lot of opportunities, such as scholarships to Fresno State. 

“I always knew I would come back to wrestling and coaching … after my athletic competition days were done,” Clark said. 

Kwon said, “Wrestling creates resilience and a stronger character in people. It is also just a fun sport to try, where you can make friends and build connections with your teammates.”

Coach Clark explained how a lot of the skills you learn in wrestling — discipline, dedication, accountability — are all things that you can use outside of the sport. He described it as a sport where you have to put in your all, but is ultimately very rewarding.

German-American writer Charles Bukowski wrote, “If you’re going to try, go all the way. Otherwise, don’t even start.” This is a quote many wrestlers try to follow. Wrestling is a sport that demands both physical and mental strength. Coach Clark said that in order to succeed, you have to push yourself past your limits and have the ability to tell yourself no “to little things like eating junk food when it’s wrestling week.”

 It tests endurance and capability to bounce back — you can’t dwell on your losses because you have to constantly keep moving and analyzing what you did wrong in order to improve.