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Cedar Rapids Prairie’s Emelia Reyes making strides on the wrestling mat
Girls wrestling: In just her third season in the sport, Hawks junior and captain has her eyes on the state tournament
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CEDAR RAPIDS — Emelia Reyes has always had an interest in wrestling. It started back in elementary school when she saw boys in her class get information about it.
Fast forward to now, the Cedar Rapids Prairie junior is in her third season of the sport, but not after convincing her parents.
“I really had to beg my parents,” Reyes said. “They were really worried about me getting injured. So, I promised I’d wear my mouthguard and headgear and shower right after practice. It’s turned out pretty good.
“I just really wanted to wrestle.”
Throughout her three-year wrestling career, Reyes has continued to develop her skills.
Even just comparing last year and this year, she’s noticed the strides she’s made on the mat, thanks to a lot of work put in during the offseason.
“I know I’ve made great leaps and strides,” Reyes said. “I’ve been training throughout the year. I really think since I’ve been going in during the offseason, I’ve been getting a lot of opportunities to train with different people. They’ve been bringing their know-how and expert moves to me.
“It’s all culminated to this season, and I think it’s been going really well.”
A few of the skills Reyes is noticing improvements on is wrestling in the bottom position and precision when taking shots throughout her matches.
“I used to hate being on bottom,” Reyes said. “Now, I kind of look forward to it. I feel fast when I’m on bottom. When I used to shoot, it would never end well. But, this year, I’ve been feeling my shots are there. It’s really exciting — you don’t really see a heavyweight shoot very often. I feel very fast and energetic.”
To date, Reyes has a season record of 29-1, with her lone loss being in the semifinals of the Dan Gable Donnybrook Tournament on Dec. 4-5 to Liberty (Mo.)’s Alexis Stinson by a 10-4 decision.
Prairie head coach Zach Becicka believes Reyes’ lone defeat and last year’s state tournament have been her motivation throughout the season.
“Something clicked after the state tournament last season, and she just wanted to get better,” Becicka said. “That hard work is starting to pay off for her. One loss this year to a nationally-ranked opponent — that’s a good season so far. The job’s not done yet.”
Reyes’ hard work ethic in the wrestling room has earned her a position as a first-year captain for Prairie’s girls wrestling team.
In her role as captain, she is tasked with leading by example and building team chemistry — just one of the many qualities she enjoys about Prairie’s program.
“Our culture is really good,” Reyes said. “We go out as a team and do team bonding. I feel like our culture is really great. We push each other and root for each other. We’re just there for each other.”
At the dual against Cedar Rapids Washington on Jan. 15, the Hawks defeated the Warriors, 72-12. With their victory complete, Prairie’s girls wrestling team lined up matside to cheer on the Prairie boys team in their dual against Washington, which the Hawks won, 63-12.
Reyes said cheering on the boys team helps build a solid wrestling program at Prairie, boys and girls, alike.
“It’s fun to watch them,” Reyes said. “They are energetic and springy all the time. I like when we set up mats together and set up tournaments. It really feels like we are one big wrestling program.”
Just as the girls supported the boys team, Becicka and Prairie’s coaching staff are supporting Reyes in reaching her goals for the season.
While a medal from the state tournament is the goal, whether at the top of the podium or otherwise, they are locked in on helping her be her best.
“We believe in her,” Becicka said. “We believe she can be the best. The sky is the limit for her. I know she’s got goals and aspirations beyond a state title. We’re just going to do everything we can to help her be the best she can be.”
Reflecting on her junior campaign for the Hawks, Reyes seemed to enjoy seeing everything come full circle, having put in the extra work during the offseason and seeing that work pay off with a lot of wins this season.
It can be summed up rather simply.
“I’m just so grateful for the opportunity to wrestle,” Reyes said.
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