By Molly Ann Howell
Managing Editor
Olympic gold medalist Dan Gable once said “Once you’ve wrestled, everything else in life is easy.”
Members of the Miyamura High School boys and girls wrestling teams may know exactly what Gable was talking about when he said that. Six girls and 10 boys from Miyamura qualified for the 2025 New Mexico National Guard State Wrestling Championship, which took place from Feb. 21-22.
The girls team placed fourth overall, and the boys team placed eighth.
Miyamura head wrestling coach Nate Sellers in his ninth year as head coach. He said his athletes’ dedication is what led to their high levels of success.
“They trust the process and continue to get better,” he said. “They work hard every day, and hold themselves accountable. They push themselves toward their goals.”
Junior Austin Lopez won the state champion title for his weight class, 114 Class 4A. He reflected back on what it felt like when the announcers named him champion.
“I felt great,” he said. “That was probably the best feeling I’ve ever had. I was happy and overjoyed that it finally happened.”
He said his favorite part about wrestling is the solo-aspect of the sport. The athletes solely relies on themselves for results. But Lopez said that can also be challenging.
“If I lose, I can’t blame it on anyone else,” he said.
Fellow Patriot wrestler Adam Abdeljawad was the runner-up in his weight class of 133 4A. He ultimately lost to a wrestler from Bloomfield.
Abdeljawad is a senior, and he’s been wrestling since his freshman year. He said that while wrestling can be challenging, he believes it provides many benefits, including teaching discipline and dedication.
“Even when cutting weight, it can be hard sometimes, but that’s when I feel I’ve faced the most adversity,” Abdeljawad said. “Having to deal with adversity, it helps you out in the real world.”
This wasn’t Abdeljawad’s first time competing in the state tournament. He placed sixth in his weight class his sophomore year, and third his junior year. ‘
Looking back at his high school wrestling career, Abdeljawad said overall he was proud of himself, despite missing out on first place.
“I was grateful to see how far I’ve come, but I was also disappointed to not achieve a big dream of mine,” he said.
On the girls side, sophomore Alexis Morales won third place in her weight class, which was 126 4A.
Morales began wrestling in eighth grade, which a high school senior reached out to her dad and tried to recruit her. She went to the wresting room one day, and decided to keep up with it. She said her favorite part about wrestling is the friendships she’s made with the other girls on Miyamura’s team.
“I don’t think I would’ve stuck with wrestling if I didn’t become friends with the people on the team,” she said.
She knows exactly what Gable was talking about in his famous quote, because she knows how challenging wrestling can be.
“It’s really easy to quit and stop going, but you have to push yourself, and always go there,” Morales said.
