By Alex Vickery, Reporter
Esai Ponce has a Rochelle wrestler in a cradle. After struggling for a minute, he finally pins him down. The two wrestlers stand up and shake hands. The referee lifts Ponce’s arm and announces: “Winner!”
Amid the cheers from the crowd, the ref congratulates him. “Good job,” he tells Ponce. It’s a scene Ponce has experienced many time. He’s been wrestling for seven years and loves it.
“Esai has been my practice partner since I was in fourth grade,” Dan Goress, freshman wrestler, said. “Even though our weight differences have split, we still stick together.”
All that practice has paid off for Ponce, who took fifth at state last year when he wrestled T. Zaball, another state contender.
“My goal for this season is to make sectionals,” Ponce said.
He is preparing for sectionals by practicing five days a week, conditioning four days a week and working really hard.
“[Esai is] very advanced in his knowledge of his techniques for a freshman. He’s looking to be very varsity-ready,” Joe Thorgesen, wrestling coach, said.
For Ponce, it’s about love of the sport.
“It’s fun and it’s good to be on a team sport,” he said.