Fallon wrestler Dylan McAfee takes on an opponent during last week's Reno Tournament of Champions. The Wave return to Reno on Monday and Tuesday for the Sierra Nevada Classic.
Coming off a respectable showing at one of the country’s toughest tournaments, the Fallon wrestling team turns its attention to another big event.
On Monday and Tuesday, the grapplers will compete at the Sierra Nevada Classic at the Reno Livestock Events Center. The action begins at 9:30 a.m. both days.
Although not nearly as tough as the Reno Tournament of Champions, the SNC still provides stiff competition for the young Greenwave club.
David Hughes and Sam Goings, who placed fourth and sixth, respectively, at the TOC, lead the way. Both have been solid throughout the first month of the season, although the duo said they have room for improvement.
“They are going to be expected to perform,” Mori said of his two TOC placers. “It’ll be a little bit of pressure.”
The pair of state champs, though, are stepping up as leaders in the locker room, taking the young, inexperienced grapplers under their wings.
The scale of the TOC had an effect on those youngsters, but Hughes and Goings remind their teammates to go out and wrestle and not worry about where or what school an opponent is from.
It’s the first line of defense in the mental aspect, a lesson Hughes and Goings have taken to heart.
“I always tell them it’s not where they are from,” Hughes said. “Just go out there and wrestle as hard as you can.”
“I think, sometimes, the younger kids will concentrate on where they (the opponents) are from,” Goings added. “You just have to go out there and wrestle.”
Coming off a rough outing at the TOC, Mori said he expects his young grapplers to perform much better at the SNC.
“When we lose to kids that we shouldn’t, that really bothers me,” he added. “We did that a lot at the TOC. We just have to step up and do it.”
As for practice, Fallon had Wednesday and Thursday off for Christmas, but gets back to work today and Saturday.
Mori said Hughes and Goings must refine their moves and counters, especially working against defensive-minded wrestlers. As for the young bucks, Mori said the plan is to drill the basics coupled with instituting several new moves.
“We will try and pick up more with positioning wrestling,” he added. “We will stick them in a spot and say go.”