As the wrestling season comes to an end at GBHS with not many tournaments and duels to go, some of us wonder; what were the goals of some of the athletes? Did they meet these goals? What are they going to do to meet these goals before the season ends? What has been their biggest challenge?

Jace Shartz, a junior, has a record this season of 29 wins and four losses. Shartz stated that his goal for the season was, “winning state is the only one as of right now.” He continued by saying to meet this goal, “I just need to pick up the pace and get in better shape mainly.” Shartz ended saying his biggest challenge this season was, “being sick, dealing with injuries. Mainly just staying healthy this season.” He has overcome this challenge with, “rest, lots of sleeping, going to the doctor, whatever i can do to stay healthy.”

Senior, Kaiden Hoffmen, has a record of 24 wins and six losses. Hoffman said, “my goal for this season is to win WAC as a team, win state as a team, and win state personally.” he continued, “I feel like I am on track to meet those goals. I feel like our team has to get healed up a little bit because we got a lot of guys out right now but I know that once we get those guys back then we’re gonna be good.” Hoffmen stated that his biggest challenge this season has been “the mental part of wrestling, just getting myself to not doubt myself anymore.” 

Sophomore, Natalee Daniels has a record of 20 wins and five losses. Daniels goal for this season is, “to do better than I did last year in all aspects meaning mindset and motivation wise.” She does believe that she is meeting those goals and expectations in this season but that there is still room for improvement. “My biggest challenge this season is kind of staying motivated and not beating myself up about my losses and getting out of my head,” said Daniels.

These athletes have proven time and time again that this sport is not only a physical game but also mental. They have to keep themselves motivated at all times and also not beat themselves up over losses or not making weight. There is no denying that it is without a doubt one of the toughest sports out there and we all have a lot of respect towards the people who do it and have done it for years. Good luck in these last weeks of wrestling panthers!