After a late start, Waller High School (WHS) Wrestling has seen a successful season with one student leading the charge, Senior Sierra Hall came in second at the State Wrestling Meet.

While the team usually begins practicing in August, they could not begin practicing on mats until January. This led them to create an accelerated practice plan that incorporated cardio and weights while simultaneously wrestling to increase efficiency and exposure. WHS wrestling program is led by Head Coach Brian Ibanez.

“The kids that finished the season with me learned some ‘Ibanezisms’ and hopefully will take things they’ve learned from me, on and off the mat, with them on their next journeys,” Ibanez said.

Hall has been wrestling for three years and this season she competed in the 185-weight class. Going into the state tournament, she was undefeated with a 17-0 record with all wins coming via pin. At State, Hall was winning the final with 30 seconds left before losing by one point due to a referee call. After graduation, Hall has received many offers from universities and colleges around the country to compete for their school.

“Sierra has had the most dominant season of any wrestler since I started in Waller in 2008,” Ibanez said.

Along with Hall, WHS also had students place at Regionals, qualifying them for the State meet as alternates. Angle Rojas (weight class 152), Alexis Lopez (220), and Emely Jimenez (102) each placed fourth and Kirsten Mcbride (215) placed sixth.

“This was the most satisfying season I’ve had coaching in my 20+ years of coaching wrestling,” Ibanez said. “Other schools had been rolling since August and September, so it always felt like we were playing catch up.”