Ishmael Medina is the type of athlete who coaches love and embrace. And with good reason. The San Benito High senior works hard, takes to coaching well and is diligent in the classroom. Medina wrestles at 145 pounds, has a cumulative 3.86 GPA and is taking three Advanced Placement classes this semester.
“Ishmael is one of those kids I love to coach,” Haybalers coach Steven Salcedo said. “They don’t always get all the accolades and recognition they deserve sometimes, but we appreciate their effort. Maybe wrestling is not in his future at the next level, but I like working with him and can’t wait to see what he does at the next stage of his life.”
A year ago in the Monterey Bay League Gabilan Division Tournament, Medina lost in the third-place match in the 138-pound division. Medina, who is currently ranked 10th in the section at 145, plans on going one step further this season.
“I’ve definitely improved a lot since last year,” he said. “Hopefully I can make CCS and finish in the top three.”
Medina has the ability to take down opponents with effective single-leg shots, and he’s constantly working on refining the technical aspects of the sport. Since Medina has only been wrestling for five or six years, he has less experience against the top standouts.
“Ishmael wrestles super well, but he really hasn’t had the success he probably deserves because he’s in one of the tougher weight classes,” Salcedo said.
Indeed, Medina’s road to CCS will be a tough one, as he will most likely have to face either Palma’s Michael Zaragoza (No. 3 in CCS at 145) or Gilroy’s Dan Vizcarra (No. 4) to reach the league finals. It was Zaragoza, a Hollister native, who introduced Medina to wrestling when they were in the seventh grade.
“I started going to practices with him (for a club team), and that got me interested in the sport,” Medina said.
Medina, who also was a two-year starter at cornerback on the football team, loves the feeling that competing in both sports brings him.
“When you’re a cornerback, you’re on an island,” he said. “If you let one pass get by you, it’s your fault. A wrestling match is similar in that your team is relying on you. And if you lose, you have no one to blame but yourself.”
Medina is working himself into wrestling shape, and he’s confident by the league tournament he’ll be in superior condition. Salcedo said he has no doubt that Medina will be in tremendous shape come mid-February. And ultimately, conditioning is the biggest factor when it comes to a match’s outcome.
“If the talent is equal, it all comes down to endurance,” Salcedo said. “When you’re exhausted, it goes back to the basics—being in your stance, moving your feet and trying to outwork your opponent. Ishmael can do all those things.”
Medina loves competing against the best, and that showed in a narrow 2-0 loss to Vizcarra on Dec. 21. Medina was one of a handful of San Benito athletes who managed to give a Gilroy wrestler all he could handle. Measured and calculating, Medina has a solid approach in every match.
“If I’m facing a less experienced guy, I try to attack more,” he said. “If it’s a guy like Zaragoza, I generally try to keep my composure and see what he does and attack from there.”
Medina went 4-2 in the California Coast Classic, which is one of the top mid-season tournaments in the Bay Area. He won two matches via pinfall and two by decision, while both of his losses came by decision, 7-3 and 8-6. Medina doesn’t get pinned often, a testament to his composure, skill and ability to make adjustments as the match goes on.
