Jeff Moeller, freelance correspondent

Both seniors Isla Stotts and Coralys Lopez both began their wrestling career at Richmond Hill on an afterthought.

“I started wrestling my sophomore year when a girls team started because a couple of my friends had been recruiting a bunch of girls and when I was younger,” reminisced Stotts. “I thought wrestling would be such a fun sport. If I had gotten into it way earlier and when I found out that I didn’t need any prior experience,  I would have jumped at the chance to join the team.” 

Like Stotts, Lopez decided to fill a void.

“I started wrestling in the summer of 2023,” remembered Lopez. “ I started wrestling because my school started a girls team for the first time, and I wanted something to do with my spare time.

“ But I am seeing myself as an example that hard work does pay off.” 

Along with making it a rewarding experience for both of them,  Stotts and Lopez have been an integral part of the Richmond Hill girls’ wrestling program. 

Both were state qualifiers last season. This year, the 170-pound Stotts enters the final two weeks with a 28-1 record with 28 pins, and 105-pound Lopez is 28-3 with 22. 

Head coach Tony Dragon believes both can make a return trip to the state tournament at the end of the month. 

“They are certainly both capable of it,” stressed Dragon. “They have really grown as wrestlers, and they know what it takes now to get there. They are both having outstanding seasons and wrestling with a lot of confidence.”

Stotts and Lopez, along with the other seven seniors, have helped set the tone for the season. Dragon has been impressed with his team’s balance and especially the underclassmen, having seven sophomores, six freshman, and three juniors in his third season at the helm. The Wildcats will participate in regionals next weekend and then sectionals the following weekend. They ended the team competition among the top 16. 

As a team, the Wildcats recently finished second in the area, and lost in the sectional round. In 2024, they were tied for ninth as a team and notched a fourth-place finish last season.  

As well as the grinding physical aspects, Stotts and Lopez have both endured the mental aspects of the sport.

“When you go into a sport where the only person responsible for your matches is you and so common for people who have joined very very young, it’s so much easier to hold yourself back, “said Stotts. “It took me about a year and a half to really start to overcome myself and I saw so much improvement from it.”

Lopez took some good from the bad. 

“My biggest obstacle has been learning that all losses aren’t bad losses,” said Lopez. “You can probably take something good from it, and learn from it. It’s just a matter of staying positive.”

While Stotts has capitalized from family members wrestling in the past, Lopez hasn’t had that luxury.

“A lot of my family up north wrestled but in previous generations, it was mostly the guys,” said Stotts. “When we moved down south, I never really had anyone to look up to because I’m so far away. But when a lot of them heard that there was a girls’ team and that I had joined, I had so many people in my family reach out and really support me.”

Both girls acknowledged that they benefited from last season. 

“My junior season set me right both mentally and physically,” said Stotts. “A lot of my senior teammates at the time really pushed me past some of my limits and it kind of forced me to better my technique and my hesitance to be aggressive which is the only reason my senior record is what it is.”

Lopez echoed his teammate’s sentiments.

“Last season has helped me along this season because it gave me a goal to be better than I was last season,” added Lopez. “There’s nothing in particular I’m trying to improve. I’m just trying to get better each day.”

The senior duo sees a strong team bond, and they both realize how their efforts over the years have paid dividends for them and the program. 

“I’ve been here since a team started so I’ve seen the ups and downs,” said Stotts. “ I think this year the chemistry on the team is like that of a family, but of a very aggressively driven family. We’re all going to be on the side of the mat when somebody’s wrestling and screaming and cheering.”

I see us as a well bonded team of girls,” said Lopez. “ We all get along and laugh together all the time.”

Stotts and Lopez also have adopted leadership roles along the way. With the individual tournaments beginning next week, both of them will be seeking  to win a state title in their final chapter.  

“Because of my record, a lot of girls around my weight class look up to me, so I’m always trying to help them improve,” said Stotts. “We all have no issue calling somebody out on things and tweaking moves to help both individually as a team.

“I don’t think I am peaking yet because I have much more to learn. I definitely think I have more in me.”

Lopez shares the same thoughts.

“I do see myself as a leader,” said Lopez. “I think I’ve still got room to improve. I put a ton of work in during the summer, and I’m starting to see that pay off now. 

“I feel like I’m trending in the right direction and setting myself up to peak when it matters.”