Scotts Valley sophomore Danica Kelley wrapped up the Falcons’ wrestling season with a strong performance at the California Interscholastic Federation Wrestling Championships on Feb. 24-26.
The standout wrestler competed in the 116-pound division and she finished with a 3-2 overall record at the three-day tournament in Bakersfield.
Kelley also extended her season at the California USA Wrestling Folkstyle State Championships in Fresno on March 4-6.
She won the 127-pound division field and was awarded a California Golden Bears trophy, which goes to the top-3 wrestlers in their respective weight classes.
Kelley said it was a unique experience because she’s not used to teaming up with familiar foes from within the Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League.
“Even though you guys are in the same league, everybody’s very competitive,” she said. “To be around these people and them being part of your team, and then take you in and be really nice to you, it was just kind of a cool experience. We’re all wrestlers and it was interesting to see.”
Live Oak Wrestling Club coach Jay Reyes created a hybrid team and invited Kelley along with seven other local athletes to compete in Fresno.
Diallo Thomas, Gerardo Trinidad, Demarco Chavez, Cristian Cruz, Jonah Harre and Amy Gray of Harbor High along with Balam Letona of Santa Cruz High all made the trip.
Reyes said it was important to him to give these wrestlers a chance to extend their season.
“I know it benefits the kids to get more experience,” he said.
Thomas took third in the 160-pound division in the boys’ junior age group, and Gray placed third in the 138-pound division in the girls’ junior age group. Both wrestlers were also awarded Golden Bear trophies.
Kelley, who began competing at USAW state tournaments in middle school, said the competition field wasn’t as big as she remembers.
“Back then it seemed really huge to me. Being in Fresno and all of the matches,” she said. “But now after going to school state [championships] and generally going to bigger tournaments, it doesn’t seem as large in size. It seems more manageable.”
This past weekend, she moved up in weight class. It was something she anticipated, especially because cutting down into the mid-110s was already rough.
“I just didn’t feel great there, but it was really nice to be at 127 [pounds] and that’s just where my body naturally kind of landed,” she said.
Reyes said he’s watched Kelley progress into a skilled wrestler since she was in the sixth grade as a member of both the Scotts Valley and Highway 9 wrestling clubs.
“[Kelley’s] a dedicated wrestler and I got a group of dedicated kids,” Reyes said. “Instead of just keeping it to our little area, I have opened it up to any kid who’s dedicated and wants to continue to wrestle and she’s one of them.”
Reyes said it was also great to watch Kelley bond with some of the local athletes that she recognized from league meets. He also enjoyed seeing her continue to achieve the goals that she set for herself.
“Having the opportunity to kind of help her just kind of presented itself, so we made it happen,” he said.
Reyes has been Harbor High’s wrestling coach for four years and the skipper at Shoreline Middle School for seven years—five as the head coach and two as an assistant.
He created the Live Oak Wrestling Club six years ago to give kids a chance to wrestle during the offseason. They currently have 15 athletes signed up and more have reached out, especially seeing what it’s done for wrestlers such as Kelley.
“I’m just trying to build wrestling in this area because it’s a great sport. It’s been great for me and I know what it could do for other kids around here,” Reyes said. “I’m just trying to give them more opportunities.”
Reyes, 46, was an Army kid who moved throughout the United States and overseas. He began wrestling in the fifth grade when his dad was stationed at Fort Polk in Louisiana.
Reyes competed through the middle school, high school and college ranks. But he said his career didn’t plan out like he wanted it to and he made some decisions that weren’t always the best.
“I turned my back on the sport for about 15 years and decided it was time to get back into it,” he said.
Reyes returned to school in his mid-30s and became a teacher because he wanted to be more involved than just being a coach. He was an assistant coach in Colorado and continued that focus.
Reyes said he’s new to this area but he has plenty of experience in the sport. His biggest challenge has been finding a set location to have mats down at all times.
The wrestling club currently operates between Harbor High’s wrestling practice room and Shoreline Middle School.
Once he secures a spot, he’ll be able to run three different age groups ranging from elementary to high school. His ultimate goal is to put Santa Cruz County wrestling on the map.
Kelley said that programs within the SCCAL are better than what others outside of the area may believe, despite not having the extra resources like most teams over the hill do.
“We’re still giving them fits and winning. I think that’s respectable,” she said.
Kelley said she’s aware there are plenty of small tweaks she needs to make during the offseason to return as an improved wrestler next winter.
For now, she’ll take a break this week and then it’s back to work at an upcoming freestyle tournament at Harbor High. Kelley is uncertain if she’ll be doing any Greco-Roman wrestling but it’s not completely out of the picture.
In the meantime, she feels like where she needs to be at this point in her young wrestling career.
“I’ve got two more years to round things out and fix them up,” Kelley said. “Just being in the right place is comforting.”
