Why did you pick Gabriel Camacho as captain?

Chaparian: He’s a great wrestler and, overall, a good guy.

 

Do you look up to your captain?

McLin: Yes, he practices what he preaches.

Deanda: Of course! Gabe has pushed me to do well in wrestling. He was always there at tournaments hyping me up [and] telling me what I did wrong and how to fix it.

 

What makes Gabriel a good captain?

Chaparian:  He leads by example

Deanda: Gabe knows when to be serious or when to joke around. He’s a good role model, plus he’s been in wrestling for four years now—he knows what’s going on.

 

Were you surprised when they chose you to be captain?

Camacho: Yes, because I didn’t see myself as a captain, but ever since freshman year, I’ve always wanted to be a captain.

 

What qualities do you have that makes you a good captain?

Camacho: I work hard and do my best to teach others. I also like to lead by example.  

 

What do you expect from your team as a captain?

Camacho: I expect my team to try their hardest and not to give up. If they do mess up, I expect them to learn from their mistakes and get better as well. To me, wrestling is a lifestyle, so I want my team to enjoy every aspect of it.

 

Why did you join wrestling?

Camacho: Honestly, at first I didn’t want to join wrestling. The reason why was because I never wanted to wear the singlet for wrestling, so I signed up for basketball. But I didn’t even pass the first day of tryouts for basketball and the first day of wrestling had already passed, so I didn’t think I would get to do a winter sport. However, my friend, Brian Warren, told me to go out to one practice, and I did, and I liked it so I joined the team. Ever since then I’ve been part of the team.

 

What do you have to do as captain?

Camacho: I have to set a good example for my team and that’s by trying my hardest and working hard.

 

What is your favorite wrestling moment or event of all time?

Camacho: Senior Night; it’s kind of like a love/hate thing because I’ve been waiting for Senior Night since freshmen year. So I was really excited when the day came, but it also meant the coming to an end of my high school season.

 

After graduation, what are you going to miss about wrestling the most?

Camacho: The family aspect of wrestling. To me wrestling is one big family and I’ve never felt such a strong bond with anything else.

 

What’s your favorite move in wrestling?

Camacho: My favorite takedown is the sweep, my favorite breakdown is the chop, and my favorite pinning move is the chicken wing. I also like to be cradled because of my defense for it.

 

Can you explain your first time walking in the wrestling room?

Camacho: It was pretty awkward for me. I didn’t have a pair of wrestling shoes and I remember Coach Smith looking at me saying, “You going to get shoes?” And I just quietly replied with, “Yeah.”

 

What do you do before every match?

Camacho: I listen to music and jump around to get my body ready. I also look at my opponent’s shoes—wrestlers will understand why.

 

What do you want to leave behind for the other wrestlers to remember you of?

Camacho: The cradle defense, a.k.a. “the Gabe roll”.  But really, I want them to just remember how hard I worked for this sport. I want to leave a mark, hopefully by being a state champ, to help inspire future wrestlers to come. Anything is possible and it doesn’t matter how much experience you have or how strong you are. If you work hard and just believe in your abilities that you are capable of anything—I want to leave that motivation behind.