Colorado Mesa Reloaded & Ready to Compete This Weekend
2019-2020 NCWWC national finalist Dalia Garibay last season at the Maverick Open. Photo courtesy of cmumavericks.com
by Derek Levendusky, AWW staff writer
Twitter: @AWWderek
GRAND JUNCTION, CO - Entering their third season, Colorado Mesa is ranked #6 in the NCAA, maintaining a growth trajectory from Day 1 that has made their program one of the best recent startups in the country. In the tidal wave of new programs over the last few years, Colorado Mesa stands tall.
Last season, the Mavericks took 4th in both the NCAA division of the NWCA National Duals and at the National Collegiate Women’s Wrestling Championship, the inaugural national tournament for NCAA programs. In just two years, Colorado Mesa boasts 8 collegiate All-Americans, 3 Senior Nationals All-Americans, 7 U23 World Team Trials All-Americans, and 9 Junior Nationals All-Americans. Among them are 2020 Junior National Champion Tristan Kelly, and two national finalists in Alma Mendoza, who made the Junior national finals in 2019 at 68 kg, and Marissa Gallegos, who made the U23 finals in 2020 at 55 kg. On top of it all, Mesa has been in the top two academically among all NCAA programs for the past two years.
Even with all the early success, the roster keep getting deeper as Mesa had the #3 best recruiting class this year. “Year 2 saw another great year of recruiting for our program,” says head coach Travis Mercado. “It’s always been a priority since starting the program that we find girls that not only fit the culture of our program, but also feel that the university is a place that is best for them in their academic [and athletic] endeavors.”
The incoming class is loaded with talent, but there’s no higher prospect than freshman Tristan Kelly, who showed why she was one of the top high school recruits in the country at Junior Nationals in November, winning the title with a dominant victory in the finals over North Central’s Yelena Makoyed, the #1 ranked college wrestler at the time. Kelly outscored her opponents 30-0 at Junior Nationals. She took 5th the next day in the U23 division. Kelly begins her college career ranked #2 in the FloWrestling/AWW Multi-Division Rankings. Says Mercado of his star recruit, “I know that her expectations of herself will only propel her forward this year.”
Also new in the room is freshman Holly Beaudoin, a 4-time state finalist in Washington who finally won a state title her senior year after taking 2nd for three years. “She has a great approach to the sport and sees every opportunity to compete as a chance to learn,” says Mercado. “Her mindset and approach are great. I remember reading an article before the Washington state tournament and the writer asked her what happens if you lose in the finals again, do you think it is a successful season? Her response was, ‘If I lose then I’m a 4x state finalist.’ It was at that moment that I knew she would be a great addition to our program.” Beaudoin is on the roster at 136.
Another recruit to keep your eye on is Elizabeth “Lizzie” Miller a 2x state champ out of Missouri. “She has shown great things this first semester especially in her training,” tells the excited coach. “I think she’ll have a breakout season as a freshmen which will boost her confidence.” Miller is a 116-pounder.
California 4x state placer Hailey Ward is also an incoming freshman, a wrestler Mercado calls “a huge addition to our lineup at 101/109lbs.” He also points out that having returning All-American Jennesis Martinez as her training partner has helped both athletes grow.
Other names to pay attention to are Zoe Gress and Isabeau Shalack, two freshmen that have an abundance of national experience and success. Expect them to make an immediate impact the upper weights. This will be a massive improvement on last season, when Mesa won only five (or so) matches at 155, 170 and 191 in dual meets. The addition of Gress, Kelly, and Shalack will bring a radical and immediate change to that part of the Maverick lineup.
In the midst of celebrating the recruiting class, don’t forget about the returning stars on the roster who already have college accolades. National finalist Dalia Garibay is back at 136 and is ranked #3 in the FloWrestling/AWW Top 25 Multi-Division Rankings, and four other All-Americans are back, with #4 Jennesis Martinez at 101, #15 Anja Tschohl at 116, #4 Marissa Gallegos at 123, and #19 Kaylee Lacy at 143. Mercado says of his returning All-Americans, “All five bring a lot to the team this year as they’ve all had a taste of success, but just falling short of their personal goals of being at the top of the podium.”
Garibay can boast that she handed McKendree national champ & 2019 Senior Nationals champ Emma Bruntil her only college loss last season. Meanwhile, Gallegos is one of the most exciting athletes to watch in women’s college wrestling, bringing a high pace, big moves, and a courageous tenacity to her matches. He proud coach notes, “She’s only getting better and is constantly adding to her skill set. Her making the finals at U23 was a big hurdle for her. She keeps banging on the door and chipping away at the brick wall and I cannot wait to be in her corner when she finally busts through.”
Jennesis Martinez earned a nickname from one of the Mesa athletic directors last year—The Silent Assassin. Mercado explains why: “Her poise and focus on the mat is amazing and she’s really coming into more. Last year was her first real go at wrestling freestyle so now having a season under her belt I know she’s going to make some big jumps.”
The Colorado Mesa program has a mindset to take on the biggest challenges, go after the biggest matches, and never waste an opportunity to get better. Adding a strength & conditioning coach, Carson Pipher, has been a significant benefit for the team. “She comes from a large wrestling family,” Mercado points out, “so her knowledge of the sport has been a huge asset to the weight room especially when it comes to workouts, physiological demands, and more. She’s ultra-competitive and her personality is welcoming and the girls have really taken to Carson and her strength training plans.”
The pandemic has been a challenge for the Mesa program just like it was for everyone, but Mercado found the silver lining. “For me, I enjoyed getting time to spend with my now 3-year-old daughter. We would spend the mornings together, then I would head to the school in the afternoons when my wife came home. I really enjoyed those days and as school started up I told my wife that I wish it would have lasted a little longer. I think [for me] it was a blessing in disguise. But I missed wrestling and being around my team.”
When the team finally got back on campus, they had to make adjustments. Says Mercado, “We have an amazing athletic administration and university president that have done a lot to make sure that our student body and athletes have as much of a normal experience as they normally would. Us limiting our mat time during the fall allowed us to focus on strength and conditioning.”
Mercado and his coaching staff don’t believe in taking the easy path. “Our philosophy here is we approach everyday as an opportunity to be the best version of ourselves,” he says. “It’s a constant quest for excellence…I’m competitive and I want to be competing against the top teams in the nation every chance we get. It’s important for us to be challenged by McKendree, Simon Fraser, King, Emmanuel, etc. We have to be able to see those athletes so that we can improve on our performances. I think we’ve shown in the past two years that we do not shy away from competition…[for me] it’s about opportunities, not winning and losing. It’s an opportunity to showcase your skills your talents, it’s an opportunity to be challenged by another competitor, and it’s an opportunity to learn about yourself and where you need to improve.”
Colorado Mesa will square off against the top 3 NCAA teams this weekend in Bristol, Tennessee, as #1 McKendree, #2 Emmanuel, and #3 King will all be facing each other in a quad. “I’ve probably put more emphasis on the event at King than I should in the past few days,” says Mercado, “but the approach is still the same.”
Mercado is also grateful for his coaching peers and their programs. “I love our road trip to McKendree,” said the young coach. “Sam has an amazing program and I like to compete against them. If schedules hold true we will have wrestled them four times in the past two years—again showing we aren’t afraid to step on the mat.”
Emmanuel is also on the schedule this season as a home dual, a long trek for any team. In fact, Mesa is the western-most NCAA team and is 9.5 hours away from the nearest competition in any division. “I’m grateful that Link and Kristie [Davis] are bringing their program out here this year,” said Mercado. “It’s going to be a great event and I would bet that we have one of the best set-ups for women’s college wrestling duals of any program…We get big crowds, have a good following in the community (partly cause of the wrestling fan base in the valley), and make the experience top notch for the student athletes involved.”
As a point of interest, last year Colorado Mesa University was the only NCAA DII school to have all eight winter sports participate in NCAA Championships. “The culture of athletics here is amazing,” says the coach of his home, “and we are surrounded by amazing coaches and student athletes. I encourage anyone interested in wrestling at Colorado Mesa University to come visit the campus and see if we are the university that fits into your academic and athletic plans.”
Coming out of the pandemic with all its limitations and lockdowns, the Mavericks are ready to scrap. “We cannot wait to get on the mat this season,” says the visionary coach. “It’s been far too long and I’m ready to start competing again.”
They’ll have that chance this weekend in Bristol, Tennessee.