Cal Poly Wrestling is coming off of an undefeated PAC-12 Championship season and halfway through this season, they are ranked top 25 in the county.
Head Coach Jon Sioredas says the secret is the leadership and mental training they put their athletes through.
“I think it's great for the fans," Sioredas said. "I think it's great for our donors, it's great for the administration. But for us, we don't want to lose sight on what we're really here to do, and that's to continue to develop, continue to improve and grow on the wrestling mat. And then when these guys graduate, just, you know, be great leaders in our community moving forward.”
The players say what's helped them buy into the program is who the coaches are training them to be as community leaders off of the mat.
“It starts at the top," Sioredas noted. "And I think we have like-minded coaches and leaders on this team, and we spend a lot of time in our development off the mat. I mean, we're meeting multiple times per week with our entire team, with our leadership group, with our coaching staff. And then we're doing one-on-one meetings, working on leadership, nothing more. And I think it’s starting to show.”
The camaraderie is so strong it brought Chance Lamer from Michigan to join his brothers (Brawley, Legend and Daschle) in San Luis Obispo, and the redshirt sophomore is already changing the way he approaches the mat.
“With our training with Coyte Cooper, our sports psychologist, it's just like trust in your preparation," the middle Lamer brother said. "You know you did all the work, why would you be nervous for things you can't control? And I just kind of realized that and I did all the preparation I could, so I'm just going to go out there and wrestle.”
Graduate student Adam Kemp who is one of the top ten ranked wrestlers on Cal Poly's roster, is majoring in communications and wants to become a filmmaker. He transferred from Fresno State to Cal Poly because he's focusing on the person he'll become off the mat.
"I think more so here it's like work hard and study hard, you know," Kemp said. "It's more [about becoming] an all-encompassing human being."
“We're crystal clear with our expectations," Sioredas said of his coaching staff. "The only time we'll ever get frustrated is if they violate one of our core values. And we're so clear, our internal mantra is stupid clarity. Like, we're so clear on expectations that we can live our lives and have fun, enjoy each other, because we all know what's expected of each other and it starts at the top.”
When Sioredas first came to Cal Poly's campus as the head coach of the wrestling team, the Mustangs held no NCAA qualifiers. As of Jan. 23., the Mustangs rank No. 24 in the NWCA Division I Coaches Poll as a team, with Chance Lamer (no. 5), Zeth Romney ( no. 9), and Adam Kemp (no. 10) as the three Mustangs who rank in the top ten in the country in their respective weight classes.
Their next home matchup comes to Mott Athletics Center on February 9 against Arizona State.
