Monteiro rebuilding CF wrestling squad Low numbers not stopping Warrior coach
CENTRAL FALLS – Undaunted and proud, Eugene Monteiro approached the two head coaches from Cranston East and Exeter/West Greenwich on Wednesday night and told them he would enter exactly three wrestlers from his Central Falls squad into their Division II double-dual meet.
There are 14 weight divisions in a normal, two-team competition – from the “lightweights” at 106 to the behemoths who grapple at heavyweight (that is, 221 pounds or more) – so Monteiro's trio didn't stand much of a prayer of even scoring.
It didn't bother him an iota. That's because each of his Warriors are just that, and he has much greater plans for the CF program. It won't happen this winter, but he believes it will someday, courtesy of the foundation laid by juniors Lakiesha Sullivan and Saeddien Mejia and sophomore Desmond Rodriguez.
“Lakiesha is at 106, and she's a workhorse,” offered Monteiro, in his third-year at the helm, prior to the opening bout against the Scarlet Knights. “Three days a week, she volunteers to help the coach the (Calcutt) middleschool team, part of the 'Beat the Streets in Central Falls' program, then comes to her varsity practice here.
“She's an honor roll student, and – because Springfield (Mass.) Tech has an all-female team, the coaches there are interested in her,” he continued.
“She also participates yearround with my Providence County Wrestling Club, designed to get more young people involved in our sport.
“What makes her so good is her worth ethic, and her speed comes from that. She's not a person who you have to worry about making weight or showing up on time. She even helps tutor those middle-school kids who are having academic problems.”
He indicated when he took over as chief mentor two years ago, wrestling was dying in Central Falls.
“That's why we started the after-school program at Calcutt; it's really hard to recruit kids to come out for it when they know nothing about it,” he said. “Sports like soccer, basketball and indoor track and field are the ones they want to sign up for, so what I did was ask a couple of seniors to volunteer for that program. If they stuck with it, I told them I'd get them summer jobs with our Providence County team.
“We haven't reaped those benefits yet, but we will start to see them next year.”
He believes, because of that introduction to wrestling in sixth-, seventh- and eighthgrades, the boys and girls involved will want to continue the endeavor and eventually expand the team to what it once was.
“We have a possibility of having eight freshmen coming out for the team next season, and the great part about it is they'll have experience; they'll know what they're doing,” he noted. “In fact, we have an eighth-, seventh- and fifthgrader here from the middleschool or club teams volunteering to help out with assorted duties (on Wednesday).”
Monteiro has a strong, lengthy love for his favorite athletic endeavor. After graduating from Hope High School in 1988 as a wrestler, he moved on to the same at Rhode Island College, and even represented the U.S. Army's European team during his deployment.
“This year, we had a heavyweight who goes to school at The Met, but part of its graduation requirement is to get involved with an internship and certification program, so had to leave the team,” he stated. “We had 31 people sign up before the season in November, and – by the second practice – we were under 15.
“Then we lost a big number to grades, and that brought us down to about eight. We had a couple of kids quit after that because it was too hard … Wrestling is a sport where you've really got to have the mind-set of working hard. Besides doing that at practice, they have to maintain the discipline it takes to keep the grades up, take care of their home/family responsibilities and also run on their own. If they don't have it, they're not going to be conditioned enough to compete, and compete well.
“It's also a sport where you can't do it only during the varsity season,” he continued. “You have to commit yourself afterward if you want to do anything special. You have to enter other tournaments, either here in Rhode Island or other states.”
To propel his dream off the ground, he sought out advice from friends Billy Waterson and Ed German.
“I saw what the ' Beat the Streets' program was doing in Providence at assorted locations, and I told them I wanted to do the same thing here in Central Falls,” Monteiro said. “What was great was they bent over backwards to help. Thanks to them, they got us a new mat for the middle school.
“I already had 30 pairs of shoes, but they donated another 35, then helped me make a connection with the Segue Institute here in town. They helped us provide information for those young students to want to get involved, and they are now.”
**
During and after her exhibition match against EWG freshman Zack Jesuino, a 120pounder, Sullivan became teary-eyed during the second period, despite the fact she held a 2-1 advantage.
Monteiro explained following her eventual 6-2 loss that she didn't feel well, claiming dizziness from a sinus issue, but was thrilled with her performance.
“She's improving day after day, and I'm so proud of her,” he said.
Mentioned Sullivan: “I tried out for the team my freshman year, but I quit after the first practice; I didn't think I'd be able to do it because all of the workouts were too hard. I decided to come back last year because I don't like quitting anything; if I quit, that means I don't want to try.
“I didn't win any matches last year, but I have this season, and that made me feel great. I stay with it because I love it. I don't know why, but I do … It is hard to keep it up without a full team, but we stay with it because we want to help Coach build one. That's why I help out at the middle school. I want to give them what I know so they can wrestle in high school.
“That's also why I tutor some of them, and coach them, too. You have to keep your grades up.”
Her grandfather, Bruce Sullivan, stood watching his girl as she eventually dropped the decision to Jesuino, and seemed rather proud himself.
“Three of her uncles wrestled at Coventry High School years ago when they put together 18 consecutive statechampionship runs, and her uncle Keith was a state middle-school champion and state (varsity) finalist,” he said. “And, her mother, Stephanie, played junior-varsity football at Coventry, so I think she gets that competitive edge from her.
“She kept telling me, 'Papa, I want to wrestle,” he added. “My daughter came to me twice when she was in high school, saying she wanted to play football, and – finally – I told her, 'OK, but if even once you cry, I'll kick your butt!' If she wanted to play, she had to prove it to me by being tough. I also told her she had to try to outwork even the boys.”
As for Rodriguez, he jumped out to a first-period lead of 5-1 over EWG's 145pounder Owen McGale, then finished him off with an 18-2 technical fall triumph, good for five points. CF eventually lost to the Knights, 54-5, but he had reigned. (He later lost by pin to Cranston East's Gianni Andreoli at 145).