By ALBERT VILLEGAS
Special to the NEWS
History was made when Evelyn Balderas became San Benito High School’s first female wrestler to sign a collegiate letter of intent.
When she signed her letter of intent to attend Schreiner University in Kerrville at San Benito’s Makana Fight Academy on May 27, those who attended commented on how quickly her rise in wrestling had occurred.
Lady ’Hound Head Wrestling Coach Kristen Longoria and Makana Club Coach and owner Naikoa Simao both said it took a great deal of self-commitment over several years to perfect their craft in the sport.
Balderas eventually earned a 65-15 record, a district title, en route to becoming a two-time regional, and a one-time state qualifier.
Balderas cited her parents, David Carrizales and Myra Barrera, as her biggest influences in achieving her goal of attending college.
“The coaches were very open-minded; they foster an environment that I always craved and looked for in a good college.”
When I visited Kerrville, the environment felt close-knit, which was what I noticed. “It felt like a family,” said Balderas, who also had offers from Iowa and New York colleges.
Her parents and various coaches said Balderas had a lean, athletic figure, but how she used it in this rough-and-tumble sport depended on her athleticism and will.
Coach Longoria saw Balderas play basketball under Lady Greyhounds’ Head Coach Abel Moreno during Balderas’s sophomore season.
“We both agreed she was physically gifted and talented. From day one, I knew she was something special, and her father is right there. There was a dramatic transformation from her junior to senior year,” Coach Longoria said.
“I’m proud of her. She’s done tremendous work. I can’t remember the last San Benito girl who signed and then went on to college,” she added. “Just keep working hard. We’re always going to back her up, and she’ll always have family here with us.”
A year ago, as she entered her senior year, Balderas and her family said a full ride to any college wrestling program was an afterthought, despite her showing promise so quickly.
Balderas didn’t start wrestling until her junior year. Before that, she competed in every sport available to her as a San Benito CISD student-athlete.
Fortunately for her, she was now part of an up-and-coming SBHS wrestling program that went on to win a district title. Then, in her senior year, Balderas, alongside other talented wrestlers, helped the girls earn another team title.
SBHS began its girls’ wrestling program in 2003; Coach Longoria just concluded her fifth year.
“It wasn’t until my junior year that I knew this was my sport; none of the others really stuck with me, but wrestling was within my control. That’s the one thing I learned about competing in this sport, more than in the others I started playing back in middle school,” said Balderas, who had participated in basketball, soccer, volleyball, and track and field.
“With the other sports, it was more team-oriented, and you won and lost as a team. With wrestling, you placed depending on your own performance,” she went on to add.
Her father, David, was incredibly impressed with her self-discipline as she matured, waking up early and working out late.
He said it was intended to enhance her abilities in the sport.
“She didn’t think college was possible, but for her, she just kept at it from February (of her junior year) until the summer,” Carrizales said.
Her mother, Myra, said her daughter was equally concerned about her weight.
Eating healthier was more important than her physical appearance because of the challenges of making weight for wrestling meets, Barrera said.
In meets, a wrestler is paired with another wrestler of equal weight to compete against.
Makana Club Coach Simao looked at Balderas and her younger students when he commented on Balderas’s achievements.
“She understood her willingness to opt out of having fun with friends and instead train with wrestling goals in mind. She sacrificed her summers, her friends, the parties, and the fun. She bought in, and look where it got her,” said Coach Simao, who also attended Schreiner University and wrestled for the men’s team.
“Obviously, her goal was to be state champion. She didn’t accomplish that. We didn’t lose; we just ran out of time. God has given her a chance to be a Mountaineer, and she has four years to be a national champion,” Simao remarked.
Balderas’ only college visit was to Schreiner, and she went with a coach and the returning wrestling captain, who helped the team claim a third consecutive conference title.
Balderas will be part of a program with 18 wrestlers, one of whom hails from Edinburg.
“Being with the San Benito wrestling program helped me process my emotions and speak out about them. I was able to redirect them into my wrestling and let them show on the mat,” Balderas said.
When asked to comment on being the first female wrestler to earn a collegiate scholarship, she replied: “It’s something I hadn’t really thought about. It didn’t even cross my mind until I was asked. For me, it’s more about the road I took and the support I received from my parents to get me this scholarship, rather than, oh, I’m the first female to receive this.”