Two years ago, Amelia Sullens had never wrestled a match in an interscholastic competition.
Tuesday, April 1, April Fools Day, incidentally, she signed a very serious, very real letter of intent to wrestle at the college level, for Pacific University.
Sullens’ route to the college matroom has not been a straight line. She got interested in wrestling as a sophomore but her parents were not on board yet with the idea, she said.
She’d already competed in high school soccer, cross-country, basketball and track,
“I played basketball my freshman year and I wasn’t going to continue with that,” Sullens said after the signing ceremony, held at noon in the high school Commons with her family – dad Kyle, mom Marci and sisters Olivia and Sophia at her side
“I thought about it in my sophomore year – I had friends who did it.” But she didn’t get the green light from her family until her junior year.
“It was really difficult in the beginning because I didn’t know what I was doing,” Sullens said.
Still, she did well enough to qualify for state as a junior.
She finished fifth in the regionals as a senior, one slot out of qualifying. But her abilities had gotten some attention, even though Sullens said “I didn’t have a great season” as a senior.
In early December, while wrestling at a tournament, a coach from Pacific approached her and introduced himself and asked her if she might be interested in wrestling for Pacific.
She said she decided to check it out and “I really love the school, the size of the school.”
She met the coaching staff and most of the current wrestlers.
“I just really think they have a great team dynamic,” Sullens said. “I just think I really fit there.”
Women’s wrestling is not a new sport at Pacific. According to Pacific’s website, the Boxers have had a program for 23 years, currently headed by Zach Binkerd, a former Boxer himself.
Another former Boxer is Sullens’ current coach, Steve Thorpe.
“The last wrestler from Sweet Home to go to Pacific University was me in 1986-87,” said Thorpe, chuckling. “We’ve got a Boxer again.”
Sullens said she plans to double major in psychology and education, with a view of becoming a school counselor “and hopefully also a wrestling coach.”
Sullens will join Brooke Burke, who just finished her sophomore basketball season at Pacific, as Sweet Home athletes who have moved on to the school.
“Amelia thought about what she wants to do and she let that be the deciding factor for why she wants to go to Pacific,” Thorpe said. “This gives her a chance to continue to compete. She has a huge window to improve.
“She’s going to go there where she’ll be competing in a room with people who are all highly motivated. I tell people when you go to college and compete, everybody there were standouts on their high school team. You get to surround yourself with that and you get to decide what part of that you want.”
Last weekend Sullens finished eighth at the Reno Worlds tournament and this weekend she will be wrestling at the state Greco and freestyle championships along with other Huskies.
“She’s been wrestling this spring, training all spring,” Thorpe said. “Last spring she didn’t do that.
“This is another of those instances of taking advantage of opportunities placed in front of you, and getting to reap success and the gifts those opportunities provide.”
Sullens said that a big reason why she wants to wrestle in college because she definitely is not finished with the sport.
“I’ve only had two years,” she said. “Although I’m not too great at it, I have four years to grow, to become a better wrestler.”