Central’s Sharpe to wrestle in college
Heading into his final year as a member of the Central Union High wrestling team, Evan Sharpe’s mindset was to simply have fun.
The 18-year-old had finished his junior season with a broken collar bone and a severe eye infection and wasn’t feeling too confident about his chances to obtain an offer to wrestle in college.
Yet perhaps it was this laidback approach that helped Sharpe get back to the basics of the sport and find his passion for wrestling once again.
“I just really started to enjoy practices and training more and even getting up early,” Sharpe explained.
This calm demeanor and new approach to the mat carried the Spartan grappler through the season and to a CIF-San Diego Section Division III title in the 220-pound weight class and a solid finish at the Masters Tournament.
Perhaps most importantly along the way, Sharpe caught the attention of the coaches at the University of the Ozarks in Clarksville, Arkansas.
Sharpe said the NCAA Div. III Eagles extended an offer in November and about one month ago, Sharpe made the trip to Clarksville for his official visit.
“I really liked the coaches and the atmosphere of the team,” Sharpe said. “It’s also a small town, so I felt right at home.”
On Friday, Sharpe made his future with the Eagles official after signing his letter of intent before school administrators, teammates, coaches and his parents, Dana and John.
“It feels a little unreal,” Sharpe said with a smile after the ceremony. “I didn’t think I’d get here. I think it won’t really hit me until my first day there.”
Sharpe is joining a young program that celebrated its inaugural season in 2014. The Eagles have steadily shown progress throughout their three-year history sending grapplers to the NCAA Div. III Regionals in two of the last three years.
The El Centro resident said he was looking forward to earning his spot on the team and continuing to grow as a student-athlete upon arriving in Arkansas later this year.
“I’ll be studying psychology and minoring in political science,” Sharpe said. “I want to become a psychologist and coach high school wrestling.”
While Sharpe said he was looking forward to being in a new place, he also thankful for the local coaches and supporters that helped get him to the next level.
“There are so many people that helped me through this whole process,” Sharpe said. “It all started in the summer. My dad put a mat in the garage that’s where I worked out. I don’t think I would have had the year that I did without his help.”