Faith and focus: How did an Arlington Martin wrestler win four straight state championships?

For the past year, Isaak Arevalo knew where he stood in the pantheon of the state’s top wrestlers.

The Arlington Martin standout secured state title No. 3last year and would go into the 2024-25 season with a chance to make history. Since UIL recognized wrestling as a sport in the 1998-99 season, only four boys wrestlers have won four state titles.

Arevalo made that list grow to five with a win in the Class 6A 126-pound finals at Berry Center on Saturday, Feb. 15.

With his right arm raised by an official after the win, Arevalo had four fingers on his left hand to signify the historic win.

After he was turned around, he fell to his knees and pointed to the sky.

“Glory to God, man, I thank God above; he’s one that’s put me in this place and got me in this situation,” Arevalo said. “None of this would be possible (with him).”

The history

Coming into this year’s UIL Wrestling Championships, Isaac Arevalo was one of 26 wrestlers to have three state titles on his resume.

He and Hunter Bogner, a Class 5A wrestler from Dumas, both were vying for a fourth straight title this year.

“Every year it builds more pressure, you know, but pressure equals diamonds, so you got to keep it going,” Arevalo said of the quest for four. “I just have to keep winning and keep doing my thing.”

Arevalo was the third Arlington Martin to have three titles — former teammate Shawn Ryncarz got his third in 2023. Ryncarz’s first title came in 2021, when his former teammate Donovan Whitted won his third.

There have been a few wrestlers with connections to Tarrant County that had three titles.

Jeremy Sandoval from Colleyville Heritage (2006-08), Greg Wilson from Keller Central (2010-12) and Brian Andrews from Grapevine (2015-17).

The list of four-time champions featured only two schools — Allen and Amarillo Tascosa.

Allen’s Braeden Redlin and Braxton Brown were the only two to accomplish the 4-peat in UIL’s two-class system.

Arevalo knew what was at stake after winning the Region 1-6A title the weekend prior at Coppell High School.

“It does cross my mind, but I try not to think about it too much,” he said in the aftermath of the regional win before going to state. “I don’t want it to get my head and cause doubt; I under what I’m trying to get and trying to do.”

The motivation: Faith and embracing weakness

Arevalo had a 29-match winning streak heading into this season.

After the second tournament this season, he decided to change the look of his headgear. On the red piece of equipment, he wrote verses from the Bible.

The first is Isaiah 41:10, and the other is 2 Corinthians 11:30. Both pieces of scripture mean a lot to him, he said.

The Isaiah scripture says, “Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

The other says, “If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness.”

Arevalo has accomplished a lot on the wrestling mat, but he says he needs to talk as much about his weaknesses as he does about his successes.

He said the writing on the headgear, which included a cross on both sides, was a way to praise God. Initially, Arevalo was unsure if the writing on the headgear was allowed.

“I was just like, you know what? I don’t know if this is legal or not, but we’re gonna try it out,” he said. “They tell me that it’s illegal, I’ll go take it off. But if no one says anything, we’re gonna keep it on until someone tells me not to take it off.”

The final matches

Arevalo entered the state meet with a 34-0 record.

He won both matches on Friday, both on pins. Saturday started with a semifinal matchup with Cole Sides from Dripping Springs, who was 34-2.

“Yeah, there was nerves, you know, especially coming in today,” Arevalo said. “I was like this much closer to winning (a title) but as soon as I stepped on the mat, there’s nerves went away.”

He beat Sides by a 9-0 major decision and punched his ticket into the finals, where he won 5-3 against Luca Rios of The Woodlands College Park.

Arevalo got a takedown with 1:12 left in the first period, but Rios tied the match in the second period.

Late in the second, Arevalo got an escape and added another escape with 51 seconds remaining in the third.

Out of his four titles, he won two titles against Houston area wrestlers and then one against Austin and El Paso wrestlers.

“He accomplished all of his goals and he worked hard and finally got that goal,” teammate Nicholas Zamora said, one of three Warriors to take home state titles. “It is definitely cool winning state, but it makes it better knowing we all put all that hard work into practice, club practice, and that paid off at state.”

The final podium trip

Arevalo had all four of his first-place medals on his neck on the top of the podium during the award photos. He went 38-0 this year and won his final 67 matches. Overall, he was 132-7 in his career at Martin.

About 30 minutes after getting his final first-place medal, his name was called again. He was named the Class 6A boys’ most outstanding wrestler.

He got on the podium one more time as Martin took second place in the 6A boys overall team race. Now, Arevalo looks to his future, and he is still searching for a place to wrestle in college.

He has some interest, but months away from graduation, he doesn’t know what the future will hold.

Will a four-time champion from Texas be enough to get colleges interested? Or was the win over Rios the last wrestling match of his career?

He doesn’t know yet, but like he has for his life, he is putting his trust in God.

“Whether it’s wrestling in college or just going to college to get my degree, and hopefully being successful in life,” he said. “Whatever God holds, it is in store for me.”