Four years ago, a short, pudgy seventh-grader made a promise to Metea Valley coach Claudio Torres.
“He said that when he got to high school, he’d do anything and everything I ask him to do, to be the best wrestler he could be,” Torres said.
Fast forward to now. That formerly grade-schooler is junior Dylan Ervin, a recent Upstate Eight Conference Tournament champion at 182 pounds.
Ervin kept his promise to Torres, turning the sport into a seven-day-a-week proposition. Ervin was a kids’ club wrestler for Martinez Elite and in addition to his training at Metea, he has attended the 28-day J Robb wrestling camp in Minnesota and works out at one of the state’s top wrestling clubs, Izzy Style.
Wrestlers are driven individuals by nature and Ervin found extra inspiration at home, in the form his mother, Gena Baymon.
“My father hasn’t been in my life as much as I’d like, but my mom managed to graduate high school, graduate college, and have a career. She’s something else,” Ervin said. “If she can do it, I better do it, too.
“And coach Torres believed in me. He saw something in me I didn’t see in myself.”
Ervin wrestled at 182 his freshman year and 195 in a sophomore year plagued by a shoulder injury. He dropped back down to 182 for the current season and has 30-4 record, including a 3-2 win over South Elgin’s Zack Crosby on a UEC title mat.
Ervin also won a title at a 17-team tournament at Glenbrook South and placed second at Palatine’s 31-team tournament this season.
His technique has always been solid, and now his strength is becoming an asset.
“I feel wonderful right now,” Ervin said. “I’m doing my best to lift, and I know if I want to get to state and get my name known, I have to be strong.”
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Ervin and the Mustangs will compete Saturday at the Class 3A Batavia Regional. The junior has a coveted place on a downstate podium in mind, and his coach believes he has done everything possible to get there.
“He has tunnel vision and he hasn’t stopped since his eighth-grade year,” Torres said. “He goes seven days a week, this whole season. I really believe he’ll rise to the occasion.”
Around the area
Joining Metea Valley at Batavia on Saturday will be Waubonsie Valley, Naperville North and Naperville Central. The top three finishers in each weight class will advance to the Class 3A Downers Grove North Sectional on Feb. 13, where the top four finishers advance to the individual state finals in Champaign on Feb. 19-21.
Neuqua Valley will compete Saturday at the 3A Bolingbrook Regional, which feeds into the Normal Sectional.