Jones notches 100th win

By Allen Etzler
Published in Sports on December 31, 2014 3:54 PM

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By ALLEN ETZLER

aetzler@newsargus.com

Just as you walk into the Rosewood wrestling room there's a whiteboard on the wall to the right.

On the white board there's usually the weight classes of each member of the Eagles wrestling squad.

But recently there's been a new addition to the board -- a photo. It's a photo of Rosewood's Rayquon Jones being lifted up by a New Bern wrestler and slammed to the ground, or "earthed," as Jones calls it. On the photo in blue marker there's a phrase written, that Jones has been uttering all year, "Coach! Please don't make me wrestle these swole dudes no more!"

Jones was slammed to the mat by the bigger New Bern wrestler before Jones finally battled back and pinned him for the win.

Jones has been wrestling those "swole dudes" all year after agreeing to wrestle in a higher weight in the 220-pound class rather than wrestle at his more natural weight of 195 pounds.

"I guess I'm used to wrestling bigger guys," Jones said. "I did the same thing last year and my first two years I wrestled heavyweight (285-pounds)."

But despite giving up as much as 25 pounds some matches, Jones keeps winning. And Saturday night he and teammate Evan Reiss completed their equally long journeys to grab their 100th wins of their career in the Terry Pilkington Memorial Duals, which Rosewood took home the team title from.

"It means a lot because for me not to wrestle much my freshman and sophomore year and already be at 100 wins I feel like that's pretty good," Jones said.

"It's big because I never thought I would get there, especially looking at guys who were here before us, like Nick Quillen he got 200 wins. I could never think of myself as being that good," Reiss said. "So it feels pretty good to have a mark as something to show what I did."

Four years ago, when Jones got to Rosewood as a freshman he was much heavier and he was far down on the depth chart behind lots of talent. He didn't get to wrestle many matches.

"Man, they used to wax me," Jones said of his teammates beating up on him in practices.

But Jones worked to lose weight and gain muscle over the next two years dropping fro close to 265 to under 220 to be able to wrestle in that weight class. That's when he started to become successful.

"When he started losing weight he really started turning the corner and I don't know how serious he was taking it before that, but I think he saw that he has a chance to be really good. I think he has an appreciation for where he came from as a bigger guy. He appreciates the speed and agility he's gained... I think (the weight loss) has helped him psychologically as well."

In his freshman year, Jones won just four matches, before posting 24 and 47 wins in his sophomore and junior years, including a fourth place finish in the state last year. This season he's 26-2 and has every intention of making it further than he did.

"He's got a real chance to win states this year at 220. We'll see where he fits best when the time comes," Edmundson said.

Being undersized as he is, Jones is forced to rely on tools he's developed through the year to beat his opponents. His technique is probably more important for him than probably any other wrestler.

"I always try to find new ways to tie guys up," Jones said. "Since I don't weigh as much a lot of guys try to base up on me. For them I'm just like air on top of them, it's nothing. I watch the videos I'm like 'man that guy is huge."

Jones also has unique quickness for someone in the 220-pound weight class, allowing him to maneuver around opponents before they can react.

Plus, he's never short on energy.

"I run probably more than anyone," Jones said. "I run during lunch. I run all the time."

Jones' quickness is even more important this season, as he's lost a little bit of muscle mass since getting chest surgery in the offseason where he had to have four months to recover.

Jones still remembers his first win -- a win at North Johnston, a match he still has pictures from on his Facebook. He remembers the agony of coming up a few matches short in states. He remembers the win against Chatham Central in a meet where Rosewood was beaten badly, and Jones and Malique Boyd were the only two wrestlers to get pins.

And the 100th? He'll always remember that win.

It was a little easier than he would have liked. He pinned his opponent -- a first-year wrestler -- quickly in the first period.

"I could have really made a show of it (going against a first-year guy," Jones said. "But I didn't, so I feel good about how I got my 100th win... But I like working for stuff. I have a lot of endurance. I like long matches where it's a point or there and wearing the guy down."

He'll have plenty of things to work for as the year goes on. He's got plenty of swole dudes standing in his way.