Wrestling is a sport that often goes under the radar, but perhaps the best athlete Cathedral Prep has in its hallways this year is senior wrestler Jake Gromacki. He received a scholarship and will be wrestling at the University of Pittsburgh this upcoming fall. I got a chance to sit down with Jake and talk to him about his Prep experience, and what the future holds for him and his wrestling career.
I first talked to Jake about what he likes about Prep, and his experiences thus far. His favorite thing about Prep is the brotherhood. He likes how close he has become with all the kids that go to school here, and he wouldn’t trade it for anything else. When asked if he’s changed since freshman year, he said that physically he has not changed very much, but he has gotten increasingly better as a wrestler and at studying as well. His favorite class at Prep is history, and he plans to attend Pitt and receive a degree in sports medicine.
Jake has had an illustrious wrestling career thus far, placing at states every year of his high school career. Jake started wrestling very young at the age of six. He started wrestling because his parents thought he was really hyper and needed to do something where he was very active all the time.
When asked what his biggest motivation is, he exclaimed “the haters!” Wrestlers like rival Dom Forys, who will be joining Jake at Pitt next season, are what keep him motivated to do great things. So far his offseason has went well, and he is off to a good start this year. His favorite wrestler is Jordan Oliver. His biggest challenge this year will be beating the tough wrestlers, like Dom, and doing well at the state tournament. To overcome this challenge, he plans on staying focused and not letting anyone get in his head. The rest of the team is hoping to be successful  as well. “As a whole, our team is young. We have a lot of upside though, lots of potential,” Gromacki said.
After a 4th place finish last year, Jake plans to improve this time around. “It was a tough bracket,” Gromacki said. “Anyone out of the top five could have won the whole thing. That’s just how things played out.” He plans on winning the state tournament this year and making his mother, as well as all of Cathedral Prep, proud. He is excited and anxious to finish out this season strong, and to do the same the following years as a Pitt Panther. Keep listening for more about Jake during this season. I’m sure you’ll be hearing his name a lot.