Ashley Naranjo: Leading by example

MOSES LAKE — Posting an unbeaten record in any sport is quite a feat. Remaining undefeated for three years, while winning two state championships, is even more of a challenge. 

That’s exactly what Moses Lake senior Ashley Naranjo has done during her time with Moses Lake girls wrestling, as the two-time state champion seeks yet another title this season.

“When I go into matches, it’s a clean slate for me every time,” Naranjo said. “I focus on every match … your record has, really, nothing to do when you’re out on the mat. I could be undefeated this whole time, and one time get too confident (and lose). I always clean the slate, forget what I’ve done and who I am and just focus.”

With no postseason wrestling her freshman year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Naranjo came back her sophomore season and posted a perfect 32-0 record in the 2021-22, defeating Othello’s Alexis Monday in a 6-0 decision to win her first title in the girls 115-pound bracket at the Mat Classic.

“The first time was definitely the one that you feel the most, the one that hits the heart the most,” Naranjo said. “It’s the one I’ve always wanted to do, was get that state title… It was amazing, it was the best feeling ever.”

Her junior season had a similar ending, finishing on top of the girls 115-pound weight class with a 36-0 record and a 7-1 decision over Kira Songer of Marysville-Getchell.

“The second time that I went, and had to do what I had to do, it was like, ‘Alright, I’ve been here before,” Naranjo said. “This is nothing new, I’m just here to do what I’ve got to do and work hard until the very last second.”

Like many around the area, Naranjo started wrestling at a young age. She first hit the mat when she was five years old and used to live in Royal City, citing her older brother Jared as an inspiration to begin.

“My older brother wrestled, and since he was doing it I wanted to try it too,” Naranjo said. “Ever since then, I’ve stuck to it.”

“She’s one of the foundation pieces, she’s the example of what it means to grow up through the little guy program and continue on through the middle school years,” Moses Lake girls wrestling Head Coach David Peralez said. “She’s so dedicated to perfecting her craft; I’ve never seen so many athletes that can focus in on one thing and one opponent so well.”

Along with the feeling of euphoria that comes with the wins, Naranjo said it was the discipline of wrestling that drew her to keep competing.

“It’s not really a sport where you get something materialistic out of,” Naranjo said. “It’s more for yourself, it makes you feel good. When you lose, it makes you learn and when you win you feel better. The fundamentals of the sport really intrigued me into it.”

Naranjo described her wrestling style as “a little bit of everything”; there’s not one set style that she sticks to match after match, though she added the leans toward the defensive side. She said she focuses more on defense in high school matches compared to matches outside of the high school arena.

“I usually do a lot of fighting off of counters, I’m really good at getting in my offense too, but I would say I’m more of a defensive wrestler that just chills and waits for them to mess up or do something,” she said. 

That style changes when she competes in out-of-school tournaments, she added.

Some of Naranjo’s off-season activities have included competing with the Ascend Wrestling Academy out of Yakima, where she gets to travel to numerous tournaments out of the area.

“I’ve been to Fargo Nationals, been an All-American there,” she said. “We travel to world team trials, a lot of freestyle (wrestling). I do more freestyle out of high school — that’s what I’m good at.”

Tournaments like Fargo Nationals bring in wrestling talent from all over the country, and prepares wrestlers for the upcoming high school seasons, as well as allow them to work on their technique during the off-season.

“I don’t go undefeated like in high school, but I put in the work and try my best every time,” Naranjo said. 

Moses Lake girls wrestling has found success at the Mat Classic the past two seasons, but the Mavericks lost a significant amount of state qualifiers to graduation from a year ago Peralez said the two-time state champion has taken a “vocal” approach to her growing leadership role during her senior campaign, filling in for some of the leaders that Moses Lake had graduate.

“She’s a very business-as-usual kind of person,” Peralez said. “She picked up right where she left off, brings that intensity to practice, keeps her teammates a lot more accountable this year. I think that’s because it’s her senior year, a little bit different than last year.”

“Sometimes with wrestling (advice is) better to come from teammates than it is from coaches,” Naranjo said. “Just helping them out in certain position, they ask me a lot like ‘What would you do?’ and stuff like that just because I’m somebody that they look up to. I know that I carry that, so I’m working hard and leading by example.”

Naranjo has the chance to add her name to rarified air when it comes to Moses Lake wrestling; Moses Lake has two three-time state champions in Dan Strode (1966,1967 and 1968) and Jamie Wise (1978, 1979 and 1980). 

“It’s been 40-plus years since Moses Lake’s had a three-time state champ, and Ashley has the opportunity to be that (third) one,” Peralez said.

Ian Bivona may be reached at ibivona@columbiabasinherald.com. 

    Moses Lake senior Ashley Naranjo, top, wrestles against Kira Songer of Marysville-Getchell, bottom, in the finals of the girls 115-pound bracket at the 2023 Mat Classic.
  

    The Mavericks won the girls 3A/4A state championship at last year’s Mat Classic, with three wrestlers competing in the finals.
  

    Moses Lake fans in the stands at the Tacoma Dome cheer for senior Ashley Naranjo, in white, after winning her second-straight state title.