Removing the pressure: Royal’s Villa wins a state title at the Mat Classic

TACOMA — Having placed in the top three on the podium at the 2022 and 2023 Mat Classics, Royal senior Emma Villa knew she had one more shot to leave the Tacoma Dome with a state championship.

“It’s always been a dream of mine to be a state champ, and I was always really close,” Villa said. “This is the last year — it’s time to get it done.”

Villa, after earning a first-round bye, swept through the first three rounds at the state tournament last weekend; the senior defeated Rainier’s Kiera Anderson with a first-period pin in the quarterfinals and Meridian’s Regan Swope with a first-period pin in the semifinals to set up a matchup against Montesano’s Kya Roundtree in the 2A/1A/B 170-pound finals.

“I trained for it, and all I could do now is trust my training, trust the people that trained me and trust myself,” Villa said. “Just leave it all out there, because this is the last (match).”

After a takedown in the first period, followed by reversals in the second and third periods, Villa defeated Roundtree 6-1 in the state finals. 

“It means a lot; I’ve dreamed of this since I was five,” Villa said. “It feels really good to end on a great note.”

Not only did Villa finish her senior season with a state title, but she did it in unbeaten fashion; the senior went 40-0 on the mat this winter.

“Just staying consistent with my training, and my teammates pushing me and upholding me throughout the season really got me through,” Villa said. 

Upon pulling off the 6-1 decision, the senior celebrated the final match of her high school career by lateral dropping members of the Royal coaching staff.

“We had come up with it — I didn’t plan to do all three, but in the moment we went (back-to-back-to-back),” Villa said. “Everyone was excited, the vibes were good. It was a good day.”

One of those coaches was Royal head coach Jesus Carlos Villa, Emma’s father.

“It’s been a long journey for her, and she was so happy to close one chapter of her wrestling (career) so she can go on to her next, which is college wrestling,” Jesus Carlos Villa said. “She really wanted to reach that goal.”

In past seasons, Villa said she had been putting a significant amount of pressure on herself to be able to get back to the state tournament and finish on the podium; coming into this season, she had a new mindset.

“Those past two seasons I put a lot of pressure on myself to perform well, so this year was all about having fun,” Villa said. “Slowing down, taking one match at a time, enjoying being around my teammates, my coaches and all my other friends at the wrestling tournaments. I feel like that made a really big difference in my confidence, and I performed a lot better when I took pressure off myself.”

Fresh off of a state title, the senior credited her teammates as a contributing factor for her being able to take the pressure off of her shoulders while wrestling during the 2023-24 season.

“They did a really good job of being great people to be around, great energies in the room,” Villa said. “They made it really easy for me to not have pressure on myself, and it was all about telling myself that I’ve been doing this for a long time, and there’s no need to be nervous. Just take it one match at a time and breathe.”

Villa said discussions with Alondra Morales, a two-time state champion who graduated from Royal High School a year ago, helped as well. 

“I talked to her almost every single day; leading up to the tournament, she was a really big supporter,” Villa said. “Having her in my corner was really big for me.”

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

    Royal senior Emma Villa, right, celebrated her state championship by lateral dropping members of the Royal coaching staff.
  

    Royal senior Emma Villa, right, placed in the top three of the Mat Classic all three years she qualified for the state tournament.