Despite previous season-ending injuries, senior wrestler Devin Ellison feels that he is ready to compete at the League wrestling tournament on Saturday, Feb. 11.

“I don’t think anything differently about this tournament,” Ellison said. “It’s just a different competition and I need to keep the same focus that I’ve had in the previous competitions this year.”

Even though he feels confident for the upcoming tournament, Ellison speculates how his injuries have impacted his overall potential as a wrestler.

“They have affected me in some aspects because I kind of wonder what I could have been my sophomore year if I hadn’t broken my foot,” Ellison said.

Ellison also went through shoulder surgery the spring of his sophomore year and broke his other foot at a football camp the summer before his senior year.

“Having shoulder surgery prevented me from getting on the mat and I lost that time,” Ellison said. “Breaking my foot also prevented me from getting off-season workouts.”

Regardless of his injuries, Ellison has taken on a leadership role on the wrestling team.

“I think being a leader comes naturally,” Ellison said. “I’m a leader by example. In doing that, I try to do everything the best I can and hope everything else follows.”

When reflecting on the team’s season, Ellison sees the potential each individual player has shown.

“Overall we’ve had a pretty good season,” Ellison said. “We have to keep in mind that we have a young team. But in the next couple of years they will be able to build upon the foundation they have and turn into a great team.”

Part of the reason Ellison sees it this way is because of the mind set he attributes to a wrestler.

“It’s a very competitive sport,” Ellison said. “Not everyone can do it and you really have to train hard to be successful.”