DANVERS — St. John’s Prep senior wrestler Ryan Garlitz doesn’t put too much stock in individual merits. He keeps a calm approach on the mat and tells his teammates to do the same, with team success at the forefront of his goals.
Last Saturday, however, Garlitz reached an individual feat he won’t soon forget — his 200th career victory.
“It felt great,” Garlitz, a 138-pound Manchester native, said. “It’s cool to see all the practices and the coaching that has helped me to my 200th win. When I started I don’t think I was ever thinking about that, until it kind of just happened.”
Garlitz is a four-year member of the team. He has helped the Eagles to a stellar 25-1 mark this winter with the lone loss of the season coming to Franklin.
“We feel pretty good,” Garlitz said. “I think we can beat Franklin. We’ve been practicing hard the whole season. We’ve made a lot of improvements as a team, from top to bottom.”
Coming into his senior season, Garlitz didn’t have any specific goals in mind. As long as he gives his best effort each day, he feels confident the results will follow.
“I didn’t want anything more than coming into practice every day and working my hardest,” Garlitz said. “If I do that, I think everything else will fall into place.
“My mentality is to stay calm, go out there and wrestle as hard as I can every time, and don’t hold anything back,” he added. “I try to have my teammates think the same way as well. If they’re confident and trust their abilities to wrestle as well as they can, that’s how we’ll perform best as a team.”
There wasn’t much Garlitz didn’t accomplish last winter as a junior, when he went 58-2 with 47 pins. Garlitz won the Marshfield and Woburn Tournaments, placed first at the Division 1 North sectional and won the Division 1 state championship (at 132 pounds). A three-time Catholic Conference All-Star, Garlitz entered this season with 169 wins and 109 pins.
Garlitz credited longtime St. John’s Prep coach Manny Costa for helping him reach his success.
“Coach Costa has played a big role,” Garlitz said. “He’s always pushing me and the team to do better with the little things we can work on. That has definitely played a big role in my success and the team’s success.”
Garlitz’s academic achievements are equally impressive. He was named a Moynihan Lumber Student-Athlete of the Month last March and is currently weighing his college options. He’s considering Bucknell, Maryland and New York University. Garlitz hopes to continue his wrestling career at the collegiate level.
Balancing academics with wrestling presents its challenges, so Garlitz plans ahead and makes effective use of his time.
“Time management’s definitely important,” Garlitz said. “Typically if I have a set schedule I can get everything done and it doesn’t become too stressful or too much of a problem.”
Garlitz and the Eagles are back in action Wednesday evening (6) when they travel to Catholic Memorial for a Catholic Conference meet.
