Warrior proud! Two San Pasqual Valley wrestlers to compete at college level

EJ Espinoza and MaryJane Barley sign letters of intent to schools in the midwest

WINTERHAVEN, Calif. ( KYMA, KECY-TV ) - It was an emotional and overwhelming afternoon for San Pasqual Valley wrestler MaryJane Barley. Despite missing out on her senior wrestling season, she signed her letter of intent on Thursday to wrestle for Hastings College in Nebraska.

"I didn't think I'd be able to get a scholarship," Barley said. "I never saw myself as the best of the best."

At first, MaryJane didn't like wrestling and nearly walked away from it.

"One day I wandered into the wrestling room," Barley said. "I thought I'd try it out and see if I liked it."

Barley did not like it and she didn't like cutting weight either.

"I dreaded it," Barley said." But, the more I kept I kept coming the more I fell in love with it."

As an eighth and ninth grader, MaryJane wrestled against boys because there weren't a lot of girls wrestling at the time.

"In ninth grade she was put into the fire," San Pasqual Valley wrestling head coach Mark Surdyka said. "Because, I mean it's tough for a freshman boy to wrestle against juniors and seniors, imagine being a girl doing that. I wasn't sure if she was going to make it."

MaryJane did survive and she started to beat the boys. In her junior year, she qualified for the girls state wrestling tournament in the 118 pound division. It was at the tournament where she caught the eye of a college coach.

"The coach there was recruiting girls and I happened to bump into her and she asked me if I was interested and I said, yeah sure, that seems interesting."

The more MaryJane looked into the school and the area the more she fell in love with it.

"It's a small school in a small town, kind of like here," Barley said. "Just snow everywhere and cold."

MaryJane still feels the sting of losing out on her senior season due to the pandemic.

"I was devastated," Barley said with tears welling up in her eyes. "I was so looking forward to going back to state."

Now she'll be going on to college with the opportunity to continue her wrestling career.

For E.J. Espinoza, he comes from a wrestling family. His grandfather wrestled as did his father Edgar. However, at an early age it didn't appear wrestling was in E.J's future.

"As a father I wanted him to wrestle," Edgar said. "When he was five years old, I took him to wrestling and he said, dad, I don't think this is the sport for me. I was devastaed."

In junior high, E.J. tried out for the football team but didn't make. He didn't know it then but it would become a blessing in disguise.

"He gave wrestling another shot and just got bit by the wrestling bug," Edgar said. "He just wanted it and fell in love with it."

In his junior season, wrestling as a heavyweight, E.J. came within seconds of possible winning a state title.

"He lost in the state semi-finals in the last two seconds to the eventual state champion," Surdyka said. "Then he had the next year off. He was so used to working out with us and having somewhere to go. It was really difficult."

E.J. signed his letter of intent to wrestle for the University of Jamestown in North Dakota.

"Always the dream, always wanted to be in the NCAA," E.J. said. "In the finals with Jordan Burroughs { olympic wrestler }, being offered it now I feel very excited, I love wrestling in high school, and now being able to wrestle in college, kind of like a career is exciting for me and something i can look back and say, hey, i did this."

Coming from a family of wrestlers, E.J. is the first to wrestle collegiately. Both he and MaryJane are grateful for the opportunity to continue with the sports they love. They're also excited to explore a new part of the county.