MOUNT VERNON — It might not be appropriate to call Ashlynn Brokaw fickle, unless it pertains to music.
The Mount Vernon wrestler recently won her 100th match. To prepare for her time on the mat, she dons her headphones and listens to music.
What kind of music does a state champion listen to?
“It depends on what mood I’m in,” she said with a smile. “It might be country or rap or something else.”
Brokaw said getting nervous is not something she deals with on a regular basis, “Unless it is something like the state, not really nervous. Even at the state, I don’t get too nervous; I just listen to my music before my match.
“They (family and coaches) really don’t talk to me much other than, right before I go out, I just try to relax and listen to my music.”
While the music the champion listens to may change with her mood, everything else follows a routine.
“I probably have a good bit of superstition,” she said. “I have to do everything the same way.”
Jay Depolo, who has a dual role for the wrestler, dad and coach agreed.
“Candidly, I probably get more nervous than she does,” Depolo said. “We actually had this conversation last year, where she was kind of, ‘I need you stay away.’ ”
The reason was one of a contagion, “because I get amped up and get nervous and she feeds off of that,” Depolo explained.
“Just before she goes onto the mat, I give her a little hand slap. We joke that every time she wrestles, it takes a couple of months off of my life.”
Ashlynn headed into last weekend 14-2, with her only losses coming at the Women of Ironman tournament, where she posted strong performances, securing 5th place at 110 pounds after winning her final match by forfeit. That followed a dominant run including pins and a technical fall.
In her high school career Brokaw is 102-10. The Ironman is noted as one of the most prestigious invitational tournaments in the United States, held every year at the Walsh Jesuit High School in Cuyahoga Falls.
“As her dad, it makes me proud; as her coach, I am trying to help her build the program,” Depolo said. “One of the things Ash doesn’t realize, call it humility, or whatever, is how good she is. As a coach, I see that and again as a dad, I try to separate that.”
The coach believes that Brokaw is focused as much, if not more, on winning each match than on the big picture.
“She is ranked nationally and number one in the state, I don’t think she realizes what an accomplishment that is,” Depolo said.
Getting into wrestling was a family affair for Brokaw.
“My sister started for high school and then my dad coached high school. When there was a tournament, I just sort of got dragged along, I just liked being with my family,” Brokaw said. “I had so much energy, they just threw me in and were like, ‘go run around, do something.’”
That “something” turned out to be wrestling after attending a clinic by Vanessa Oswalt (A pioneer in Ohio girls wrestling).
“My dad wanted me to do it,” Brokaw said.
Brokaw’s 100th victory came in convincing style as she pinned Watkins Memorial’s Ellianna Perry in just 1:09.
Before the match was Brokaw thinking about the milestone?
“Maybe a little bit, but I just had to go out and wrestle to get toward that goal,” she said.
While the goal of becoming only the second girl to reach 100 wins for the Yellow Jackets made the wrestler was happy, it came a little later than she had hoped.
“I was really wishing for my sophomore year, but I came up a little bit short which is no biggie. I do hope to get to 150 by the end of my senior year,” Brokaw said.
“She has always been naturally athletic,” DePolo said of his daughter. “She was a big soccer player and did gymnastics growing up, so it was a natural transition. Between strength and flexibility, she went to the clinic, enjoyed it and it just went on from there.”
Conditioning is critical to the success of the wrestler, Brokaw said.
“The toughest part of wrestling is getting to the end of practice or a really tough match and your body hurts and you feel like you can’t go on and you have to reach down deep and keep going,” she said.