Janie Houser, 18, a senior at Aptos High School competing for the Sunnyvale Wrestling Club, took first place at 130 pounds in the California USA Wrestling Junior Freestyle State Championship at Selland Arena April 21 in Fresno.
Aptos Times interviewed her via email.
What got you interested in wrestling?
Janie Houser
I got interested in wrestling cause I tried it out in 8th grade but the season was cut very short due to the Covid pandemic. So it left me wanting to try it again freshman year.
I tried it out and I was a competitive gymnast at the time and felt how much my strength and flexibility was benefiting me in my first days of wrestling.
What helped you get to where you are now? Mentors? Practice? Food choices?
What helped me get to where I am now were the amazing people I have to help me. Coach Pete (Gustafson) and his two daughters, Greta and Lena Gustafson, have put countless hours into helping me by driving me to tournaments, practices, and clinics to get better.
They are the biggest reason I have improved in the off season to the skill I am at now. Multiple times a week, Coach Pete takes me as well as his daughters and other wrestlers to Sunnyvale Wrestling Club, almost an hour away, to get elite training from Coach Erik Duus and other amazing coaches.
During the high school season, I have Coach Camila Barranco (Aptos High alum) and Coach Rudy Guzman to thank, my Aptos High coaches.
My main mentors are probably Coach Sandy Fakaosi (3x Olympian) and Camila Barranco. Those are two amazing people I have to help me. Sandy is so inspirational and supportive when I’m on the mat. Camila is always there for me when I need help making a big decision.
I try to weight train an hour before school almost every day at my gym. And I have very helpful weight training class at school as my last period around mid-day. Then after school I have my wrestling practice of a sort.
Some days I stay local and train with my Santa Cruz club, and other days I travel over the hill to Sunnyvale wrestling club. During the high school season, I practiced at Aptos High after school.
What’s next in wrestling for you?
Next in wrestling I am attending Utah western regionals. I also have Association duels coming up where I represent Santa Clara Valley. As a team, we duel the other associations of California. I also have California USA Wrestling Greco State coming up after the duels.
In the summer I represent California at National Duels in Oklahoma. Besides being on the National Duel team, I also qualified for the National team going to North Dakota in the summer.
I achieved that by winning California USA Wrestling Freestyle state last weekend.
What will you do after high school? College? Major?
I am committed to Menlo College in Atherton, California. I will be continuing my academic and athletic career there. I am so excited to be able to continue wrestling in California.
That team just won the 2024 NAIA Women’s National Championship. Head women’s wrestling coach Michael Ayala won NAIA Coach of the Year. And the school is transitioning to NCAA. I am very excited.
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TOP PHOTO: Champion wrestler Janie Houser, in pink, holds her first-place trophy.