Wrestler Rio Rening ‘30, is entering her freshman season already ranked 18th in the nation in the 120 lb weight class. Rening, her father, Josh Rening, head wrestling coach Michael Wright II, and Wright Wrestling Academy owner and head coach Jacob Wright speak on Rening’s journey and her upcoming freshman season.

By Fabian Anguiano and Jake Villarreal

Josh Rening’s older son, Jalen Rening, played football and went on to do great things in college at Montana State.

Mr. Rening remembers dropping him off at the airport for his flight to go to Montana, and on his drive back home, there was one thought that lingered on his mind: “What’s the new mission?”.

Then, Jiu-Jitsu would fall into their laps out of nowhere, and then years after Rio first started wrestling at twelve years old, wrestling already came as an essential.

Rening’s passion for the sport built over time, “Just realizing this is something that I want to be good at, and to just really put all my focus and emphasis on that,” said Rening.

Wrestling as a whole has shaped Rening into the person she is today; the mindset developed alongside the sport makes everything seem easier.

In the off-season, Rening competed at the infamous Fargo Nationals, which took place at the FargoDome in Fargo, North Dakota. Rening placed 7th in her weight class.

Accomplishing this has given Rening great confidence entering the high school level, “That was the first big national tournament that I’ve done. So I feel like that just built my confidence; being ranked 18th in the nation coming into high school, just knowing what I’ve accomplished before.”

Rening’s coaches and teammates have helped her develop in the off-season by pushing her in many ways to improve, such as doing workouts in the morning, after school, and overall doing extra things. Just overall preparing her before the season starts.

Rening’s goal for the season is to, “Be undefeated and to win a state championship, and to just lock in every tournament, every technique, and match.”

Head wrestling coach Michael Wright II said that Rening first started training in Redwood’s program this past summer, the Monday right after graduation, and she has been committed ever since.

Wright believes Rening has done a good job, “Adjusting it is a different intensity in a high school room, and she’s done a great job,” said Wright.

In the wrestling room, Rening has a great pace; she never stops wrestling, which leads to a lot of her success, and hopefully she can build on it.

As a freshman Rening has done a great job overall leading by example through the way she lifts, runs, and how she drills in the wrestling room.

Rening is a great fit for the program as she, “Embodies our standards and expectations for all wrestlers in our program. She has a great attitude and gives great effort, and that is the essence of what we believe in and our process.”

Rening has been getting a feel of, “Wrestling at the high school level week in and week out, which she has done a lot. We have a big tournament coming up in Vegas, so hopefully we see a strong,” said Wright.

With Rening being ranked 18th in the nation, Wright believes Rening has earned that ranking through performance.

Wright believes Rening will do well her freshman year, though he is more focused on progress and improving each practice and match.

Josh Rening has been supporting Rio throughout her journey by being there for her to lean on. Having conversations with her about mindset, about what it takes to be the best, Mr.Rening and his wife always look at it as their responsibility to keep her busy and in position to be successful.

Rening has improved her technique over the years with constant training and repetition hour after hour. Rening constantly tests herself on the mat and in competitions.

Watching Rening grow not only as a wrestler but also as a person has been one of the greatest joys of Mr. Rening’s life.

Rio is a, “strong-minded person; she’s just an absolute competitor to the fullest extent. I’m so excited to be on this journey with her, watching her grow mentally and physically; she is such a kindhearted, sweet person.”

You wouldn’t even know that she is an, “Absolute killer. By looking at her, she’s such a girly girl, and she has this other side to her, this absolute warrior,” said Mr.Rening.

Rening’s hard work at such a young age amazes her father; he is proud of her mindset and her belief and confidence in herself.

Rening is constantly working on herself to keep herself fresh physically, whether it’s nutrition, rest, or training. Rio is always, “Outside the box doing different things, water training; not only are we training on the mass technique, but we’re also doing other things that help her in her wrestling journey.”

Rening has been wrestling and training at Wright Wrestling Academy owned and operated by four time division one NCAA tournament qualifier Jacob Wright.

Training at the academy has been, “Amazing, coach Jacob Wright is an absolute stud. He totally understands and gets the mindset. The biggest thing that’s really cool about Jacob is that he actually walked his path and knows what it takes.”

Wright has also helped show Mr. Rening the ropes on what tournaments to do and when to do them, and the overall process of the sport.

Training with various competitions at the academy has been beneficial, as it’s accelerated her growth process; it’s helped show what her weaknesses are so they can train and improve, and that’s what it’s all about: there is nothing to lose in training.

Loss is essential for growth: going back and watching the tape to see what could have been done better, getting back into the grindstone, and working on improving for the next competition.

The tournaments Rening has done in the off-season have been helpful as they give her a glimpse of what is being done best and what needs to be improved.

In the Fargo tournament, Rening was in the lead when a mistake would get caught, and a move would lead to her getting pinned.

The next day, Rening won five matches in a row to make it to the third day.

With Rening already being ranked 18th in the nation, it is all because of her hard work and her belief in herself. Her wanting to prove to herself that she could really be good at this sport and not only be the best, but the best ever, is where her mindset is at.

Rening doesn’t only want to be the best locally; she wants to be the best at the national and international level. This is something that they constantly talk about: working on her mindset, her self-belief, and her confidence. Her training has prepared her for the tournaments at the highest levels with the biggest stakes.

Rening’s off-season training has consisted of, “Super intense workouts to push the mindset because you could push the body so much further than what your mind is telling you.”

Mr. Rening has helped her get prepared for the high school level by having conversations about what it takes to be successful, such as staying focused and maneuvering through different distractions that appear often.

He believes that she will perform very well in her freshman year, as he knows the type of person she is. Rening is the absolute hardest worker in the room; she has effort, attitude, and aggression, which are things that can’t be taught. The athlete needs to have them applied to themselves.

Mr. Rening does not want to exactly pinpoint what he believes she will do, as he wants it to be a surprise; he welcomes the adversity, the tough and hard losses, and the great wins. It’s a journey, and it is a journey that has to be fallen in love with.

Rening hasn’t even, “Scratched the surface of how strong her mindset is going to be. She’s still working on those things. We’re still in the journey; we’re still finding new ways to get better, and I couldn’t be more excited and more proud of her.”

Mr. Renning had more to say, “I’m super proud of Rio, and so is her mom. My wife and I have worked constantly with Rio, talking to her, helping her maneuver things in her life.”

Jacob Wright, Head Coach of the Wright Wrestling Academy in Visalia and brother to Redwood coach Michael Wright II, said that the thing that immediately stood out for Rio was the speed and intensity she trained with. The first time he and Wright saw her, they looked at her and said she had talent; she had the IT factor, it’s something that someone’s born with or not.

Wright also said that Rio leads by example; she is developing great skills, and Rening has recently improved with her hand fighting and set-ups.

Rening has a lot of strengths, but the one that will take her farthest is her, “Resilience, not a lot of people can battle back from a loss or setback as she can. At the highest level, resilience is probably the most important character trait.”

Wright expects Rio to, “Win state, and I think she shares those expectations; however, what’s more important is her process rather than the outcome. Even if she fails to reach her goal, it will help her accomplish something bigger than national titles, world and Olympic teams.” 

Fabian Anguiano
+ posts

Fabian Anguiano '28,is a VERY passionate sportswriter and editor for the Redwood Gigantea. He is entering his third year with the Gigantea, and he likes motivating others and being involved in everything sports related. If you would like to reach him, just email him at [email protected]

Jake Villarreal
+ posts

Jake Villarreal, '28 is a sports editor, writer and occasional photographer for the Redwood Gigantea. He wants to shine light on those who make a great impact on Redwood from behind the scenes. You can reach him via email: [email protected]

 

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