Scott Nickerson
Elmore Autauga News
Last week, Layla Manus made history at Stanhope Elmore High School. She is the first female wrestler in school history to reach 100 career wins.
“Layla achieving 100 wins shows that girls’ wrestling at SEHS is growing and improving,” said SEHS Wrestling Coach David Adams. “We want to see more girls come out to our wrestling team and to show that with time and dedication, you can be successful in a male-dominated sport.”
The majority of those wins have come this season, as she is 61-7 on the season, and has a long list of achievements already.
So far this season, Manus has placed first in the Battle in the Burg, the Buc Brawl, Carver Class, Elise Goodwin Invite, and the Southeastern Pools. She has placed 2nd at the SE Showdown, Murder Creek Melee, and the South Sections. And she has placed 3rd at the Grappling Girls and Scott Rohrer Invitational.
“What makes Layla so successful is her drive to get better,” said Coach Adams. “Layla is always looking for ways to improve her craft. She wants to have the hard conversations and reality checks about what she needs to do to get better. She is always in the weight room or on the mat working diligently on improving.”
Manus is currently one of five SEHS wrestlers preparing for the upcoming state tournament this weekend. She has a sense of her strengths and weaknesses and will put that knowledge to use in the state tournament.
“My greatest strength is my leadership,” said Manus. “When coach made me team captain my junior year, I didn’t believe in myself. “However, after long talks and him placing his trust in me, I took on the role and realized my potential. I really love helping my underclassmen and showing them what a SEHS wrestler is supposed to act like. It’s helped me gain more confidence in the sport and help to find my footing within the team. I need to improve on how hard I am on myself. I am very critical of myself and sometimes don’t give myself the benefit of the doubt. I want to be perfect in every match, and I hold myself to a high standard. When I feel that I don’t achieve my standard, I get in my head and in my own way.”
Manus hopes to wrestle in college and is currently speaking with a few different colleges about the possibility. She realizes why she loves the sport, and she has set several goals that she wants to achieve.
“What I enjoy about wrestling is the opportunity to push yourself every day. Whenever you step on the mat, you can either grow up or stay the same. The choice is up to you. My goal is to have my hard work reflect the results I get on the mat. I came in this season with my only goal to be better than last season. So far, I have achieved that goal by beating my previous record and qualifying for state. Every day, my goal is to get 1% better and prove to the sophomore me that first joined that I belong in this sport.”
