GEORGE F. LEE / GLEE@STARBULLETIN.COM Kahuku senior Elizabeth Torres is a top contender in the 108-pound division for this week's Data House State Wrestling Championships.

Setting up
her target

Kahuku's Elizabeth Torres
aims at winning the 108-pound
state wrestling championship

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By Nick Abramo
nabramo@starbulletin.com

KAHUKU wrestler Elizabeth Torres is tough, but not so hardened that she can't sit down with her teammates and enjoy a Disney movie.

But once on the mat, Torres is no soft touch. She has pinned every opponent save one this year and will try to capture the 108-pound title at the Data House State Wrestling Championships at Blaisdell Arena on Friday and Saturday.

"I really like the intensity, and because there's such a small amount of girls in the sport, it's a really good feeling to say I'm a girl wrestler," said Torres, who placed second in the states the last two years.

In February, Torres suffered a partial knee ligament tear and is working hard to regain her full range of motion. The injury didn't prevent her from winning the OIA championship two weeks ago. She also has the added benefit of being coached by someone special in her life.

"It's a lot of pressure, but it's a great way to bond with my dad," she said of Kahuku coach Reggie Torres. "We have something in common to share. Knowing he's there for me is a good feeling and makes me want to work and push harder to achieve my goals."

A 4.0 student, Torres has accepted an offer to attend and wrestle for Pacific University in Oregon. From here until graduation in June, she'll be busy. She's going to the wrestling nationals at the end of March and a "We the People" competition in April, and she may go to visit Pacific University in May. All the while, she'll be planning senior activities as the class secretary.

GEORGE F. LEE / GLEE@STARBULLETIN.COM Elizabeth Torres, top, says being on the wrestling team helps her bond with her father, Reggie Torres, who is the team's head coach.

Torres is part of Kahuku's "We the People" state championship team. The competition, based on the U.S. Constitution, consists of "lots of research," essays and speeches.

The seriousness of her pursuits is tempered by the fun she and her teammates have away from the mat.

"My girls, they're all clowns," Reggie Torres said. "Every Friday they come over to our house and then they go over to another girl's house on Saturdays. They love to watch Disney movies, and they've got me hooked. They eat pizza and all the foods they want to eat and then they tease each other that they're getting fat or chubby. And then, some of them compare bricks and six-packs (abdomen muscles) just like the guys do. They're a great bunch of girls, good kids."

Added Elizabeth: "A lot of the stuff we do is cool, like when we planned a baby shower for one of the coaches' girlfriends. We're a really close team that has a lot of fun goofing around.

"In my dad's office, when American Idol had just came out, we had judges and contestants and some people were doing skits with mixes of 'Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star' and 'Row, Row, Row Your Boat.' "

But no matter what Torres is working on -- wrestling, rehabbing an injury, writing a speech or ordering caps and gowns for the soon-to-be graduates -- she perseveres.

"She's worked her butt off this year," said Reggie Torres, who wrestled for Kahuku and graduated in 1983. "She's had an outstanding year, and it's because she's worked hard for many years. She loves the sport."

The only opponent Torres didn't pin this year was injured during the match, and no opponent has made it past the second period. The last five opponents were pinned even though Torres was hurt.

Despite being so busy this spring, she hasn't lost focus.

"Our goal is to win the state championship," she said. "I don't really want to say what our chances are because I don't want to bachi us. I just hope all the hard work pays off."

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