Personal Statement
I am Nick Parrilla, a 5’7’’ 132-138 pound wrestler from T.L. Hanna High School in Anderson, South Carolina.
I am entering my senior year at T.L. Hanna High School. I am captain of the TL Hanna varsity team. I had a 40-16 record my junior year year. I was an Upper State qualifier at 132, AAAA Region 1 runner-up, and placed 3rd in the County Tournament. I came up one match short from qualifying for the State tournament last year.
I organized a charity fundraiser, Pins for a Purpose, to benefit the Cavalry Home for Children. For this fundraiser, I got sponsors to pledge money for every pin that I got during the season. I had 21 pins on the season and I earned a total of $1,050 for the Calvary Home for Children.
Prior to moving to Anderson, I was a varsity wrestler my freshman and sophomore years for Eastside High School in Taylors, South Carolina. During my freshmen season, Eastside was the region champion.
My sophomore year, I was a member of the AAA State Championship team at Eastside. The team had a record of 33-1. I posted a winning record of 18-9 my sophomore year. The Eastside team was stacked and had 3 State Champions, and 3 state placers, as well as a 3 time National Champion. I drilled and wrestled against the toughest wrestlers in the State on a daily basis as members of my own team.
During the duals playoffs my sophomore year, I played a pivotal role in the outcome because I was the person the team used against the more difficult opponents and to get the best match-ups for the team. My coaches trusted me to get the job done, and I was often put into the most difficult matches when my performance had an impact on the outcome of the duals match.
I was awarded the Eastside High School 2012-2013 Coaches Award my sophomore year. I received this award for pushing through adversity, for being reliable, and for the hard work and dedication I have put into this sport.
I know the level of dedication it takes to be a champion. I started wrestling when I was 7 in St. Johns, Michigan, and I have wrestled against some of the best wrestlers in the country since then.
I wrestle year-round and I participate in many tournaments out of state such as the War at the Shore, NHSCA Nationals in Virginia Beach, and the Super 32 in Greensboro, North Carolina. I have also wrestled in Georgia and Tennessee and against teams from North Carolina.
Since entering high school, I have trained out of state. I spent two summers at the 19 day Cornell competition camp. I also lived in New Jersey for two summers to train because I wanted to wrestle against the hardest competition I could find, and because of lack of clubs here in South Carolina.
I am always striving to find ways to better myself and to grow not only as an athlete, but as a student as well. I currently have a 3.869 GPA. I took two AP classes my junior year and will be taking additional AP classes my senior year. I took the ACT twice and have a super-score of a 27 and a high composite score of a 26. I scored in the 97th percentile in math and in the 90th percentile in science. I also scored in the 97th percentile in math on the PSAT.
I am looking for a college with a very strong math, physics, or engineering program. I am looking to be part of a wrestling team that will continue to push me to be the best that I can be. I am looking for a coach who believes he can help me reach my highest potential and where I can be a contributor to the team.