Charles Matthews '20 Recruiting Profile

Determined, motivated, passionate, people-person and intelligent; those are the words I have heard others say to describe me and that pretty much sums up the key character traits that I developed over the past 6 years since relocating from Philadelphia, PA to San Francisco, CA. Attending Junipero Serra High School, in San Mateo, CA was one of the easiest decisions of my life and a game changer. While high school offered great academic opportunities, sports challenged me in a new way, totally unexpected.  I am 5’2” and height is a negative challenge in many very popular sports; I was determined to prove that size would not be my deciding factor.  I was told that wrestling would be a great for me and that being short and stalky would be my advantage. My wrestling career started in high school freshman year. I started JV and was bumped up to varsity by the end of the season. At my very first league tournament I took 2nd place in the 2017 West Catholic Athletic League (WCAL) Tournament, qualifying for Central Coastal Section (CCS) Tournament. I went on to CCS as a freshman first time wrestler and went 2-2 but those losses made my hunger for the sport grow. My sophomore year, I continued the Serra Varsity Wrestling team and claimed my first WCAL individual Championship; again, qualifying for CCS.  This time, determined to place at CCS, I lost in the blood round by one point, it stung, the feeling of being so close yet so far was killer. All summer I worked on sharpening my technique and even attended the Penn State wrestling camp for the second time where I learned tons of moves and techniques that would carry over to my Junior year. My junior year, I was able to not only claim a second 1st place WCAL Championship title, but also placed 4th at CCS- winning against the 7th,6th, 5th and 4th seeds on my path to claiming a 4th place medal. I went on to compete in the 2019 CAUSAW FolkStyle State Tournament and took 3rd place. I continued competing and in the 2019 CAUSAW Freestyle State Tournament took 4th place. Wrestling isn’t just a part of my current life, I am determined for it to be a part of my college future too. I want to be able to wrestle in college and work hard to be a 4x NCAA All American and a national Champion. Wrestling for the USA World team is also a major goal for me in wrestling. Currently my GPA is 3.86 and I am a proud member of the National Honor Society. My future story consists of wrestling and studying finance and business. My career goal is to become a financial advisor and entrepreneur. I believe wrestling has given me the work ethic and discipline to prepare me for owning a business and running it to the highest tier of success. I am passionate and motivated to continue seeking opportunities and environments that will both challenge me as a person, a student and an athlete. Sharing my YouTube feature: https://youtu.be/7bmJIpUebdM