View From The Top Of The Mountain
12/15/2017 10:40:00 AM | Men's Wrestling, Student Athlete, Features
By: Justin Lafleur, Lehigh Sports Communications
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Darian Cruz had a look of relief on his face. Just a day after earning a thrilling overtime upset over No. 1 seed and previously undefeated Thomas Gilman of Iowa in the NCAA semifinals, he defeated sixth-seeded Ethan Lizak of Minnesota to win a national title.
Â
That two-day stretch was the culmination of hours upon hours of hard work, dating back to his first moments in the sport of wrestling.
Â
"I just threw my hands in my face and was relieved I accomplished one of my goals," said Cruz.
Â
A Lehigh Valley native, Cruz's journey to the top of the mountain began as a youngster, putting in extra work in the Whitehall wrestling room.
Â
"The workouts weren't too intense, doing sprints from one wall to the next, doing push-ups and sit-ups," he said. "It's one of the first memories I have of wrestling - putting in the extra time."
Â
It was clear that from an early age that Cruz had a desire to be the best, a desire that has carried forward.
Â
"I wanted to be the best person to come out of Bethlehem Catholic and the best person to come out of Lehigh University," he said. "A lot of people just try to adjust to the high school level, but I wanted to be the best from the beginning. Wrestling top-ranked guys, I was losing by maybe a point or two. Surrounding myself with coaches who knew what it took to be the best really pushed me to strive for the same thing."
Â
Last season, Cruz became "the best" in the NCAA at 125 pounds, winning Lehigh's first national championship since Zach Rey won at 285 pounds six years earlier. To reach that point of being a champion, Cruz embraced the fact that being the best takes a lot of commitment leading up to matches, which translates to greater success come match day.
Â
"When you get to college and become your own man, you're on your own and establishing yourself as a person and athlete. You realize that it's you who's driving yourself to be the best you can be," said Cruz. "When you accomplish your goals, it's so relieving and so rewarding. The feeling is overwhelmingly joyful, just by the fact that you put in your time and get what you earn."
Â
On the contrary, "If you end up losing, it's what you earned," he said. "You have to go back to the drawing board, fix some things and get after it."
Â
Cruz did exactly that following disappointment at the end of his redshirt sophomore season. Cruz was an All-American as a freshman, then EIWA champion as a sophomore, but he was upset at the ensuing NCAA Championships and did not walk away an All-American.
Â
"Darian had the match in control that first period, but he took the foot off the gas pedal," said Lehigh head coach Pat Santoro. "I think he learned a lot from the experience. Moving forward, you just have to keep wrestling."
Â
Cruz responded by doing all he knew… putting in the extra work.
Â
"After my sophomore year, when I woke up, no matter how I felt, I'd ask myself how badly I wanted to win," he said. "As soon as I'd say that to myself, I thought about what happened in March and how I felt. It would push me to do the extra step. Coach Pat is a big believer, and so am I, in doing the little things right."
Â
"The difference between good and great is the smallest of margins," said Santoro. "Winning the tournament is about being ready to wrestle that weekend and doing what you've done consistently over a long period of time."
Â
Cruz began to truly embrace the big picture, that a championship is won over the course of the season and not in a singular moment in March.
Â
With that in mind, Cruz was determined to wake up five minutes earlier, take that extra rep and push himself a little bit harder.
Â
"I had to wait 365 days to ever get that opportunity back (at nationals)," he said.
Â
One year later, Cruz wouldn't let the opportunity slip away. As the No. 4 seed, he defeated the No. 12 seed to advance to the semifinals where he would face top-seeded Gilman. Halfway through the match, something "clicked" and what ensued was one of the top moments in Lehigh wrestling's rich history.
Â
"I'm not going to lie, when the match started, I didn't really 'want to win,'" said Cruz. "I remember mentally making the switch to thinking I really, really want to win this match."
Â
In that moment, Cruz went back to his offseason training.
Â
"I asked myself how badly I wanted it."
Â
He must have wanted it pretty badly because Cruz went on to the 4-2 overtime win. That moment of winning, something that Cruz admits drew him to wrestling in the first place, was 12 months in the making.
Â
"I was out-of-my-mind excited because it was something I dug deeply for," he said. "When I finally got the win, I was excited, ecstatic and overwhelmed."
Â
After such an emotional victory, it can be easy to lose focus for the championship match, so Cruz made a concerted effort to be ready mentally.
Â
"We've been wrestling our entire lives, so it's not about who's the better wrestler," he said. "It's about who can perform their best under pressure, which is something I really wanted to throw out the window. I just wanted to go out and wrestle."
Â
Cruz wrestled his way to a 6-3 championship victory, breaking a 2-2 tie with two takedowns in the final 25 seconds to pick up Lehigh wrestling's 28th all-time national title.
Â
Moving forward, Cruz has a championship under his belt, but he's still as motivated as ever in 2017-18.
Â
"The view from the top of the mountain is something that not a lot of people get to see, but I caught a glimpse," he said. "Getting back up there would make a statement for the type of person and wrestler I am, and show how serious I am about being the best."
Â
Cruz also has high expectations for his team, who was ranked preseason top 10 nationally and looks to give itself a chance for a team title.
Â
"Bringing home a team trophy is something I've wanted since I was a freshman here," said Cruz. "Coming out of high school, I really wanted to make an impact on the Lehigh wrestling program. We've always been top 10 or 15, but we've just been shy of bringing home a trophy.
Â
Even after he graduates, Cruz is far from finished with wrestling. Among his goals is Olympic Gold.
Â
"After Lehigh, I would like to wrestle, hopefully for the Lehigh Valley Wrestling Club and possibly get into coaching while I train for the 2020 Olympics," he said. "I also want to study for the LSATs, go to Law School or maybe even coach somewhere that has a good law program."
Â
No matter how his collegiate wrestling career ends, Cruz has no regrets.
Â
"I chose Lehigh to surround myself by great coaches and great people," he said. "The coaches believed in me. When I took my lumps and struggled to start my freshman year at Lehigh, they believed in me, supported and stuck with me."
Â
It paid off with a culminating moment, a reward for endless work and determination, leading to something he had been dreaming about for years.
Â
"Doing good, intentional work over a long period of time gets you to the very top of the mountain," said Santoro. "Darian realized you can't win a national title right now. The work you put in today and the work you put in tomorrow wins you the title in March.
Â
"Being a national champion is not just about getting your hand raised, but also about seeing how good you can become," Santoro continued. "You set your goal to get better every day and have that big-picture growth mindset, which makes winning that championship a little bit easier."
Â
Cruz's big-picture mindset helped him reach the top of the mountain last March. Having experienced what it takes, Cruz is slowly climbing back up the proverbial mountain to put himself in the best possible position to reach the peak for a second straight season.
Â
"There are going to be new endeavors and new obstacles," he said. "I have nothing to defend. No one can take last year's national title away. I'm trying to get another one."
Â
Â
Â
Darian Cruz had a look of relief on his face. Just a day after earning a thrilling overtime upset over No. 1 seed and previously undefeated Thomas Gilman of Iowa in the NCAA semifinals, he defeated sixth-seeded Ethan Lizak of Minnesota to win a national title.
Â
That two-day stretch was the culmination of hours upon hours of hard work, dating back to his first moments in the sport of wrestling.
Â
"I just threw my hands in my face and was relieved I accomplished one of my goals," said Cruz.
Â
A Lehigh Valley native, Cruz's journey to the top of the mountain began as a youngster, putting in extra work in the Whitehall wrestling room.
Â
"The workouts weren't too intense, doing sprints from one wall to the next, doing push-ups and sit-ups," he said. "It's one of the first memories I have of wrestling - putting in the extra time."
Â
It was clear that from an early age that Cruz had a desire to be the best, a desire that has carried forward.
Â
"I wanted to be the best person to come out of Bethlehem Catholic and the best person to come out of Lehigh University," he said. "A lot of people just try to adjust to the high school level, but I wanted to be the best from the beginning. Wrestling top-ranked guys, I was losing by maybe a point or two. Surrounding myself with coaches who knew what it took to be the best really pushed me to strive for the same thing."
Â
Last season, Cruz became "the best" in the NCAA at 125 pounds, winning Lehigh's first national championship since Zach Rey won at 285 pounds six years earlier. To reach that point of being a champion, Cruz embraced the fact that being the best takes a lot of commitment leading up to matches, which translates to greater success come match day.
Â
"When you get to college and become your own man, you're on your own and establishing yourself as a person and athlete. You realize that it's you who's driving yourself to be the best you can be," said Cruz. "When you accomplish your goals, it's so relieving and so rewarding. The feeling is overwhelmingly joyful, just by the fact that you put in your time and get what you earn."
Â
On the contrary, "If you end up losing, it's what you earned," he said. "You have to go back to the drawing board, fix some things and get after it."
Â
Cruz did exactly that following disappointment at the end of his redshirt sophomore season. Cruz was an All-American as a freshman, then EIWA champion as a sophomore, but he was upset at the ensuing NCAA Championships and did not walk away an All-American.
Â
"Darian had the match in control that first period, but he took the foot off the gas pedal," said Lehigh head coach Pat Santoro. "I think he learned a lot from the experience. Moving forward, you just have to keep wrestling."
Â
Cruz responded by doing all he knew… putting in the extra work.
Â
"After my sophomore year, when I woke up, no matter how I felt, I'd ask myself how badly I wanted to win," he said. "As soon as I'd say that to myself, I thought about what happened in March and how I felt. It would push me to do the extra step. Coach Pat is a big believer, and so am I, in doing the little things right."
Â
"The difference between good and great is the smallest of margins," said Santoro. "Winning the tournament is about being ready to wrestle that weekend and doing what you've done consistently over a long period of time."
Â
Cruz began to truly embrace the big picture, that a championship is won over the course of the season and not in a singular moment in March.
Â
With that in mind, Cruz was determined to wake up five minutes earlier, take that extra rep and push himself a little bit harder.
Â
"I had to wait 365 days to ever get that opportunity back (at nationals)," he said.
Â
One year later, Cruz wouldn't let the opportunity slip away. As the No. 4 seed, he defeated the No. 12 seed to advance to the semifinals where he would face top-seeded Gilman. Halfway through the match, something "clicked" and what ensued was one of the top moments in Lehigh wrestling's rich history.
Â
"I'm not going to lie, when the match started, I didn't really 'want to win,'" said Cruz. "I remember mentally making the switch to thinking I really, really want to win this match."
Â
In that moment, Cruz went back to his offseason training.
Â
"I asked myself how badly I wanted it."
Â
He must have wanted it pretty badly because Cruz went on to the 4-2 overtime win. That moment of winning, something that Cruz admits drew him to wrestling in the first place, was 12 months in the making.
Â
"I was out-of-my-mind excited because it was something I dug deeply for," he said. "When I finally got the win, I was excited, ecstatic and overwhelmed."
Â
After such an emotional victory, it can be easy to lose focus for the championship match, so Cruz made a concerted effort to be ready mentally.
Â
"We've been wrestling our entire lives, so it's not about who's the better wrestler," he said. "It's about who can perform their best under pressure, which is something I really wanted to throw out the window. I just wanted to go out and wrestle."
Â
Cruz wrestled his way to a 6-3 championship victory, breaking a 2-2 tie with two takedowns in the final 25 seconds to pick up Lehigh wrestling's 28th all-time national title.
Â
Moving forward, Cruz has a championship under his belt, but he's still as motivated as ever in 2017-18.
Â
"The view from the top of the mountain is something that not a lot of people get to see, but I caught a glimpse," he said. "Getting back up there would make a statement for the type of person and wrestler I am, and show how serious I am about being the best."
Â
Cruz also has high expectations for his team, who was ranked preseason top 10 nationally and looks to give itself a chance for a team title.
Â
"Bringing home a team trophy is something I've wanted since I was a freshman here," said Cruz. "Coming out of high school, I really wanted to make an impact on the Lehigh wrestling program. We've always been top 10 or 15, but we've just been shy of bringing home a trophy.
Â
Even after he graduates, Cruz is far from finished with wrestling. Among his goals is Olympic Gold.
Â
"After Lehigh, I would like to wrestle, hopefully for the Lehigh Valley Wrestling Club and possibly get into coaching while I train for the 2020 Olympics," he said. "I also want to study for the LSATs, go to Law School or maybe even coach somewhere that has a good law program."
Â
No matter how his collegiate wrestling career ends, Cruz has no regrets.
Â
"I chose Lehigh to surround myself by great coaches and great people," he said. "The coaches believed in me. When I took my lumps and struggled to start my freshman year at Lehigh, they believed in me, supported and stuck with me."
Â
It paid off with a culminating moment, a reward for endless work and determination, leading to something he had been dreaming about for years.
Â
"Doing good, intentional work over a long period of time gets you to the very top of the mountain," said Santoro. "Darian realized you can't win a national title right now. The work you put in today and the work you put in tomorrow wins you the title in March.
Â
"Being a national champion is not just about getting your hand raised, but also about seeing how good you can become," Santoro continued. "You set your goal to get better every day and have that big-picture growth mindset, which makes winning that championship a little bit easier."
Â
Cruz's big-picture mindset helped him reach the top of the mountain last March. Having experienced what it takes, Cruz is slowly climbing back up the proverbial mountain to put himself in the best possible position to reach the peak for a second straight season.
Â
"There are going to be new endeavors and new obstacles," he said. "I have nothing to defend. No one can take last year's national title away. I'm trying to get another one."
Â
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Players Mentioned
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/ Men's Wrestling
285
/ Men's WrestlingLehigh Sports Central: Wrestling
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Lehigh Sports Central: Wrestling
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