Getting to Know: King Sandoval
10/8/2018 2:39:00 PM | Wrestling
Throughout the 2018-19 season, umterps.com will run a Q&A series with members of the Maryland wrestling team and staff. Fans will get to know more about their background and wrestling history, as well as some fun facts they may not have known before. Next up: freshman King Sandoval!
On his favorite moments from high school:
"I think some of my favorite moments came when I was working back from injuries. My senior year I dislocated my thumb and fractured my wrist, so that made wrestling pretty hard for me. Doctors recommended I didn't wrestle at a couple big tournaments, but my dad and my coaches encouraged me to keep going and push through because it was my last year. I think overcoming that gave me a lot of heart."
On challenging himself in national high school tournaments:
"It's exciting. A lot of people weren't putting me on their radar coming into these tournaments since they hadn't heard of me. I just went out there with the mindset that I was going to make things happen, even if it meant going to big moves throughout the match."
On staying home to wrestle in the state of Maryland:
"It's great. I'm close to home -- I only live 40 minutes away -- so it's nice for me and my family. I think this university and this program are where I belong and I truly believe the staff here has the ability to make me the best wrestler I can be."
On what brought him to Maryland:
"What really drew me was the coaching staff. The staff has expressed interest in me for a while now -- I knew them from some of the Fargo teams in the past years -- so that really encouraged me to come here. I think the program here gives me the best chance to become a great person on and off the mat."
On how he would describe himself as a wrestler:
"I would say that I'm still not the best I can be. I feel like there's always room for improvement, even if you're the top wrestler in the country."
On his goals for the upcoming season:
"The first goal is to be in the starting lineup. For a while I thought I was going to just come in and serve a redshirt season. But I thought about it and realized I should be open to getting in the starting lineup as quickly as I can."
On guys he's worked with since getting to Maryland:
"I've spent a lot of time wrestling with Brandon Cray. He's a phenomenal wrestler. I've also worked with some upperclassmen at 133 and 141 pounds who have shown me how to push the pace and how much faster college wrestling is."
Favorite food:
"Buffalo chicken"
Favorite musical artist:
"Drake"
Hobbies outside of wrestling:
"I like to run. I like the feeling of being in-shape, so whenever I'm not wrestling I like to go for runs around campus."
On his favorite moments from high school:
"I think some of my favorite moments came when I was working back from injuries. My senior year I dislocated my thumb and fractured my wrist, so that made wrestling pretty hard for me. Doctors recommended I didn't wrestle at a couple big tournaments, but my dad and my coaches encouraged me to keep going and push through because it was my last year. I think overcoming that gave me a lot of heart."
On challenging himself in national high school tournaments:
"It's exciting. A lot of people weren't putting me on their radar coming into these tournaments since they hadn't heard of me. I just went out there with the mindset that I was going to make things happen, even if it meant going to big moves throughout the match."
On staying home to wrestle in the state of Maryland:
"It's great. I'm close to home -- I only live 40 minutes away -- so it's nice for me and my family. I think this university and this program are where I belong and I truly believe the staff here has the ability to make me the best wrestler I can be."
On what brought him to Maryland:
"What really drew me was the coaching staff. The staff has expressed interest in me for a while now -- I knew them from some of the Fargo teams in the past years -- so that really encouraged me to come here. I think the program here gives me the best chance to become a great person on and off the mat."
On how he would describe himself as a wrestler:
"I would say that I'm still not the best I can be. I feel like there's always room for improvement, even if you're the top wrestler in the country."
On his goals for the upcoming season:
"The first goal is to be in the starting lineup. For a while I thought I was going to just come in and serve a redshirt season. But I thought about it and realized I should be open to getting in the starting lineup as quickly as I can."
On guys he's worked with since getting to Maryland:
"I've spent a lot of time wrestling with Brandon Cray. He's a phenomenal wrestler. I've also worked with some upperclassmen at 133 and 141 pounds who have shown me how to push the pace and how much faster college wrestling is."
Favorite food:
"Buffalo chicken"
Favorite musical artist:
"Drake"
Hobbies outside of wrestling:
"I like to run. I like the feeling of being in-shape, so whenever I'm not wrestling I like to go for runs around campus."
Players Mentioned
125 pounds
/ Wrestling
125 lbs.
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