The News-Press Athlete of the Week for Jan. 20-25: Fort Myers wrestler Marcella Bonner – News-Press

The News-Press selects athletes that stood out the week before based on a combination of coach reports and school nominations sent to sports@news-press.com and our coverage. Those athletes are put in a poll each Monday on news-press.com and you, our readers, vote on who you think did it best. The winners of The News-Press Athlete of the Week poll sponsored by Elevate Home Services receive a T-shirt from BSN Sports and a tote bag from the USA Today High School Sports Awards. To get to know our winners better, The News-Press will have a question-and-answer session with each athlete.
The News-Press Athlete of the Week sponsored by Elevate Home Services winner for Jan. 20-25 was Fort Myers wrestler Marcella Bonner with 61% of the vote. Bonner won four matches to finish in first place in her weight class at the Queen of the Castle last week to earn the nomination.
Previous winner:The News-Press Athlete of the Week for Jan. 13-18: Canterbury soccer player Mia Accola
Question: How did you get into wrestling?
Bonner: Freshman year, it was toward end of the school year, I had this friend — he’s a really good wrestler, and he was begging me to do it. I did not want to put on the singlet. I thought I would look absolutely ridiculous, but I ended up joining sophomore year and here we are. I really like it — it’s awesome.
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What do you like about wrestling?
Bonner: Winning. I really like winning. We get these big safety pins that we can put on our bag. It feels great.
Do you have any superstitions before a match?
Bonner: Yes. I have to listen to “Get Your Head in the Game” from High School Musical every single match. A lot of people like to listen to rap or heavy metal, stuff like that, to get them in an aggressive state, but listening to an upbeat song from a childhood show kind of reminds me it’s all fun and games in the end. It gives me a better growth mindset.
What are you proudest of in your wrestling career so far?
Bonner: Being able to keep my composure every time I lose because at a lot of tournaments you’ll see people lose and they completely lose themselves. There’s a lot of crying at wrestling tournaments, but I’ve only cried once after a loss and it was last year. I have a really good mindset when it comes to stuff like that.
What advice would you give to someone coming up in the sport?
Bonner: Just work hard. Work really, really hard because it’s so easy to slack off in practices. Just keep going, listen to your coaches. They know what’s best for you. And don’t get arrogant — stay humble.

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