Matthew Lavengood doesn’t remember a time in his life when he didn’t want to wrestle. He spent nearly every day for 14 years making sure he’d be able to compete as long as he can.
When he first stepped on a mat the age of 4, Lavengood weighed only 35 pounds, but he was eager to learn. That year, he didn’t lose a match in youth wrestling.
“With Matthew and wrestling, he’s always been kind of a natural,” said Lavengood’s father Steve Lavengood, who has coached his son his entire life. “Since he’s been on the mat, he’s been very successful because he has that ability to learn and progress. He’s been like that since he was small.”
Lavengood took off after his first season. With a quiet focus, he developed into a two-time regional champion, a Southwestern League champion and a Class 4A state runner-up during his senior season at Durango High School.
“He’s very focused, very determined,” Lavengood’s mother, Tamra Lavengood, said. “He didn’t lose a match that first year, and it just went from there, and he’s kept giving it 100 percent.”
That determination helped Lavengood earn a scholarship to wrestle at Division II Colorado School of Mines in Golden. He signed a National Letter of Intent on Wednesday during a signing ceremony at DHS.
When asked how long he had dreamed of earning a chance to wrestle in college, Lavengood had a simple reply: “Since I was born.”
Lavengood finished his high school career with 133 varsity wins to go with his runner-up finish in the 120-pound bracket of the state tournament in February.
He’ll join the Orediggers under head coach Austin DeVoe, who will enter his third season as head coach of Colorado Mines. The Orediggers finished eighth in the nine-team Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference last season.
“The main thing I liked about Mines is the coaches,” Lavengood said. “It seems like they’re really trying to build a program up there, and I wanted to be a part of it.”
DHS head coach John Gurule, who began coaching Lavengood during his junior season, said Lavengood will add character and skill to the Orediggers’ wrestling room.
“He’s an extremely talented athlete. His career over the four years here at Durango High School is tough to match,” Gurule said. “All his accomplishments are well deserved.”
Lavengood credited all of his coaches, including assistant coaches Matt Beaver and Brad Tarpley, who both attended the signing ceremony, for developing him into a college-caliber wrestler.
“All the coaches and my dad put in a lot of time outside the season taking me to tournaments, and it’s helped a lot,” Lavengood said.
Lavengood is the second DHS senior on the wrestling team to sign to compete in college. Patrick Cunnion signed to Western State Colorado University during the early signing period.
Though he also considered Western State, Lavengood is looking forward to looking across the mat during a conference dual and seeing his friend. But don’t expect Lavengood to give Cunnion any tips about his new teammates in Golden.
“Hopefully my team will win,” Lavengood said with a laugh.
jlivingston@durangoherald.com
