Finding success with 'natural' talent

By MIKE CAMUNAS, Times Correspondent
Published January 20, 2008

DADE CITY - Every time Mark DeAugustino thinks of Vidal Jimenez's first two years of school, the longtime Pasco wrestling coach can't help but shake his head.

It always reminds DeAugustino that all of the accomplishments of his 5-foot, 103-pound senior could be doubled.

"It's unfortunate," DeAugustino said, rolling his eyes. "If I would have had him for four years, and I don't think I'm exaggerating, he could have been a two-timer (state champion), and he may be a high school All-American when it's all said and done."

DeAugustino finally got Jimenez out to the mats for the Pirates, though he had to convince Jimenez's mother first. DeAugustino told Jimenez's mom "he was tough and that he could really help his school." But Jimenez also helped convince her.

"I had to talk my mom into (wrestling) a little bit," Jimenez said. "She always thought I would get hurt."

Nothing could be farther from the truth, as Jimenez qualified for state in 2007 and won his first-round match. But he fell in the second round to the eventual state champion, Clark Glass of Tampa Bay Christian.

Jimenez's rise as a dominant wrestler was quick, so much so that it practically shocked his fellow seniors.

"He's a freak of nature," said 215-pound wrestler Eric Stroud, also a state qualifier. "I've never seen something come so easily to someone. I'd like to see what he'd be doing without wrestling because he would just seem out of place."

Senior Reyes Perez, another state qualifier in the 189-pound class, agrees.

"The way he picks up stuff is unheard of," Perez said. "He's so athletic, it wouldn't even matter if he had technique or not because he's so strong that he just outpowers the 103-pounders around him."

The general consensus seems to be that Jimenez is a natural at wrestling.

"Coach says I'm a natural at it, so I guess that's it," Jimenez said. "But I just never gave up on it, and I think that's what helped me excel at it so quickly - I love it so much that I learned a lot.

"Some guys that wrestle for a long time, they don't end up spending that much time on themselves to get better."

At practice, it looks like Jimenez doesn't even belong in high school. He'll wrestle - horse around, actually - with DeAugustino's youngest son, but works hard once playtime is over.

"Anytime there's work to be done, he's the first one to say, 'Let's get it done,' " Stroud said. "I wish I had half the work ethic he has."

Added Perez: "It's not like he's always joking. He knows when it's time to work, and he does that hard."

However, there's one thing that might have held him back, and it wasn't inexperience.

"Last year, Coach said I was just too nice," Jimenez said. "I wasn't aggressive enough in the match, but now I think I've improved in that area - that it's different now. So hopefully that will get me closer to a championship."

[Last modified January 19, 2008, 22:37:42]