Junior Ellie Hancock, who is apart of the Raccoon River Northwest Wrestling Team, outlines that she’s learned so much from the program’s coaching staff.

Hancock reveals that she began wrestling in eighth grade after seeing a flyer on the wall, then thought it would be fun to give it a try. She highlights that the team atmosphere with Raccoon River Northwest is the aspect she enjoys the most of being around the girls from the four school districts of Adel-DeSoto-Minburn, Van Meter, Waukee, and Waukee Northwest. 

Hancock mentions that Head Coach James Biscoglia, plus assistants Joseph Burch and Ryan Leisure taught her the fundamentals of wrestling. She adds that she can rely on them for their knowledge of the sport.

“They’re really great where it’s like I see somebody else do something, or I need help with something, and I just go to them and I ask them questions and they help me better understand things. James (Biscoglia) also likes to find one thing for somebody and really push them to get better at that. So, it’s really nice that I kind of get that personalization in my training, where I get to improve as an individual.”

Raccoon River Northwest was able to win back to back state team titles for Class 2A at the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union State Tournament in Coralville. Individually, Hancock finished fourth in weight class 125.