By Jeremy McDonald

jeremymcdonald73@gmail.com

GERVAIS, Ore.–  The last name of Zepeda carries some weight in the wrestling community.  From their father Alex to Alexys on down, wrestling has been a big part of the Zepeda household as now Gervais’ Sariah Zepeda prepares for her next chapter of her wrestling career.

All the hard-work with the offseason tournaments, and the accolades that came way of them to go with her offseason training in preparation for her school season.  The back-to-back State Championships at 135 pounds, her first one coming way of a 4-1 decision over Ontario’s Hannah Hernandez in 2023, and her second with a pin of Estacada’s Kirsten DeLazerda this past season,  

All of that helping her to this point Friday afternoon where she was signing her Letter of Intent to wrestle at Southern Oregon University.  A traditional powerhouse in the wrestling community down at the NAIA-level in Ashland.

“They’re definitely a good team, I’ll work my hardest and everything to keep up with them.  I’ll learn a lot from them because they’re a good team,” Zepeda starts.  “(Wrestling) has meant a lot.  We’re a wrestling family, my dad wrestled, my sister wrestled, I wrestle, my younger siblings wrestle.  It’s been a big part of us.  It’s been a lot of determination and stuff.  Constantly critiquing my mistakes and going through all of it.”

While in college, Zepeda is planning on majoring in Criminal Justice.

Photos By Jeremy McDonald