Lower Merion’s Jack Lledo is Main Line Boys Athlete of the Week
The senior wrestler finished seventh at 160 pounds at the PIAA Class AAA state championships, placed third at Southeastern Regionals, and first at the Central League Championships. He finished the season with a 38-7 record (including 21 pins) and a career mark at Lower Merion of 103-30. Last fall, he was the starting quarterback for the Lower Merion football team last fall, throwing for 1,293 yards and running for 575 yards, accounting for 22 touchdowns and receiving first team All-Main Line football honors. Lower Merion wrestling head coach Harry Keyser said, “Jack is mentally tough and he is able to compete with anybody in the state in the neutral position. At states, his motion and positioning was exactly where it needed to be and he was able to chain-wrestle really well while getting to his counter-attacks. There were some really good scrambles in his matches at Hershey and he was able to come out on top because of his relentless attitude and persistence towards scoring. One thing that really stood out last weekend, and also at Regionals, that Jack improved upon throughout the year was his ability to wrestle in the top position. He was able to ride guys for significant periods of time which is important when you compete at a high level.”
Q: What is your favorite memory of the PIAA 3A state tournament?
A: My favorite memory of the tournament came from after wrestling finished on Friday night. By this point I had already secured a top-8 finish, and all of my family and friends were celebrating the accomplishment. Spending time with them and enjoying their company is definitely my favorite memory.
Q: What do you think was your best match of the state tourney, and what was the biggest key to your success?
A: My best match of the tournament was the 7th place match, against someone [Ryan Fairchild of Nazareth] I had lost to 12-2 just two days prior. The biggest key to coming back and winning that match was to focus on having fun and wrestling to the best of my ability. I didn’t put too much pressure on myself and cherished my last high school match, and it led to a 7-4 victory.
Q: What do you consider your biggest strength on the mat and what you are working on most currently?
A: My biggest strength is wrestling on my feet, specifically my defense. I need to work on wrestling on top, especially for college where top wrestling is much more important.
Q: You started wrestling in 8th grade, sparked by seeing the success that your older brother James had wrestling for Lower Merion. What have been the most important things you’ve learned from James?
A: James has taught me countless takedowns, throws, reversals, etc. But the most important thing James has taught and developed in me is the mental aspect of wrestling. He always kept my mind sharp and always believed in me and made sure I believed in myself too. Without James I wouldn’t have nearly as much success, and definitely wouldn’t have wrestled as well as I did this weekend without him in my corner.
Q: What do you think was the best match of your Lower Merion career, and what do you think was the highlight of that match?
A: The best match of my Lower Merion career was the district finals last year. I was wrestling a kid who many people were picking to beat me, and I wrestled my best ever and pinned him in the first period. Plus, winning district gold made it even sweeter.
Q: Tell us a little about your start in football. What is your favorite memory of your Lower Merion football career?
A: I started playing football in 6th grade, and played pretty much every position besides quarterback before the end of my sophomore year. My favorite football memory was our big time win over Harriton at home, especially in front of the dawg pound.
Q: What is your favorite academic course at Lower Merion? What do you think you would like to major in at college? Is there a particular career field that interests you at the present time?
A: My favorite course here at Lower Merion was Human Anatomy and Physiology with Mrs. O’Conor. She was the best teacher ever and the class was also so interesting and engaging, which made the class very enjoyable. This class sparked my interest in some potential majors for college, which include exercise physiology, kinesiology, and biology. I’m not 100 percent sure what I want to do for a career, but I do know I want to coach wrestling eventually.
Fun facts – Jack Lledo
Favorite show: The Mandalorian.
Favorite movie: Revenge of the Sith.
Favorite athlete: “My brothers, James Lledo and Sam Lledo.”
Favorite pre-meet pump up song: Going the Distance (from the movie “Rocky”)
Favorite team: Philadelphia Eagles.
Pre-match preparation the day of a meet: “Before a match I eat at least one white chocolate-macadamia nut Clif Bar, along with whatever drink I choose for the day. Then I make sure I get a good warmup in, turn my music on, and watch my teammates until it’s almost time for me to wrestle.”
Person I most admire: “My mom (Izzi) and my dad (Jim). They are the best supporters and sacrifice a lot of their time and money in order to see me accomplish my goals.”
(To be selected as Main Line Boys Athlete of the Week, a student-athlete must first be nominated by his coach.)
