Co-Captain Marisol Nugent ’20 earned three-time All-American status after placing third at the 2018 Nationals.
According to Nugent, experienced wrestlers and coaches like her father and Head Coach Kassie Archambault ’06 have influenced her journey as a wrestler.
“My dad was my coach for the longest time, so when I went to wrestling it meant I got the chance to hang out with him. The tournaments that we did together were always the best things and I always wanted to make my dad proud too and do well at these tournaments for him. For a while, it was that relationship with my dad that drove me. I wanted to do well to impress him and keep travelling together,” said Nugent.
While attending Andover, Nugent’s relationship with Archambault has given her more exposure to wrestling and pushed her to continue.
She added, “I would say the thing that makes Andover wrestling worth it for me is my coach. I primarily came to Andover because of Kassie Archembault ’06, she was what drove me to Andover and my relationship with her changed my life. [Our relationship] gave me the opportunity of attending Andover, and she has also brought me all over the country to travel and compete. She’s just been a very important figure in my life so at the end of the day, her as my coach makes everything worth it.”
According to Nugent, wrestling’s competitive nature is what compels her to continue and drives her to win matches.
“The intensity of the sport is my favorite part. I am a person who is incredibly competitive, I know I have tunnel vision and that’s why me and wrestling work so well together. When you step out on the wrestling mat it is just you, there’s no one there to save you if you’re losing… It’s just six minutes of everything you have and that’s what I love about it. It’s a hustle… It’s physical. You go out there and you have to be tough and tenacious, you can’t let anyone push you around,” said Nugent.
As a technically talented wrestler, Nugent utilizes her vast skill set to lead as both a personable and hard working captain, according to Archambault.
“Everybody respects her tremendously for her vast knowledge of the sport. She’s a really strong technical wrestler, she has some of the best technique in the room and she loves wrestling. She can be very intense and focused about wrestling, however, she also knows when to lighten the mood and when to make sure that people are also having fun. [Nugent gets] to know people outside of wrestling because when we’re in there for 90 minutes we’re focusing on wrestling, but she makes sure to ask people questions about their day, their hobbies, about things they love that make them feel more connected to the team,” said Archambault
According to Co-Captain Eamon Garrity-Rokous ’20 and teammate Somen Chakrabortti ’22, Nugent’s positive and experienced leadership has led the team to success over the course of the season.
“She brings a lot of good ideas and energy and vigor to the program. She definitely adds a fun balance to the team and its leadership. She always comes and asks about team bonding activities that we can do as a team and I think she definitely drives a lot of the energy that we see grow in the wrestling program,” said Garrity-Rokous.
Chakrabortti added, “She’s a really strong leader on the team and she has a strong leadership presence because she’s really experienced. She’s been wrestling since she was really young so she knows what’s going on at tournaments and dual meets because we have a lot of less experienced players on the team, myself included. We have lots of [Juniors] and [Lowers] on the team so it’s important to have a really experienced person like Marisol.”
As captain, Nugent tries to implement messages she learned from her old club, like perseverance and determination, into practices.
Nugent said, “The one thing I always tell the team is don’t quit. I never want to see a kid give up in the middle of a match or in the middle of practice. The club that I train at has taught me a lot about perseverance and determination on and off the wrestling mat… I don’t care if you’re losing the match, but I don’t want to see you stop wrestling.”
Nugent has worked hard to put female wrestling on the map in New England and looks to continue her work for Andover and the Prep league in the future.
“I help run a women’s wrestling club in Lowell and all of the New England women’s wrestling social media and organization so I’m very involved in the women’s wrestling community. I’m hoping that any New England Independent School Wrestling Association starts adding more girl’s wrestling opportunities. In regards to our program, I hope we develop more year round wrestlers and that people become more committed to the sport going forward so the room is more competitive as a whole,” said Nugent.
