Grappling with kinship

At Kirtland Central, 3 brothers share the mat

AZTEC, N.M.

Isaac Thomas, Ian Thomas, and Zakk Thomas might look very similar, but once all three hit the wrestling mat, they couldn’t be more different.

The Kirtland Central High School wrestlers all come from the same household and have all qualified to compete in the 2019 New Mexico National Guard State Wrestling Championships.

Kirtland Central head coach John Sandoval said it’s been a fun season coaching all three, who are as different and as individual as brothers could get.

“It’s kind of crazy,” he said. “You wouldn’t think that they were brothers at all, just because they’re that much different.”

Isaac is the eldest of the three, a senior, who has plenty of state championship and wrestling experience. Right behind him is junior Ian, who also has some mat experience under his belt. Then there’s the youngest of the three, Zakk, a freshman who is a combination of the older two.

Isaac competes at competes at 170 pounds this season, Ian at 195, and Zakk at 145.

Sandoval said it’s easy to tell them apart thanks to their vastly different personalities.

“Isaac, he’s the older one, he’s the quieter one who doesn’t say much. You try to talk to him and get a full sentence out of him; that’s work,” he said. “Ian talks a little more and Zakk is a social butterfly.”

They are also very different on the mat.

Zakk placed second at the District 1-4A tournament over the weekend falling short to Aztec’s Hunter Medina. Isaac finished in second as well, falling short to Bloomfield’s Gerald Wiza, and Ian finished in first place defeating Aztec’s Caleb Verzeas.

Sandoval said they have different approaches and styles on the mat.

“Ian, he’s a kid you look at, he’s like a silent assassin. He wants to wrestle anyone,” he said. “Same thing with Isaac, but he’s a little more timid. I don’t think he realizes how good he is and he doubts himself. Zakk is the same way; he’s still got a lot of learning to do.”

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