PINKERTON NAMED APODACA AWARD WINNER

BY SETH ROMSA TRIBUNE SPORTS WRITER
Courtesy of the Powell Tribune

A night filled with emotion in Cabre Gym honored the memory of Brooks Apodaca on Friday night, with sophomore heavyweight wrestler Cody Pinkerton becoming the 24th member to receive the award named for the former Trapper wrestler.

The Apodaca Award is named after Brooks, who passed away tragically in the spring of 1998 and was a team captain of the Trappers in the 1997-98 season.

A description of Apodaca during the ceremony said, "He is best remembered in wrestling for his leadership qualities, and his competitive spirit. His quiet leadership style was communicated by example. His character and work ethic, on and off the mat, were a motivation to all who knew him."

Pinkerton is a wrestler from Douglas who brings a tough, no-nonsense personality to the Trappers, but also shows his passion throughout.

"He may appear tough and stubborn because he is. But when you know him like we do, you know he has the biggest and most loyal heart," coach Jim Zeigler said. "He is unafraid to show his passion and emotion for family, faith, friends and sport. Like most good leaders, he is highly motivated, driven and determined."

The award came as a shock for Pinkerton, as he felt there were several Trappers on the team deserving of the honor.

"There's a couple other deserving kids of the honor on the team, it was surprising," Pinkerton said. "To be in his likeness, someone I hear so much about from everybody who knew him (Apodaca). He was such a hard worker, always in the room putting in extra time. It's awesome to be compared to him."

Whether on or off the mat, Pinkerton continues to show his passion for the Trappers as he will be cheering on and helping his teammates while fighting for them while he competes.

"That's the only way you can stay in it is knowing that you are fighting for your team," Pinkerton said.

He found his way to Northwest after originally enrolling at Northern State University in Aberdeen, South Dakota, and transferring to Powell after finding a place that felt like home.

"I tried other schools and checked them out and it didn't feel like home. I came up here and I said, 'Oh, this place is home,'" Pinkerton said. "It's close enough to where I can go back and see my family and they can come watch. I have a very supportive family."

Pinkerton is the top ranked heavyweight wrestler, and is setting his sights high after finishing last year in fifth place as an All-American.

"It's been a long season. You fight small injuries all season long. You've got to stay tough and stay at it and get better," Pinkerton said. "I want to be a national champion. The coaching staff here is what brought me back … We work hard day in and day out."