Broc Dickerson has very fond memories of his time at Riverside. The team’s success, hard work and strong relationships made Riverside’s wrestling program unique.
Dickerson wrestled for the Pirates from 2000-2004. His team won three straight team titles his sophomore, junior and senior years.
“We spent seven days a week together for most of the year and all-day at tournaments on Saturdays year round,” Dickerson said. “The bonds were real and the people became family. That time will always be something I cherish and something I feel obligated to pass on.”
He then continued his wrestling career at Campbell University, then taught and coached at Carrington Middle School before returning to Riverside to teach health and P.E and coach the wrestling team.
He now serves as an assistant principal at Durham School of the Arts,and remains the assistant coach at RHS.
“I wanted to come back here,” he said. “The program meant a lot to me. I love to wrestle. I love wrestling. I knew I wanted to be an educator and I actually started teaching the kids and then started coaching here. I needed something to feed the competitive juices. I felt obligated and responsible to give back because of what the sport gave to me.”
Riverside’s wrestling program has consistently been at the top of the conference. The team has won a total of 14 conference titles, and four team state championships.
“We actually set the state record for the most state champions in a single year when I was at high school here,” said Dickerson.
This year, the team finished second in the conference behind the Jordan Falcons, who went undefeated.
“We fell slightly short of our goals,” said Dickerson. “We always expect to win conference every year. The only match we’ve lost all year was to Jordan. We had two guys out, they were sick, had COVID, just kind of hit us at a bad time. We finished second conference this year but we’ve had a really good season.”
Despite not winning the conference, the team has had other success.
“The most exciting time that’s coming up is the individual regionals,” said Dickerson. “We’re excited to see that we have several guys that are capable of wrestling at the highest level.”
Individual regionals took place February 3. Dickerson’s son, Daniel, and sophomore Stephanie Mendoza both qualified for the state tournament. Daniel Dickerson also recorded his 100th career win this season.
“In coming to the end of his career, it’s been a stellar career. He’s done very well for himself. I’m proud of him. He’s put in a lot of work and it’s shown his success.”
As a coach, Dickerson believes in setting realistic goals for the team.
“I think if we just focus every day on getting a little bit better, it’s easier to be a whole lot better in February than November,” said Dickerson. “If you set a goal way out, that you’re going to be a state champ, you can hold yourself accountable for a goal like that, but what gets lost is the work that it takes to get there.”
Though the season will soon come to a close, the wrestling program will always promote a sense of brotherhood.
“It’s kind of a fraternity,” said Dickerson. “You have alumni that could pop in on any day and we’ve got some talented wrestlers who wrestle division one, at the highest level, that are willing to come back and they don’t have to, some of them are really successful in life.
“We have success, but it’s the energy that [people] pour in. I feel like that spirit is carried in every individual that comes through the program for four years.”
Editor’s Note: Mendoza finished fourth in her weight class in the state tournament
