PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Leigh Jaynes is building the women's wrestling program at Delaware Valley University from the ground up as head coach.
Jaynes enjoyed an outstanding career as a wrestler in her own right, winning a bronze medal for the United states in women's freestyle wrestling at the 2015 World Championships.
She was first introduced to wrestling during her time at Rancocas Valley Regional High School in Mount Holly, after a good-natured challenge from the coach.
"I didn't know how hard wrestling was. My first day showing up at the wrestling room ... the room was sweating, the windows had condensation on them. Walking in there was like a sauna. I wasn't expecting that," she recalled.
"It's like nothing I had ever experienced before with any other sport that I had tried. Something was kind of fascinating about that. This seemed like the ultimate challenge and I wanted to take it on."
Jaynes remembered her first big tournament in Flint, Michigan being an emotional rollercoaster.
"I weigh I and I wrestle and I lose two matches completely in a row. Like boom, boom, lost. I was crying my eyes out and then I hear my name get called over the loudspeaker. The announcer brought me over and he said, 'Hey, I'm so sorry about this, but we put you in the wrong weight class,'" she said.
"And I was like, 'They looked really big and strong, but I didn't want to complain!' So they ended up putting me in the correct weight class and I ended up blast doubling my way all the way to All American."
You can listen to the entire interview with Leigh Jaynes, above, by checking out the latest episode of the KYW Newsradio original podcast, "1-on-1 with Matt Leon." Subscribe on the RADIO.COM app or wherever you get your podcasts.
Follow Matt Leon on Twitter @MattLeon1060.
