Eastern Wayne Wrestler Has a Headlock on Success

He is tough, tenacious, and likes that fact that in wrestling, it's all up to him.

"In every other sport, if I'm out there, I'm out there with a team. If I play baseball and something happens, then I can always put it off on somebody else," Quinn says. "If I'm wrestling though, and I didn't perform, then I didn't perform, and I can't make any excuses for it."

Eastern Wayne Coach Mike Brown says Quinn sets a good example. "He pushes with the other kids. He's helping with the younger kids, as far as drilling and coaching, trying to make sure that next year's team is as good as it can be."

Brown says Quinn is an unselfish wrestler.

Teacher Kim Smith says Quinn is also an unselfish student. "He's friendly with everybody, and he's willing to help and lend a hand to anybody in the class," Smith says.

"I think he has a maturity about him that some students do not have," says teacher Kim Smith. He also has a GPA of almost 4.0.

Smith says Quinn has excitement about him. That drive shows on the mat as well.

Quinn says he has "the will to be better, the determination to make something better of myself later on. I've got a lot of time left in my life and I'd rather be somebody in late life than be a regular old nobody," he says.

Senior Bret Quinn is the winner of this week's Extra Effort Award. Tom Suiter's Extra Effort award airs Wednesdays during WRAL's 6:00 News.

Do you have a nomination for the Extra Effort Award?Mail us your suggestions.