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Harmony High wrestlers Nelson Toro, who signed this week, and Rey Ortiz, are on to the college level after singing with the University of Buffalo and Presbyterian College respectively. PHOTO/HARMONY HIGH -
Harmony High wrestlers Nelson Toro, who signed this week, and Rey Ortiz, are on to the college level after singing with the University of Buffalo and Presbyterian College respectively. PHOTO/HARMONY HIGH
The Spanish word for bull is Toro, so perhaps it is only fitting that Harmony’s Nelson Toro will spend his college wrestling career as a Buffalo Bull.
With his family, coaches, and teammates looking on over the weekend at St. Cloud’s Beef O’Brady’s, Toro signed his scholarship papers committing to the University of Buffalo, where he will be wrestling in the Division I program under Coach John Stutzman.
The signing was just another step in Toro’s rising career, where he became just the second wrestler in Harmony history to win a state championship, when he defeated Palmetto Ridge’s Austin Foye in the 2023 FHSAA Class 3A, 285-pound finals to cap a perfect 46-0 senior season.
“He was our second state champion and I am not taking anything away from Sawyer Root (Harmony’s first state champion who transferred to the school from Alaska), but Nelson was the first athlete to win a state title while spending all four years in our program, and that means a little more to me,” Longhorns Coach Vic Lorenzano said. “It was both exciting and gratifying to watch him grow in our program and become both a champion and a team leader.”
It was impressed on Toro as well.
“Personally being the first state champion that came up through the program really does mean a lot to me,” Toro said. “Harmony’s program, the coaches, and my teammates are like a second family to me and to reach my dreams while hopefully inspiring the younger guys in the wrestling room to chase their dreams is something I will always hold on to.”
Toro wrestled at 220 as a junior before jumping to heavyweight last year, and had to fight and claw his way to the championship this season – often giving away 30, 40 or close to 50 pounds to competitors.
“It was a grind all season but I had faith in my ability to reach my goals,” Toro said. “I faced a lot of tough competitors this season and sometimes it’s easy to have a letdown after surviving a close match in a tournament. But I just tried to reset and keep my focus and I think that paid off for me this year.”
Lorenzano says Toro deserves a ton for credit for going undefeated his senior season. “We wrestled a highly-competitive schedule overall, and I think Nelson faced a lot more quality wrestlers than he did at 220 pounds last year,” the veteran coach said.
The thoughts of wrestling at the college level were not on Toro’s radar early in his career, but said as the wins piled up his senior season the possibility became real.
“I talked to a few other schools but when I went up to Buffalo for a visit, I felt really comfortable with the athletes and coaches. The program really had a family feel to it and reminded me of our program here at Harmony,” he said.
Although there are only 78 Division I college wrestling programs in the country and all those teams have rosters stacked with high school champions, Toro has set his goals high. “I want to go there and be a starter in my first year, I know it’s going to be highly competitive and I know it’s a big leap that I will have to take, but I feel ready to accept the challenge.”
Lorenzano also believes Toro will be up to the challenge.
“He set the tone in our wrestling room for the past couple of years. Nelson has always put the work in and understands what is necessary to be successful. He’s won’t have the height of some of the heavyweights he will face in college but he can counter that with his athleticism and footwork.”
Toro is the not the only Division I recruit from Harmony. Rey Ortiz, who finished third in the state tournament at 138 pounds, has committed to Presbyterian College in Clinton, SC. The school is a member of the Big South Conference, whose wrestling schools include nationally ranked Appalachian State.
Ortiz went 48-3 this season, losing to state runner-up Danny Martinez in the third round but wrestled back to pin Hagerty’s Nick Blake in the third place match. During the regular season he avenged both of his two regular season losses.
Lorenzano says Ortiz is an “under the radar kid,” who has a chance to become a good college wrestler. “He’s just beginning to scratch the surface,” Lorenzano said. “This is a wrestler who has actually improved a lot since the end of his senior season, which was pretty good in its own right. He’s been traveling around the country and doing really well in tournaments this summer and is wrestling with a lot of confidence.”
