SPANISH SPRINGS, Nev. — Joe Imelli is the head coach of the Spanish Springs wrestling club, a kindergarten through 8th grade youth wrestling club dedicated to training the next generation of world-class wrestlers.

Imelli has taken the Spanish Springs Wrestling Club to another whole new level since becoming the club’s coach over 15 years ago. For Imelli, wrestling was something that found him. Unlike many wrestlers who got exposed to wrestling at a very young age, Imelli stumbled on wrestling when he was a freshman at the Washoe County School District.

His then coach, Mario Decaro, played a crucial role in making Imelli the type of wrestler he was and the type of coach he has become. Imelli was one of the 10 wrestlers who led his high school to win their first league title in 14 years. After high school, Coach Imelli joined the University of Nevada, where he signed up for the rugby team.

But again, wrestling found him somehow. His aunt, Ruth Ann, linked him to the Wooster wrestling room where he met coaches Eric Beye and Tom Bailey. His journey into the world of wrestling continued from there. A few years into wrestling in the university, he was appointed as a high school wrestling coach for Shayne Wallace, and that was how his coaching journey started.

After spending some time with Shayne Wallace, he moved to Billinghurst and continued from there. Coaching in these places provided Imelli the needed environment to prepare himself for the enormous task ahead.

In 2005, Spanish Springs High School came calling. He accepted a teaching job in the high school and was appointed as the wrestling head coach.

Looking back, this has become one of the best decisions made by the board of the school, especially when it comes to the sport, because Imelli has transformed the school’s wrestling club into one of the best in Nevada. He started building up the wrestling team, and 10 years down the line, his success could no longer be hidden.

He was named the head wrestling coach of the year for Nevada in 2016. This was the first time a coach from Spanish Springs won this award. As of that year, he had taken the Spanish Springs wrestling club to the Nevada State Championship, where they finished second.

The Club hosted the tournament in 2017 and retained its second position after losing the title to Green Valley, who had won the title five times before.

Imelli had led the club to four consecutive regional championships and seven regional titles. In addition, he led the club to nine consecutive High Desert League Championships and won 55 league dual matches.

Aside from winning an award for himself and bringing trophies for the Cougs, Imelli is also in the business of building world-class wrestlers, which is one of the aims of the Spanish Springs wrestling club. He helped nine Cougars wrestlers qualify for the state tournament. Imelli is still building world-class wrestles even to date.

Devin Griffen is a Cougar and a three-times state champion. Wyatt Lallement is a one-time state champion, and in 2020, all the top three wrestlers at the 2020 Northern Regional Placers at 126 were all alumni of the Spanish Springs wrestling club. Over his 20 years of coaching, Imelli has an endless list of successful wrestlers.

“We have to add on,” Imelli said. “We have to keep growing the program and the expectation of the program.”

Despite Imelli’s achievements in the sport, he is still hungry for more successes. As of February 2020, the Cougars won their 13th consecutive High Desert League Title and 7th-straight Northern 4A Regional titles. The only season Imelli didn’t bring home a title during the 15 seasons he has been with the club was his first season.

Imelli is not just a brilliant, intelligent, hardworking and outstanding wrestling coach, but he is also a husband and a father. He has been married to Shali for almost 20 years, and together they have four children. He is one of the best things that has happened to the sport of wrestling in Nevada.

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