Inside the double doors of the remarkably cramped St. Michael's wrestling room is the most overlooked sports program at a school known for its sports programs.

And that's exactly what the athletes behind those doors are hoping to change.

It's in there, in a place that greets visitors with a blast of stuffy 90-degree air filled with the smells of sweat and analgesic cream, that the quest for attention is being pursued one takedown at a time.

"I think no matter what we do we're always going to be overlooked, but we'll get our name out there for sure," said 132-pound specialist Adrian Montoya, one of just three seniors on a team expected to run away with Saturday's district meet in Wingate and be a serious title contender at the Class A-AAA state meet the following week in Rio Rancho.

"When we took state [in 2010], I know the basketball team was expected to take state that same year and they didn't," Montoya continued. "We got a little recognition, but the following year it just blew over."

It certainly doesn't help to have a little motivation. If getting the cold shoulder from the public doesn't do it, then consider the case of Andres Blea.

The junior heavyweight needs nothing more than a quick stroll down memory lane to last season's state meet. Seeded second in the
285-pound class, he was stunned in the semifinals by eventual champion Brandon Chavez from West Las Vegas.

When Chavez completed his title run with an upset win in the finals over Robertson's Sam Marquez, Blea was in the Santa Ana Star Center seats watching the entire thing unfold.

"He wrestles mad," said Joaquin Garcia, St. Michael's head coach. "He has all year."

Is that true, big man?

"I think so, I guess," he said. "It's just like what this team has to do. We have to work hard, stay focused. I'd probably be doing it even if I hadn't lost [to Chavez], but it is something I think about."

For the record, Blea is 2-0 against Chavez this season. Both were pins.

As for the rest of the Horsemen, youth is being served. And so is Garcia's pipeline to the school's football program.

All but five of the 30 wrestlers on the team also play football, a place where Garcia was an assistant coach and both of his sons got playing time.

Garcia is in his first full season as the team's head coach. The two previous seasons he shared that responsibility with Anthony Peperas.

The rest of his staff includes assistants Fletcher Sievers and former Santa Fe High standout Lucas Trujillo.

Together, Garcia said, they have cultivated a sense of consistency that former head coach Pat Aranda started last decade.

"The idea was just to go out and find as many kids who had an interest in this sport and then teach them as much as possible," Garcia said. "Over the years we've seen more and more kids come out, but it took a while."

Asked about his team's prospects, he deflects any notion that the Horsemen will add to a collection of trophies displayed on a shelf bolted to the wrestling room's south wall -- a collection so big that segments of it are bowing under the weight of all the hardware.

At least one member of the team is sure to bring in some fresh accolades. Sophomore Koery Windham, whose photo already hangs on the Wall of Champions, owns state titles at 125 and 135 pounds. He's gunning for another next week at 152.

Only three wrestlers in state history have won five individual state championships. Windham's response to his quest to add his name to the list underscores the work ethic Garcia is instilling in a program deserving of the public's attention.

"It would be nice to win, but it's about work," Windham said. "All of us in here are trying as hard as we can. If we get there, it's because of what we did in here."

Contact Will Webber at 986-3060 or wwebber@sfnewmexican.com.