Austin Wehe, President

Austin Wehe was born in Dallas, TX and grew up between there and South Florida. He wrestled throughout high school and has stayed involved with various grappling, martial arts and other sports since then, including power lifting and outrigger canoe racing. Austin met his wife Jessica in high school and together they have two children who both enjoy the great sport of wrestling. Austin is an IT Manager in the East Bay but loves Petaluma where he has lived since 2007. As PWC’s first ever Board President and a coach, Austin volunteers countless hours for our club. He can also be found supporting the extended wrestling community whenever needed, lending coaching support to our local association (Coastal Mountain Wrestling Association), providing IT assistance at events, and helping with fundraisers. In 2022 he began working with the Casa Grande High School wrestling team as an assistant girls’ coach. He holds Copper, Bronze, and Teal USA Wrestling Leader certifications.

Abby Lucha, Vice President

Abby Lucha grew up in Novato, CA where she competed in gymnastics, swimming, and cheerleading. Abby attended Dominican University in San Rafael, majoring in politics and minoring in history and pre-law, graduating cum laude with honors. While attending college, Abby coached gymnastics at Novato Gymnastics and coached swimming at Rolling Hills Club as well as for the Marin Pirates. Abby went on to attend law school at Golden Gate University while continuing to coach swimming and gymnastics. While in law school she developed a passion for public interest work, interning at the Tenderloin Housing Clinic and the Family and Children’s Law Center. Since graduating, Abby has worked in private practice, served as the Executive Director of the Family and Children’s Law Center, and has worked with the California Superior Courts. Abby has served as a board member for Petaluma Wrestling Club since July 2022. Her legal background and keen analytical skills have proven to be a great asset. Abby resides in Petaluma with her husband and two children. Abby’s two sons are both active in PWC, and while she is not as familiar with wrestling as other sports, she is learning as she goes. After all, with a name like “Lucha” it just makes sense to be involved with a wrestling club!

Ben Pearce, Secretary

Ben Pearce wrestled locally for Sonoma Valley High and posted a senior year record of 50-6 with 43 pins. He continued his wrestling career in college and spent two years competing for the Santa Rosa Junior College (SRJC) Bear Cub wrestling team. During the 1999 season, Ben was the champion and named outstanding wrestler (OW) of the SF State Invitational wrestling tournament. He finished the season by placing 7th at the California Community College State Championships. Ben also received 197 lb Bay Valley Conference (BVC) 1st Team All Conference honors. After the SRJC, Ben went on to earn a bachelors and masters degree from CSU, Chico. During and after Chico, Ben coached high school wrestling for a total of seven years at Pleasant Valley High and Marin Catholic High. Ben and his wife live in Novato, CA and have three sons, all of whom compete for the Petaluma Wrestling Club. He works in the Construction Management industry. Ben is excited to be a part of the PWC board and contribute to the mission of creating a fun environment to train young athletes and teach the technical/life skills of wrestling. He holds a USA Wrestling Leader Bronze Level coaching certification.

Brad Bryon, Treasurer

Brad Bryon was born and raised in Marin County (San Rafael and Novato) and wrestled for San Marin High School for three years and College of Marin for one year. While in high school, Brad and fellow teammates organized lunchtime wrestling exhibits at three local schools which lead to their running a much bigger event, a junior high wrestling tournament! Their efforts to grow and spotlight wrestling in their community helped San Marin win league titles for the following 12 years. Later, when his sons began wrestling in Petaluma, Brad saw that participation in our great sport was not what it could be and stepped up to coach Kenilworth Junior High School’s team. Brad’s proven record of growing wrestling in Marin County served to benefit Petaluma, as his first year as a coach at Kenilworth brought 30 wrestlers and his second year increased to 50 wrestlers. Brad’s successor Isaac Raya continued to grow the Kenilworth program as Brad moved on to help coach Casa Grande High School’s wrestling team. Brad has a professional background in finance which greatly benefits PWC’s administrative operations. He also looks forward to using his USA Wrestling Leader coaching certification to assist out on the mat!

Isaac Raya, Director

Isaac Raya co-founded Petaluma Wrestling Club in 2019 and serves as a board member and coach for all ages. He wrestled at Analy High School and began his 20+ year coaching career in 2001 as the head coach of the El Molino Lions. In 2005 Isaac began coaching wrestling in Petaluma for Kenilworth Junior High School and Casa Grande High School. He is currently the head coach of the Casa Grande Gauchos wrestling team. His recent accomplishments include leading the Gauchos to three Vine Valley League Championships, three top 10 team finishes in the North Coast Section, and the earning of two 3rd place North Coast Section team dual banners. In 2023 he won the Petaluma People’s Choice Award for Best High School Coach. Isaac maintains a current USA Wrestling Leader Bronze Level coaching certification as well as CPR, First Aid and Concussion certifications. He works as a teacher at Kenilworth Junior High School and was named Sonoma County Teacher of the Year in 2015. His wonderful family includes wife Julie, and kids Cora and Joaquin.

Mike Gardner, Director

Mike Gardner is a co-founder of Petaluma Wrestling Club, the Executive Director, and a current board member and coach. He wrestled for Terra Linda High School in San Rafael and was a two-time team captain and a Marin County Athletic League champion. He was the head wrestling coach for Terra Linda High School from 1999-2005, winning the Marin County Athletic League team championship all seven years. In 2005 his team won the inaugural North Coast Section Redwood Empire championship. Mike’s dual meet coaching record was 46-2 vs Marin County Athletic League teams and 76-13 overall. In 2014 Mike was inducted into the Marin County Athletic Hall of Fame for coaching. He is a career educator, originally trained as a special education teacher and now the superintendent of the Waugh School District in Petaluma. He holds a Master’s of Organization and Leadership degree and is a USA Wrestling Leader certified coach with Copper and Teal certifications. Mike resides in Petaluma with his wife and two children, both of whom wrestle for PWC.

Matthew Becker, Director

Matthew Becker was born and raised in Pennsylvania, wrestling both in high school and collegiately at Ursinus in his home state. With wrestling in his blood, he started coaching at Grossmont High School while student teaching. He eventually landed at Scripps Ranch High School in San Diego. Over seven years, his Scripps teams won the Eastern League (4x), City Conference (5x), and CIF in 2007. In 2009, Matthew took over at Centennial (Tenn.) High School, just outside of Nashville – a moribund program that had not won a dual meet in years. Over the next four years, Centennial won more than 90 dual matches. He was voted the 2010 Region 6 Wrestling Coach of the Year for completing the program’s turnaround in less than two years and had the privilege of coaching a state champion and multiple state placers. Since 2013, he has continued as a volunteer coach in the Sacramento area and now volunteers for PWC and Casa Grande High School. He is a certified USA Wrestling Leader and Bronze Level Coach. Matthew spent more than 20 years as an educator and currently represents public entities as a defense attorney, which allows him to remain close to his public school teaching roots. He lives in Amador County with his horses, dogs, cats, and memories of his dearly departed wife.