A year after taking second place in the CIF State Wrestling Championship last season, the Varsity Boys’ Wrestling team prepares for their 2022-23 season with one goal in mind: win the state championship.

   The team features four returning national finalists: seniors Adam Farha, Elias Navida, Angelo Posada, and Edwin Sierra.

   After placing in the state competition last season, senior Luke Condon, juniors Paul Kelly, Elias Navida, and Laird Root, and sophomores Angelo Posada and Edwin Sierra are also returning this year.

   The team’s greatest strength is their likemindedness, according to head coach John Meyers.

   “Our top wrestlers all have goals that go beyond the state tournament. We have many wrestlers who aspire to be national and world champions,” Meyers said.

   Their season began with a busy weekend Dec. 2-3 with teams traveling to Newbury Park, Calif. and Sidney, Mont., competing against schools in Southern California and across the nation.

   In Montana, the first team took first place in the team competition and had eight champions awarded in the individual side of the meet.

   Senior Luke Condon, juniors Paul Kelly, Elias Navida, and Root, and sophomores RJ Jones, Angelo Posada, Edwin Sierra, and Billy Townson each won their weight class while sophomores Devin Bobzien and Jalen Concepcion took second place, losing to teammates Sierra and Kelly.

   On Dec. 3, Titans competed against 26 Los Angeles County schools and Mt. Carmel in the Newbury Park Invite. They finished second at the team level and had four wrestlers win their weight classes.

   Seniors Amir Farha and Juan Pablo Plaza, junior Aliaksandr Kikinou, and freshman Tas Storer won their individual weight classes. Sophomore Ibraheem Farha and freshman Armani Rodriguez took second place in their weight classes, losing to Kikinou and Storer in the first-place match.

   Their next match comes Friday, Dec. 16 in the Reno Tournament of Champions as they continue on their road to the State Championships in Bakersfield, Calif. on Feb. 23-25.