Wrestling
CIF San Diego Section Masters meet
When: Boys wrestlers compete Friday and Saturday, while the girls wrestle Saturday only. Wrestling starts at 9 a.m.; finals begin at 1:45 p.m. Saturday on five mats.
Where: Christian High School, El Cajon
Boys wrestling
At stake: The top four finishers in each weight class advance to the state tournament, which will be held Feb. 27-March 1 at Mechanics Bank Arena in Bakersfield.
Defending team champion: Poway
Individual Masters champions returning: Arseni Kikiniou (Poway), 106 pounds; Edwin Sierra (Poway), 113 pounds; Robert Jones (Poway), 120 pounds; Billy Townson (Poway), 126 pounds; Mario Carini (Poway), 144 pounds; and Angelo Posada (Poway), 175 pounds.
Notable: Poway claimed its 43rd section title last week, putting all 14 wrestlers in the Division 1 section finals and winning 13 of them. The Titans have won the Masters tournament every year since they started keeping official team scores. With a pair of Stanford-bound seniors seeking their fourth Masters titles in state-runner-up Edwin Sierra (120) and defending state champion Angelo Posada (215) looking for their fourth Masters titles, little should change this year. This year’s Masters meet features 32 boys wrestlers who competed at last year’s state meet. Poway returns six state place-winners, led by the unbeaten Posada and Sierra. Other medalists from a year ago: Sierra (second at 113) Arseni Kikiniou (second at 106), Mario Carini (third at 144), Billy Townson (fourth at 126) and Robert Jones (sixth at 120). Brawley’s Evan Velez is also looking for a fourth state appearance. Expect a lot of Granite Hills vs. Poway rematches in the later rounds.
Girls wrestling
At stake: The top three finishers in each weight class advance to the state tournament, which will be held Feb. 27-March 1 at Mechanics Bank Arena in Bakersfield.
Defending team champion: Brawley
Individual Masters champions returning: Jennifer Favela (Brawley), 100 pounds; Xiomara Gallego (Poway), 115 pounds; Lauren Zaragoza (Brawley), 120 pounds; and Diana Duarte (San Marcos), 190 pounds.
Notable: Brawley has won three of the first four girls Masters meets. Their fourth win won’t come easy: The Wildcats won the Division 2 race two weeks ago, while Olympian captured the Division 1 title, coming from behind to edge Poway. Depth was the difference for Olympian against Poway, and it could be a factor again this week. Brawley advanced 10 wrestlers into the Masters meet; five are section champions, led by defending champions Jennifer Favela (115) and returning state sixth-place medalist Lauren Zaragoza (135), Destyni Perez (190) and Madison Vandiver (235). Poway sends nine into this week, with four section champs. The Titans are led by the Fodero sisters (Isabella at 100, Ava at 105), state third-place medalist Xiomara Gallego (140), Alyssa Jones (125) and Ava Ebrahimi (120). Olympian advanced eight wrestlers to the Masters, including champions Keagan Wynne Alatiw (135), Natalia Righellis (155) and Elisa Najera (235). Expect 140 pounds to be one of the best, with Rancho Bernardo’s Mary Snider, Granite Hills’ state fourth-place medalist Lucia Ledesma, Poway’s Gallego and Central Union’s Lily Rodriguez battling it out. Other state medalists competing Saturday include Roxanne Raab of Clairemont (seventh at 130) and Amber Spence of Santana (eighth at 145).
— KEVIN J. FARMER
