Photo courtesy of John Paul II Athletics
The John Paul II wrestling team took 10 wrestlers to the SCISA State Championships on Saturday, and eight came away with top-four finishes in the program’s second season of existence.
Elijah Moreno became the Golden Warriors’ first individual state champion, winning the 160-pound title in his first year on the mat.
Nathan Riley (120), Jonathan Field (145) and Adler Snyder (285) all finished second in their weight classes. Riley was third at 106 pounds last season, while Snyder was second at 220.
Luke Burton finished third at 126, and Stephen Schidrich (112), Ashton Brown (182), and Anthony Cedeno (195) finished fourth.
“The coaching staff is very proud of our wrestlers and happy to see that their hard work, sacrifice, and dedication were rewarded today,” JPII coach Bill Damude said. “All of these wrestlers are either first- or second-year wrestlers and none of them are seniors.”