By Luke Holthouse

The highest number of wrestlers in school history qualified for CIF playoffs last season, but none of the 11 wrestlers advanced to CIF Masters. With eight wrestlers returning, the team could be one of the best in the program’s history, Brandon Chen ’12 said.

“We have set the bar much higher for our team than we did last year,” Chen said. “Hopefully, our training and hard work will pay off when the season comes around. After all, champions are made during the offseason.”

Chen, Steven Ring ’12, Elliot Storey ’12 and Russell Wolfe ’12 will captain the team. Chen said that the team goal for the season is to have as many wrestlers reach CIF Masters as possible, and maybe even state competition.

The team will need to fill voids left by former captains Jordan Bryan ’11, Ben Kogan ’11 and Jake Sonnenberg ’11.

“Those three seniors brought a strong sense of team, commitment and enthusiasm,” Chen said. “Although they left our team with a hole that was not easy to fill, we’re doing our best to fill their roles as captains.”