Hollister is a young program that is on the rise after qualifying its first wrestler for the state tournament a year ago.
That wrestler is back in senior Brandon Gandy.
“Brandon will be returning as a 285 pound wrestler this year and he is hungry to advance even further than last year,” coach Joe Pence said. “His experience as the first wrestler from our young program to get a taste of state-level competition will spark the entire team to do what it takes to get there and win matches.”
Josh Neville came up just one win short of a state qualification a year ago, and is hungry to make the state tournament this year at either 132 or 138 pounds.
“He (Neville) is as fit as ever and has the look of a champion. He will be the everyday motivator for the heart of our lineup,” Pence said.
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Senior Matt Cozart will try to move down from 138 pounds to 132 this season. Braedon Newell returns for his junior season at 145 pounds.
“His (Newell’s) length and experience will be combined with increased strength this season to really take the fight to opponents this season,” Pence said.
Freshman Austin Hove and junior Wolfe Redman will be new faces in the varsity lineup to watch. Junior Emily Chambers is new to wrestling and will compete at 106 pounds.
All of these wrestlers will look to keep improving with a new training facility and tougher schedule.
“We are excited to move into a new wrestling practice area this season and continue to build our program,” Pence said. “Our strength of schedule has increased greatly this season in order to better prepare our wrestlers for top-flight competition.”
With all of this, Pence expects an even stronger showing from his team come district time.
“Hollister is still a young program, but we expect to make some waves in individual weight classes,” Pence said. “Last season, we broke through with our first state tournament appearance and this year, we expect four to five wrestlers to reach that level.”
Hollister opens its season on Dec. 1 at Versailles.
