By: Mariah Gomez and Cody Abney
On Friday, February 10th, the Ranger Wrestling team traveled to Bakersfield to compete in the CIF Central Section tournament. Four wrestlers won an individual championship at that tournament, 2 on the boy’s side and 2 on the girl’s side. The boys were Eli Valdez ’23 and Enrique Segura ’26, and the girls were Jennah Creason 24′ and Audrey Segura ‘25.
Valdez ‘23 is a wrestler in the 160-pound weight class. When asked about winning an individual championship, Valdez says, “It feels great, I worked hard in order to win valley individually but it wouldn’t have been possible without my teammates.” Valdez has been wrestling for a total of 4 years, 2 years in middle school and 2 in high school.
Segura ‘26 is a wrestler in the 195 weight class. His ultimate goal is to qualify for state, he says, “I feel I have the potential to qualify for state, it’s tough but I’ve been thinking about this moment since I was 7 when I was watching the state finals. There is a lot of excitement leading up to that.” Segura is very confident heading into State championships.
Audrey Segura ‘25 was also an individual winner, this time for the second year in a row. Segura says, “I just came into it wanting to win and uphold my title.” Segura wrestles in the 150 weight class and is in her 10th year of wrestling and second for Redwood. Segura is also the number one seed in her bracket. She hopes to make the most out of her opportunity at the state championship.
Another winner was Wrestler and Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fighter Jennah Creason ‘24. Creason says that “It feels incredible to win valley, it’s just another step towards my goal of winning state.” She also says that “being able to meet other girls and making connections is always fun.” Creason mentions that she is “doing everything it takes to go to state but that is something that’s up to God and his plan.”
All of the wrestlers have different motives when it comes to being on the mat. Eli Valdez ‘23 says, “My main motivation was me quitting wrestling my freshman year. I couldn’t live with the fact that I had quit so I had to come back.” Enrique Segura ‘26 says, “All the people that know what I am trying to accomplish in the sport of wrestling are all my biggest supporters and they make me be the best I can be.” Audrey Segura ‘25 also says that “My family and teammates, especially from this year are my motives because we are all really supportive of each other.” Jennah Creason 24’ ends it off by saying, “I always wanted to become a Ranger and win a state title and be one of the first girls to do so!”
Cody Abney
Cody Abney '25 is a second year writer for the Redwood Gigantea. He is interested in writing for the Sports and Arts and Entertainment. Abney is a very dedicated writer and specializes in feature pieces.
Tags: Cody Abney, mariah gomez, sports
