With an opportunity to advance as many wrestlers as they can in the 10 weight classes, the Cerritos College wrestling team is looking to improve on their third place finish in the state championships last year after coming in second place in the Southern California Regionals.

This Saturday, the Falcons (6-3) will travel to Victor Valley for the Regionals, with the top eight from each weight advancing to the state championships the following weekend.

Leading the way for Cerritos is freshman Shanon Slack, who is rated #1 in the state at 141 pounds. He has posted a 17-1 record this season (12-0 at 141) and has already won tournaments at Sacramento and West Valley colleges.

A trio of wrestlers are rated #2 in their respective weight classes. Sophomore Scott Oda, who is 19-7 this season at 157 pounds, was injured prior to the Regionals his freshman season and is looking to make an impact this year.

Freshman Jerry Barragan is undefeated (13-0) this season at 174 pounds, while sophomore Damacio Page is 17-4 overall, but is 14-4 at 133 pounds, which is his specialty. As a freshman, Page was an All-American after placing third in both the State Championships and the Southern California Regionals.

In addition, sophomore Marco Lara has really come on strong at 149 pounds, where he is 7-0. He won the championship at the Cuesta Tournament and is rated #4 in the state, while freshman Chris Lopez could be a key to the team’s success. He is only 10-7 on the year, but has shown signs of breaking out after being a CIF champion in high school.

Freshman Lenny Lovato is rated #5 at 125 pounds and has posted a 15-4 record on the year, but could be in a fight for his spot, as sophomore Juan Revuelta is capable of moving up to his spot.

Freshman Emiliano Lopez will compete at 165 pounds, with sophomore Tad Millane and freshman heavyweight Diego Garcia rounding out the lineup.