Charter Oak wrestling represented at state

The Charter Oak High School wrestling team definitely has had its ups and downs. The program has usually found great success during league, however they rarely produce wrestlers who go deep into the tournaments. Junior Adriana Oliva has played a part in going above and beyond by reaching the state tournament for the second year in a row.

Oliva has been wrestling since she was 11 years old, and cites her two older brothers, as her reason for doing it.

“I started wrestling when I was in the sixth grade, and my sister was always at my practices and she wanted to join because she thought she would like it,” her brother Jesus, 12, said. “Our dad originally wouldn’t let her, but he changed his mind later on.”

Fast forward to this year. Oliva had made it past CIF and Masters, and was headed to the state tournament for the second straight year. Her last time at state wasn’t a triumphant one, with her being eliminated in the first day, so she was determined to perform better this time.

Adriana won her first match, however she lost her second. She still qualified to wrestle the next day. In order to qualify for the third day, Oliva would need to win all her matches in the second day since she had lost in the previous day. Once again, she won in the first round, but lost in the second round, eliminating her from state.

“It was a fun experience but it’s become a regular thing for me now,” Oliva said. “I think the way it ended this year is really motivating me to do well for next year.”

As her brother said: “I think she expects more from herself than we do.”

The wrestlers competing at state aren’t just the best in California, some of them are top-ranked nationally, which Oliva says has made her a better wrestler by going at it with them.Oliva’s goal for next season is to not only make it to state again, but to win it. She is open to wrestling at the college level, however she said it depends on which schools show interest in her.

— Andres Soto