Imperial Valley Press

Two more Brawley wrestlers sign with Vanguard

- BY ELIZABETH MAYORAL CORPUS,

BRAWLEY — Brawley Union High School senior wrestlers Joey Navarro and Steven

Solis were cheered in the school’s gymnasium Thursday as they signed their letters of intent to continue in the sport at Vanguard University.

“This means that we did our job. These kids did theirs in the classroom and also got recognitio­n on the wrestling mat,” said Tony Leon, wrestling coach at BUHS and recent inductee into the California Wrestling Hall of Fame. “Not too many kids go to college and wrestle and do something they love.”

Leon said these signing ceremonies are always meaningful for him. Throughout his coaching career, more than 20 students have received wrestling scholarshi­ps, and he said it’s always exciting to see them succeed in the future on the mat and with a degree.

“They deserve this type of day and celebratio­n,” Leon said.

During the ceremony, BUHS wrestling coaches and athletic authoritie­s applauded both students’ performanc­e, beginnings and achievemen­ts.

Steven Solis never imagined this moment. He has been wrestling since third grade and initially didn’t like the sport. Thanks to his father’s love and support for the sport, he persisted and is now soon to be a Vanguard student, where he plans to pursue a nursing career.

“It’s the next step forward. I am setting my mind to the next big step in my future,” he said.

Although he is not certain to follow a wrestling career beyond college, Solis acknowledg­ed the sport has taken him far, and he recommende­d local youth give it a try.

“It’s a tough process, but you’ll fall in love with the sport, and it’ll teach you a lot of valuable lessons and how to be a good person to yourself and others,” he said.

For Joey Navarro, signing this scholarshi­p means fulfilling a childhood dream. He remembered watching college wrestling matches with his father and felt joyful about being an athlete.

“I’ve been waiting for this moment since I was probably in sixth grade,” Navarro said. “Everyday I’d come out and, you know, I gave it my all.”

Navarro recalled he wrote a letter to himself as a freshman where he stated that he would attend college due to wrestling.

“I read it today. I said to myself we’re going to achieve this, and now (that) I received this offer letter, it means so much,” he said.

He would like to keep pursuing wrestling in the future and considers himself a competitor at heart.

“Wrestling is going to come to an end one day, and I’ll carry it on into something else,” Navarro said. “If you have a dream, don’t give it up for nothing.”

After the signing ceremony, students were recognized by their families, academic community, and friends who took pictures with the soon-to-be Vanguard Lions.

Vanguard is a private, Christian university in Costa Mesa. It has about 2,500 students in all, and its athletic teams compete at the National Associatio­n of Intercolle­giate Athletics (NAIA) level.

Solis and Navarro will b one of three 2022 Brawley grads who will be wrestling for Vanguard in 2022-23. Their teammate Alan Carrillo signed a letter of intent with Vanguard in March.

Another Imperial

Valley product, Central Union’s Aaron Solorzano recently signed on with Vanguard to run track.

 ?? PHOTO ELIZABETH MAYORAL CORPUS ?? Brawley seniors Joey Navarro (right) and Steven Solis are seen here Thursday, moments prior to signing their letters of intent to wrestle for Vanguard University in Costa Mesa.
PHOTO ELIZABETH MAYORAL CORPUS Brawley seniors Joey Navarro (right) and Steven Solis are seen here Thursday, moments prior to signing their letters of intent to wrestle for Vanguard University in Costa Mesa.
 ?? PHOTO ELIZABETH MAYORAL CORPUS ?? Wrestling coach and new hall of fame inductee Tony Leon spoke to the students during the signature ceremony Thursday at Brawley Union High School.
PHOTO ELIZABETH MAYORAL CORPUS Wrestling coach and new hall of fame inductee Tony Leon spoke to the students during the signature ceremony Thursday at Brawley Union High School.

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