Matt McGouran|sports writer

Coming off of a season where five wrestlers attended the state tournament, the Johnson wrestling team is back and ready to start a new season. Many wrestlers are looking forward to the new year and a possibility to improve from last season.

“I’m excited to start the season and build off last years success,” junior Ashley McCutcheon said.

Last season, five Jags went to state including McCutcheon, who placed sixth, earning the first state medal in the history of the program.

“It was really exciting and amazing to place in state and I was proud of myself for all the hard work I did,” McCutcheon said, “but I was sad for my teammates who weren’t able to get as far.”

Many of the wrestlers on the team are looking forward to the season, so they can get back to wrestling and show what they have improved on during the offseason.

“I worked on my technique during the summer,” senior Camden Chavez said,”I’m coming back a lot more athletic, stronger and faster.”

While the team lost 2 wrestlers from last year, they also return a large amount and feel as though they can come back just as strong this season.

“We had a couple guys leave, but guys from last year are just as good and are ready to fill their spots,” Chavez said.

The team is preparing in anticipation of their second of many matches this season. They are doing what they can to keep themselves in shape and make sure they are able to compete as hard as they have in previous years.

“Usually on the days of matches we go over technique to make sure that we are completely prepared,” Chavez said,”we also go over our cardio.”

Players are excited to help the program reach new levels by setting goals for themselves and making sure they are ready to compete again. These goals are helping set the team up for what would hopefully be another successful season.

“My goals are to be state champion this year and improve from last year,” McCutcheon said.