When the mats go down at Sonora High School this weekend for the CIF-Southern Section Masters Wrestling Championships, the High Desert won’t just be represented.
The High Desert will arrive in numbers.
Forty-four wrestlers, 27 boys and 17 girls, have qualified for the CIF-SS Masters, the final step before the state championships. And within that group are family storylines, state-ranked contenders and a legacy that dates back more than four decades.
Here are some things you should know about the CIF-SS Masters.
A family affair on the mats
The Desert’s most compelling storyline may also be its most personal.
For the second straight year, a trio of brothers has punched tickets to the Masters. Last year, it was three Humphrey brothers from Sultana. This year, the Nava brothers, from Barstow, will compete with a shot at qualifying for the state championships.
At the CIF-SS Eastern Division championships on Feb. 14, Maximo Nava had the strongest showing of the brothers with a third-place finish in the 175-pound division. Leonidas followed behind in fourth place at 144 pounds and Marcos Nava made the cut of qualifiers with a fifth-place finish at 165 pounds.
The Nava brothers will be joined by three other teammates on the mats this weekend.
Meanwhile, Cael and Jackson Humphrey return to Masters, continuing the family’s presence after their older brother Rocky graduated. The Humphreys proved a year ago that wrestling success runs in the bloodline as all three qualified for the state championships.
Ranked and ready
Twelve boys qualifiers from the High Desert are ranked inside the top 50 in the state by The California Wrestler.
Cael Humphrey, a junior, leads the way at No. 5 in the state at 132 pounds, after claiming the 132-pound title for the second year in a row at the CIF-SS Southern Division championships.
These are the 11 other local wrestlers ranked by The California Wrestler (in alphabetical order). The rankings were last updated on Feb. 12, and are expected to be updated on Feb. 19.
The girls are set to compete Saturday
The action at Sonora High School begins Friday with the boys tournament. The action ramps up again Saturday with the girls.
The Masters tournament for girls began in 2022 and just one local wrestler has been victorious there.
Excelsior’s Itzel Padilla returns to the Masters for her junior season after claiming the 135-pound title in 2024 and 2025.
Padilla reached the Masters after a second-place finish at the CIF-SS Girls Northern Division championships on Feb. 14.
Victor Valley’s Ellie Myer enters the Masters as the only girl from the High Desert to claim a divisional championship. She captured the 115-pound title at the Northern Division tournament.
These are the first round matchups for the 27 High Desert boys
These are the first round matchups for the 17 High Desert girls
This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: What to know about High Desert wrestlers at CIF-SS Masters Meet
Reporting by Jose Quintero, Victorville Daily Press / Victorville Daily Press
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
