SAN MARCOS — Nine Comet wrestlers, including six freshmen, are aiming for podium finishes in the 2025 state championships on Dec. 12 and 13 at Sierra College.

In 2021, when Tim Box made his coaching debut for Palomar men’s wrestling, the program finished in 16th place. The Comets have continued to improve under Coach Box, and ultimately secured third place at the 2024 state championships.

The 2024 season produced two state champions and four medalists total.

“It was a big deal for us to get third last year,” Box said. “It shows that we can still win here at Palomar and we have the ability as long as we keep building.”

Palomar currently ranks seventh overall in the state after placing fourth at the SoCal Regional Championship on Dec. 6.

Box is confident that this season’s medal count can surpass that of 2024.

Here are the wrestlers who will be competing and their weight divisions:

• Sophomores: Jakar Carter (197 pounds), Ivan Natceli (174 pounds) and Nick Rodriguez (149 pounds)

• Freshmen: Nick Garris (197 pounds), Seth Iten (174 pounds), Alejandro Scolari (285 pounds), Marvin Morton (157 pounds), Sebastian Anderson (174 pounds) and Sergio Porras (147 pounds)

Box and his staff have coached more than 30 state medalists, both men and women, at Palomar College, including four state champions. And the 2025 men’s team has multiple strong contenders this year.

Natceli earned bronze at the 2024 state championships, Box described Anderson as a monster and Carter was just one point shy of winning the regional tournament.

“When it comes to wrestling at these higher-level tournaments, it’s all mental,” Carter said. “Everyone expects big things, and we’re all expecting big things from ourselves.”

The week leading up to the state meet has been less about physical training and more about getting the wrestlers ready mentally.

“Everyone going into this tournament from Palomar and every other school is prepared physically. The hard part’s just being mentally prepared,” Iten said.

Iten’s last match is what will motivate him at the state tournament, as he easily took down a wrestler who had bested him to start the season.

“He teched me my very first match of the season, and then I ended the [regional] match by pinning him in the second period. It was a nice little sendoff before state since I got a little redemption,” Iten said.

Even with standout performances like Iten and others beating wrestlers who defeated them earlier in the season, the defining moments for Palomar wrestling will be at the state championships. Nine Comets will put their training, struggles and ambitions to the test and leave it all on the mat.

“We’ll all get behind each other, and we’ll all tough it out to the end of our matches,” Natceli said. “At this stage everybody is roughly at the same skill level. The end result will show who pushed their limits and wrestled harder.”

Follow the Comets on Dec. 12 and 13 at the state championships with the following live link.