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Angelo Posada is proud of the name he has made for himself. Every opponent the Poway High School wrestler meets sees that name staring back at them.
Posada recently got a tattoo featuring his family name in script and wrapped in a bed of olive leaves. It’s visible between the straps of his singlet.
“I had a bet with my father (Vincent Sr.) that if I win state, I could get it,” said Angelo, a senior who is headed to Stanford. “I always wanted a tattoo. My father has one with our name, too. It shows who and what I am. It represents my dad and family.”
The defending state champion in the 195-pound weight class, Posada is now California’s top-ranked 215-pound wrestler.
The state tournament has been good to Posada over the years. As a freshman, he finished fourth. He advanced to the state final as a sophomore before falling to St. John Bosco’s Nicco Ruiz. Now at Arizona State, Ruiz is currently ranked No. 14 at 165 in the NCAA.
That was Posada’s last loss on the high school level.
“It was awesome. I always wondered what it would feel like,” Posada said of the state title. “It’s really, really important for me to do it again.”
He’s well on his way.
After going 40-0 season last year, Posada is 24-0 this season. He has won five tournament titles, including the Reno Tournament of Champions and the Doc Buchanan in Clovis.
He has already handled his two closest state competitors, scoring a 21-6 technical fall over No. 3 Wes Burford of Oakdale in Reno and a 10-0 shutout of No. 2 Khale McDonnell of Fountain Valley, an Oregon State commit, at the Doc Buchanan.
Posada, a 6-foot-4, three-time San Diego Masters champion, is up two weight classes this season and filling out nicely.
“I’ve always dreamed of being big,” said Posada, who expects to be wrestling at heavyweight in college.
He has the length, a deadly array of shots and a vicious half-nelson that few have been able to solve.
“Being big is a different world,” Posada said. “I think it’s a bit easier. I’m able to move. My style throws them off.”
But it’s more than that.
“It’s his hard work, discipline and dedication in all aspects of his life,” said Poway coach John Meyers. “He is, quite simply, family, faith, academics and wrestling.
“He focuses so much on everything. He’ll do whatever it takes to get an ‘A’.”
Posada carries a 4.4 GPA, but said school “hasn’t been easy for me. It doesn’t come naturally. I’m really a grinder when it comes to that.”
He started wrestling when living in Chula Vista as a member of the Unleash the Beast club. Later he joined the Poway Wrestling Club, with his father regularly driving him to practice.
“I was so glad we moved to Poway in eighth grade,” Posada said. “At Poway, we do it all, and I love it. After high school, we go right into freestyle and Greco-Roman. It helps learning so much of the sport.”
In the last calendar year, Posada has won titles at a pair of the biggest events.
In July, he claimed the Junior National Freestyle title, beating Anthony Harris of St. Joseph of Montvale, N.J., in Fargo, N.D. He was third in the Greco-Roman tournament at Reno. In October’s Super 32 Challenge in Greensboro, N.C., he pinned Noah Weaver of Rossville, Ind.,for the title. Weaver is currently ranked No. 6 in the nation.
Posada already has rivals on the national level, including Nebraska-bound Cade Ziola of Omaha Skutt Catholic.
In September, Posada received a last-minute invitation to face Ziola in the 200-pound matchup of the Who’s Number One event in Johnstown, Pa. Ziola thwarted two deep Posada shots into a pair of takedowns of his own for a 7-2 victory.
The two rivals met again in the finals at Reno.
“I was thinking, ‘I need to beat this guy,’” said Posada. “I needed a different style. We determined I shouldn’t shoot at all, which was very hard for me. I really had to calm myself down and stay committed to it.”
The strategy worked. Posada beat Ziola 5-4 to take the Reno title. Posada is currently ranked No. 3 in the country by Sports Illustrated. Ziola is fourth.
All of Posada’s success begs the question: Is he the best Poway wrestler ever?
One person who can offer an opinion is longtime Poway coach Wayne Branstetter.
“It’s really hard to compare eras,” said Branstetter, reeling off names of past Poway greats. “But I was their coach and could be a bit biased. But if he goes on to win two straight state titles, is a four-time state medalist and a Fargo champion, he may have a case.”
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