Their opportunity is legit.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s all a matter of taking advantage of it for Kentwood High\u2019s wrestling Navejas siblings \u2014 brother Ruben, a 103-pounder, and sister Antonia, one of the nation\u2019s best at 152 pounds.<\/p>\n
If all breaks right during today\u2019s Mat Classic XXI at the Tacoma Dome, Ruben and Antonia will become the state\u2019s first-ever brother-sister combination to win a title in the same year.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s always a lot of pressure when you\u2019re predicted to hit a double state title between your brother and sister,\u201d said Ruben, who took fifth at last year\u2019s state tournament. \u201cWe\u2019ve talked about it. It\u2019s a really big year. She has a really good shot and I have a really good shot.\u201d<\/p>\n
If the Navejases are going to accomplish the feat, now\u2019s the time. Though Ruben, just a sophomore, likely will have two more cracks at a state championship, Antonia is a senior. She won the title as a sophomore and took second at state last year.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a pretty big deal,\u201d said Antonia, who currently is the top-ranked 152-pounder in the state and is ranked No. 5 in the nation. \u201cNo one has done it.\u201d<\/p>\n
That fact that the Navejases are so close is reason for pause.<\/p>\n
As a freshmen last year, Ruben proved to be one of the Valley\u2019s fastest-rising stars, entering the state semifinals with an unblemished 39-0 overall record.<\/p>\n
He finds himself in similar position this year. Though not perfect, he entered the first round of the state tournament on Friday with a 34-2 overall record. Those losses both came to top-ranked Bryce Evans of Rogers-Puyallup, whom Navejas has beaten once this year.<\/p>\n
The two standouts are on opposite sides of the bracket and are expected to meet in the finals, slated for 5 p.m. today.<\/p>\n
Despite the outlook, Ruben remains cool as ever.<\/p>\n
\u201cI just plan to go out and wrestle one match at a time,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Antonia is the favorite to win it all \u2014 and an overwhelming one at that. She entered the tournament on Friday with a perfect 19-0 record and is 94-20 for her prep career. In addition, Antonia pinned her way through sub-regionals and regionals the last two weekends.<\/p>\n
But just like her younger brother, Antonia remains cool under pressure.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve pretty much been training all offseason and during the season for this,\u201d she said. \u201cMy goal right now is to finish my senior year to go undefeated with a state title.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Navejas siblings will have family from around the state on hand at the Tacoma Dome this weekend.<\/p>\n
But things remain in perspective, even for dad, Ruben Sr., who has coached both kids all their lives.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not nervous,\u201d the proud father said. \u201cI\u2019m very excited to see both of them produce the way they have this year. Both of them work very hard to be where they\u2019re at. It\u2019s a big commitment by our whole family, not just them, for them to wrestle at the level they\u2019re at.<\/p>\n
\u201cBoth of them are ready to step up to the plate.\u201d<\/p>\n
And, if all goes as planned, make a little state history.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Their opportunity is legit. It\u2019s all a matter of taking advantage of it for Kentwood High\u2019s wrestling Navejas siblings \u2014 brother Ruben, a 103-pounder, and sister Antonia, one of the nation\u2019s best at 152 pounds. If all breaks right during today\u2019s Mat Classic XXI at the Tacoma Dome, Ruben and Antonia will become the state\u2019s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":106,"featured_media":8755,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"yst_prominent_words":[],"class_list":["post-8754","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8754"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/106"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8754"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8754\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8755"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8754"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8754"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8754"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=8754"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}