ASHLAND – Six former state champions are among the 17 additions head coach Joel Gibson has made to the Southern Oregon University men's wrestling team for the 2022-23 season, which gets under way in five weeks.

The recruiting class comprises 13 freshmen and four transfers for Gibson, who is entering his third season at the helm. The Raiders officially opened practice last week, looking to build on a 19th-place finish at the NAIA Championships.

The newcomers will join a core that includes All-Americans Aaron Gandara, a junior, and Evan Potter, a sophomore, who last year gave the Raiders multiple top-six national finishers for the first time since 2017.

The class is listed alphabetically below:

MATTHEW BOLANOS | 157 LBS | Central Point, Ore./Crater HS
About: A three-time state placer at Crater … Claimed third in the 145-pound bracket at the 2022 OSAA Class 5A Championships, pinning three of his five opponents.

ANDREW CHOATE | 141 LBS | Nampa, Idaho/Columbia HS
About: Won a Class 4A Idaho state title as a senior at Columbia, and was the lowest-seeded champion to come out on top after entering in the No. 7 slot at 145.

JORDAN FAIFAI | 165 LBS | Roy, Utah/Syracuse HS
About: Accumulated 140 career wins and posted four top-four finishes at the Utah state championships … Won a regional title and placed third in the state as a senior … Also competing on the SOU football team as a defensive back.

SIMON GRAEBER | 125 LBS | Nampa, Idaho/Columbia HS
About: A high school All-American and two-time state runner-up at Columbia, wrestling at 126 as a senior.

HUNTER HARWOOD | 157 LBS | Springfield, Ore./Thurston HS
About: Went 38-3 with 28 pins as a senior at Thurston, capping his career with his first OSAA Class 5A title at 152 pounds … A four-time state placer, taking second as a junior, third as a sophomore and fifth as a freshman.

ALEX HERNANDEZ | 174 LBS | San Diego, Calif./Poway HS/U of Arkansas at Little Rock
About: Posted a 7-13 record in two seasons at Little Rock, which is part of the Pac-12 Conference in wrestling … Named twice to the Academic All-Pac-12 Conference team … Placed as high as fourth as a state qualifier at Poway High.

ANDREW HERRERA | 197 LBS | South Lake Tahoe, Calif./South Tahoe HS/San Francisco State U
About: Won two Nevada Class 3A championships at South Tahoe … Competed for two seasons at San Francisco State, going 8-11 as a freshman in 2018-19.

MIKEY LADKANI | 125 LBS | Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif./Tesoro HS
About: As a senior at Tesoro, placed third at 113 in the CIF Eastern Division Championships.

JOHN PAUL LAVARIUS | 125 LBS | Anchorage, Alaska/West Anchorage HS
About: A two-time state placer at West Anchorage … Captured fourth as a senior at 119.

DYLAN MANN | 141 LBS | La Pine, Ore./La Pine HS
About: Won two individual state championships at La Pine … While helping his team to his third state title in four seasons, dominated the OSAA Class 3A 138-pound bracket with three straight pins to garner Moda Athlete of the Night honors … Was the 132-pound state champ as a junior, the 120 runner-up as a sophomore, and the 113 runner-up as a freshman.

JADEN MARTIN | 285 LBS | Baker, Ore./Baker HS
About: Topped off a 42-4 season as a senior with the OSAA Class 4A heavyweight championship, going 4-0 with three pins in the tournament … Was the state runner-up in 2021.

LANDON MYERS | 157 LBS | Grants Pass, Ore./North Valley HS
About: A 152-pound qualifier for the OSAA Class 4A Championships as a senior … Placed third in the Special District 3 tournament.

DEREK RAMOS | 141 LBS | Idaho Falls, Idaho/Idaho Falls HS/Western Wyoming CC
About: Went 12-6 last year at Western Wyoming … As a prep at Idaho Falls, was a three-time state runner-up, a Fargo runner-up and a high school All-American.

ANGEL RIOS | 157 LBS | Nampa, Idaho/Columbia HS/Minnesota State U Moorhead
About: Posted a 185-33 career record in high school, including a 50-2 mark as a senior when he won his second state title … A three-time national finalist … At Moorhead, qualified for the NCAA Division II Super Regional 5 Tournament in 2021.

CUTTER SANDSTROM | 285 LBS | Scappoose, Ore./Scappoose HS
About: A three-time OSAA Class 5A state placer at Scappoose … Took fifth as a sophomore, second as a junior and third as a senior in 2021.

VARRIUS SCANLAN | 165 LBS | Roseburg, Ore./Roseburg HS
About: Placed second at 152 pounds as a senior at the 2022 OSAA Class 6A Championships, finishing the season with a 35-7 record ... Captured third place in the same weight class as a junior.

MITCH WARREN | 125 LBS | Prineville, Ore./Crook County HS
About: The OSAA Class 5A 120-pound runner-up as a senior in 2022 … Placed third at 113 as a junior and sixth at 106 as a sophomore.