SLAM! Nevada boys wrestling named Nevada Preps team of the year

SLAM! Nevada’s boys wrestling program keeps on rewriting the state record book.

In less than a decade of the school’s existence, the Bulls’ boys wrestling team has become one of the most dominant high school sports programs in the state.

SLAM! Nevada continued its dominance this winter. The Bulls had nine wrestlers win individual state titles, which helped them score 247.5 points to win a fifth straight Class 5A team state title on Feb. 14 in Winnemucca, 133.5 points ahead of second-place McQueen.

The Bulls’ nine state champions are the most individual state champions by a team in the top classification, according to known records by the NIAA. Because of another dominant season, the SLAM! Nevada boys wrestling team has been named the Nevada Preps Team of the Year.

“They were a real family this year,” SLAM! Nevada coach Jake Rollans said. “This group was really tight and they were there for each other and built each other up. That’s what really led to all our success.”

Among the team’s nine individual state champions were seniors Brenden Jorden Agcaoili (138 pounds), a North Dakota State signee and Purdue signee Drake Hooiman (150 pounds), who each won their fourth individual state titles. Agcaoli and Hooiman became the 46th and 47th wrestlers in state history to win four individual state titles.

“It feels great,” Agcaoili said. “We walk into the gym every time, we look at the banners. It’s so amazing to see all our hard work every time we come to practice. We’re always excited to be around the best kids in the state. You always look forward to wrestling the best.”

‘Maintain high expectations’

Rollans, a graduate of Green Valley High School, has coached since he was 18 years old and helped run the Gators’ youth programs as Green Valley would go on to win six straight 4A team state titles from 2012 to 2017.

But in 2016, Rollans was offered to lead SLAM! Nevada’s wrestling program, at the new charter school just a short drive away from Green Valley.

It’s been a meteoric rise for SLAM! Nevada, which had its first individual state champion (seven) at the 3A level in 2020 in a team runner-up finish for the state title. Then during COVID, SLAM! Nevada petitioned to jump 4A and go to the new 5A classification beginning for the 2021-22 school year.

“I maintain high expectations,” Rollans said. “Being a state champion is actually never really one of our goals. Our goal is to be the best in the country. With that comes being a state champion.

“I truly want to be the best in the country and I want these kids to have the opportunity to go to college.”

Similar to other national powerhouse programs throughout Southern Nevada like Bishop Gorman football, Basic baseball or Centennial girls basketball, the Bulls during the season traveled to participate in national tournaments around the country, such as in California, Utah, Ohio and Pennsylvania.

“I know that every match I’ve wrestled and I’ve trained to beat the best kids in the country, that the kids in Nevada come a little bit easier than the best kids in the country,” said Hooiman, who earned All-American status at with a runner-up finish at the Tournament of Champions in Reno in December.

“That was just a big part for me and the schedule that Jake puts together, it’s easy to become successful when you’re around these kinds of people all the time.”

‘Don’t see us stopping’

At the 5A Southern Region meet, SLAM! Nevada had 12 wrestlers reach the finals across the 14 weight classes and claimed 10 region titles to win its fifth straight region team title by 166 points.

SLAM!’s dominance continued at state as nine Bulls won state titles: Vander Tran (106 points), Destin Maestas (120), Frank Soliz (132), Agcaoili (138), Anthony Delgado (144), Hooiman (150), Isaac Balden (157), Santiago Cabrera (175) and Satoshi Davis (215).

“The guys in the room that we train with constantly are the best in the state,” Hooiman said. “We got the best partners in the room. We got the best coaches in the room. We’re looking to beat our partners every day.

“Our toughest matches are every day in the room and when we show up to competitions, we’re ready for battle.”

Hooiman and Agcaoili became the second and third SLAM! Nevada wrestlers to win four straight titles, joining current Oregon State rising sophomore Manny Saldate.

“Seeing (Hooiman and Agcaoili) all the way through from there all the way to high school and seeing both of them progress, it’s been an honor,” said Rollans, who has known and coached the two wrestlers since their youth days. “I can’t wait to see them at the Division I level next year. They got bright futures. They’re going to represent Nevada really well.”

There’s no signs that SLAM! Nevada’s dominance will stop soon. The Bulls had a group of freshmen and sophomores contribute this season and expect to have a strong incoming freshman class this winter.

“I feel like we’re just getting better and better, and we got a lot of incoming freshman this next year,” Agcaoili said. “I think they have potential to do even better than us.

“That’s the main goal every year, just to keep getting better and I don’t see us stopping anytime soon.”