Liberty wrestler Anna Bozanic wins school's first CIF title

Anna Bozanic celebrates a victory at last weekend's CIF individual wrestling championships.

By Doug Spoon, Editor

Liberty High School has been celebrating a series of firsts in the school’s initial year of varsity athlete competition. And now the Bison have their first CIF individual champion – Anna Bozanic.

Anna pinned every one of her opponents last weekend in a total of just 3:42 to win the heavyweight division at the CIF individual championships at Canyon Springs. It was the latest in a series of championship finishes in several youth wrestling organizations. And it probably won't be the last.

Just a freshman, Anna will next compete in the CIF Masters Meet in Palm Springs on Saturday, looking to qualify for the CIF State meet.

Among other things, Anna:

-- Won the California USA wrestling Triple Crown (Folkstyle, freestyle and Greco).

-- Was named a U.S. Open All-American and Preseason Nationals All-American.

-- Competed in the boys bracket of the Battle of the Belt in Temecula.

-- Won the league championship in her weight class.

-- Now has a 28-1 overall record after pinning the No. 1 seeded wrestler from Corona in just 36 seconds last week.

Anna’s daily routine begins about 6 a.m. and ends at 7:30 p.m. when the gets home from practice, with homework still to follow. How does she do it all?

“It’s mainly time management,” she said. “I do the things that are necessary. Plus my dad kicks my butt to make sure I get it done."

Anna’s father, Michael Bozanic, is also the technique coach for the boys and girls wrestling teams. He said he realized Anna’s potential eight years ago, when she went from watching her brother wrestle to taking on kids three and four years older than her.

“She never cared if she won or lost,” Michael said. “She would always just say, ‘That was fun.’”

As Anna developed as a wrestler, she began to learn how to study the strengths and weaknesses of opponents and to use the best strategy against them.

“I’m prepared for it,” she said. “I train for it and understand what I need to do. It comes easy when you prepare and you believe in yourself. Once I get the feel for a person, I know what moves will work, according to their tendencies.

“My strengths are my hard work and my technique. I have the ability to keep pressure on the opponent. And from what I learned in Greco, my lateral movement gives me an advantage.”

Michael says he has seen tremendous growth in Anna in that respect.

“It’s important to respect your opponent, but you have to be confident in asserting your will, to learn their tendencies so you know what tends to be available," he said. "You try to take away their go-to moves.”

Head wrestling coach John Phillips is impressed by what Anna has done this season.

"She is an amazing wrestler," Phillips said. "She is a student of the sport and is always looking for ways to learn more and get better at her craft. She is very funny and kind and we love watching her grow in this sport."

Michael said he believes Anna will continue to serve as a role model for other young girls who may become interested in wrestling because of the quick success of the program. Both the boys and girls won league team titles this year, and two of the boys placed high enough last week to earn a spot at Masters (Dylan Backer and Johnny Phillips).

“We’re still far away from what Luis [Robles] has at Paloma, but we won league and we proved ourselves one step at a time,” Michael said. “Last year we had 15 wrestlers at the end. This year we have 40.”

And that includes one very special wrestler who knows the importance of what she has already accomplished.

“I feel proud that I got to establish myself as the first at Liberty,” Anna said . “It will be a nice way to be remembered.”