Palisades High wrestling coach Randy Aguirre died shortly after midnight Thursday at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center after a nine-month battle with brain cancer. He was 30.
“For awhile we thought [the treatment] was working, but cancer is a tough battle and unfortunately we fell a little short in the end,” Randy’s younger brother Jonathan said. “He’s in a better place now.”
Aguirre wrestled at South Hills High in West Covina, Mt. San Antonio College (where he was the school’s first two-time Southern Conference champion) and then at San Francisco State. He was hired to start the Pali High wrestling program in 2011 and in just his third year the Dolphins finished fourth at the City Section finals and won the inaugural City dual championships last winter.
“[Athletic Director] John Achen and I did a lot of background, looking for the right person and Randy turned out to be everything we wanted,” Pali High assistant principal Russ Howard said. “He was a darn good P.E. teacher too.”
Aguirre was diagnosed with glioblastoma, a grade IV brain tumor, in May.
Only days after completing six weeks of radiation and chemotherapy treatment, Aguirre attended a “Cure the Coach” fundraiser in August at the Jon Lovitz Comedy Club in Universal City to share hugs and handshakes with team members and their families. Another fundraiser was held in October. Aguirre returned to campus in the fall, but checked back into the hospital during the Blackwatch Tournament at the end of December.
“Through this I may have lost a son, but I’ve gained 14 other ones,” Randy’s father James said. “He’s paved the way for them to become good young men just like Randy was.”
Assistant Coach Aldo Juliano said he’ll take the reins for the rest of the season and that the legacy his friend started will continue.
“No quit − that’s what our team will be about from now on,” he said. “This program’s not going to stop. We’ve come too far. We’ve worked too hard to let it end. We’re ranked second in City right now.”
— Steve Galluzzo
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