Aaron Maddox aspires to some lofty goals as he enters wrestling’s postseason. Aside from advancing to the Sac-Joaquin Section Masters Meet, his real challenge comes from a familiar source.

“Definitely my main goal is just to go farther than Mitchell,” the Placer High junior said, referring to his identical twin brother. “We don’t really have goals for ourselves, we just want to beat each other. It’s a good sibling rivalry.”

The twins are integral parts of a Placer team that shined at Thursday’s Pioneer Valley League Championships. Mitchell won a PVL title at 130 pounds. Aaron was left with some catching up to do as he placed third at 140.

“My first main goal is to win PVL,” Mitchell said prior to the tournament. “To get this one is really important.”

Mitchell and Aaron have a lot in common. They’re both multi-sport athletes, but list wrestling as their main focus. Both Maddox twins are fierce competitors and devoted teammates.

When it comes to their styles, Mitchell and Aaron couldn’t be much more different. Clean-cut Aaron raises livestock and wears cowboy boots.

“I’ve got two pigs right now,” he said.

Shaggy-haired Mitchell is a soccer player who enjoys working on his car and is comfortable in sneakers.

“A lot of people say we’re completely different,” Aaron said. “Mitchell’s more casual. I wear cowboy boots every day. We used to do a lot of the same things, but in high school we started hanging out with different people and we just got into different things. It’s good though, we’re still close.”

As for their wrestling careers, their roles have changed dramatically this year. Last season, Aaron advanced to the Division IV Championships as a varsity wrestler while Mitchell was on the junior varsity team, stuck behind standout senior James Looney in the varsity lineup.

This year Mitchell is a captain, helping lead the Hillmen to a second straight PVL title. He got a headstart on the season in November and December while Aaron was playing defensive back on Placer’s section runner-up football team.

Aaron joined three other football players on the wrestling squad in mid-December, bringing some valuable postseason experience to the team.

“Just going to (the section final) gave us inspiration going into wrestling that we could do the same thing,” Aaron said. “Wrestling’s a bigger sport for me than football and it set me back a little bit, but I was happy going to the section final.”

Mitchell spent the fall as a midfielder on the soccer pitch.

“Soccer’s more of a fun thing — I go way farther in wrestling,” he said.

The Maddox brothers have helped spark a resurgence for the Placer wrestling program, which had gone almost two decades without a league title before last season. People around the Auburn campus are starting to take notice of the ongoing success. Earl Crabbe Gym was packed for the Hillmen’s final home match of the season against Bear River.

“Our school’s really focused on the basketball team, but the wrestling team’s a lot better,” Mitchell said. “I’m in student leadership and I told everyone to bring the “Gold Mine” to the wrestling matches. I think we’ve gotten a lot of (students) to really like wrestling.”

Like most grapplers this time of year, Mitchell is far from 100 percent physically. He has jammed fingers, a wrist that is often sore and a cheekbone that’s swollen and bruised. But he realizes most of his opponents are in the same position.

“My body’s feeling it,” Mitchell said. “But right now it’s all about that third period. Everyone’s got their little injuries they’re dealing with.”

The Maddox brothers will join a dozen teammates at next week’s Sac-Joaquin Section Division IV Championships at Whitney. As always, they will be keeping a close eye on each other and putting it all on the line to try and be the last Maddox standing.

“In sports we’re pretty much the same. It’s a very competitive thing,” Aaron said. “There’s nothing worse than losing to someone just like you.”