GILROY—South County’s wrestlers have successfully defended their home turf on the first day of the Mid-California Classic wrestling tournament.
Ten representatives from Gilroy, Christopher, Sobrato and Live Oak have advanced to the quarterfinals of MidCals after going head-to-head with wrestlers from more than 80 schools from around the Golden State.
And to make things even sweeter, this was the first MidCals for six of the 10 quarterfinalists.
Gilroy’s Nick Aguilar, Joseph Delgado, Alex Felix and Tony Andrade are all freshman who made it to the quarters. They’re joined by Sobrato’s Harrison Zhang and Live Oak’s Adam Mito, who are also wrestling in their inaugural MidCals.
“I didn’t expect to be in the quarterfinals, but I’m glad,” the 122-pound Zhang said. “This tournament, more schools come here and it’s just tough overall. I’m just glad to be here.”
Veterans Noe Garcia, Gavin Melendez and Matt Penyacsek from Gilroy and Christopher’s Alex Garcia also advanced.
Aguilar, 108, was the first to claim a spot in Saturday’s quarterfinals. He pinned Fremont’s Angelo Reyes just 55 seconds into the match. It was his second of the day, having pinned Grant Kaiser of Leigh with a second to spare in the first round.
Even though Aguilar has national titles, he said he was humbled to make it to the quarterfinals where he will face Angelo Reyes of Fremont.
“I felt relieved that I made it to the quarters after that match,” he said. “There’s a lot of tough guys in my weight. I’ve just got to prove that I’m the best. …I’m just taking it one match at a time and focus on the little things that I’m rusty in.”
Andrade also advanced via pin, getting the fall on Saul Gutierrez from McQueen at the 3:46 mark of their 184-pound match. It was his second of the day, having pinned Lucas Olgiati from Monte Vista Christian at 4:19 in his second round match-up.
Andrade will take on Nick Maximov from Chico in the quarterfinals.
Penyacsek was third Mustang to advance via pin—also his second of the day. He pinned McQueen’s Joey Miller at 2:26 in their 197-pound bout to set-up a quarterfinal meeting with Mark Halajan from Clovis West.
Penyacsek had a first round bye and then made quick work of Jack Harris from Aptos. He pinned him just 46 seconds into their second round match.
Christopher’s Alex Garcia cemented his No.1 Central Coast Section ranking after a dominant 20-4 win over Brian Mayfield from West Valley in their 162-pound match.
Mayfield’s points came only from escapes, but Alex Garcia would grab his legs and pull him back in each time he got away. Alex Garcia scored takedown after takedown in the match and almost had him pinned—twice—but had to settle for near fall points.
That wasn’t the case earlier in the day, however, as Alex Garcia pinned Watsonville’s Kohana Wilks at the 3:51 mark. He’s now prepping for his quarterfinal bout with Jonah Valenzuela from Sequoia.
Delgado easily handled Nate Sereni of Archbishop Riordan 9-3 to land in the quarters. He took a dominant 7-1 lead after two periods, ensuring his opponent never got out of arm’s reach. Sereni gained a point for a stalling violation and another on an escape, but Delgado notched another late takedown for the win. He will face Isaiah Perez of Pitman in the quarterfinals.
Rookie Mustang Felix made easy work of Paso Robles wrestler Lawrence Ray, winning by a 17-6 major decision. Felix had a 13-5 lead heading into the final period, when Ray picked up an escape to get within seven. Felix had his opponent in a cradle and was working for the pin, but Ray was able to avoid it. The Mustang had to settle for the nearfall instead.
Felix pinned Los Banos’ Victor Leal at 3:32 in his first match of the day after having two byes.
Things weren’t as easy for Sobrato’s Zhang, who got a late scare from Patterson’s Steve Rincon in their 122-pound bout. Zhang led 4-2 in the third quarter and showcased his somersault skills as he avoided the reversal that would’ve tied the score. Rincon escaped just a moment later to get within one, 4-3, but the Bulldog answered with a takedown for the 6-3 victory.
“I was tired in the third period,” Zhang said. “He was a tough guy. He’s stronger than me; he’s older than me. It was a tough match.”
Zhang pinned Tracy’s Boston Tanzi at the three-minute mark in his first round bout and automatically advanced due to a forfeit in his second round match-up. He will face Gio Zacarias from Aptos in the quarterfinals.
Gilroy’s Melendez also had a tough 122-pound match-up. He and Isaiah Walls from Clovis West were evenly matched and took a scoreless tie into the second period. Melendez finally notched a point on an escape in the second and was taking shots at his opponent, but couldn’t get the takedown. He scored another point on a violation from Walls to take a 2-0 lead in the third. Melendez almost had his opponent in the cradle, but he was able to escape and the Mustang held on to win 2-1. He will take on Sutter Union’s Mike Adams in his quarterfinal bout.
Live Oak’s Mito came away with a 2-0 decision after his hard-fought match with Ryan McGannon from Terra Nova. The Acorns’ points came from a quick takedown in the opening seconds. McGannon tried to use his height to get wiggle out from under Mito’s grasp, but was quickly knocked back down. The bout was almost tied when the Terra Nova wrestler looked to have a takedown, but was out of bounds.
“That guy was tough. He was real long and lanky and he reached me, which I’m not used to getting reached,” Mito said.
He will take on Calloway Morphis from Frontier in the quarters.
“I’m excited. I’ve never been to this tournament before,” Mito said. “I know it’s huge and schools come from all around, so there’s some good competition.”
Noe Garcia topped Los Banos’ Daniel Fernandez 9-5 to advance to the 197-pound quarterfinals. He also beat Live Oak’s Morgan Smith 7-2 in his second round match-up. Noe Garcia will face Ed Montejo from Frontier in the quarterfinals.
But it wasn’t all smooth sailing.
Christopher’s Adam Mena, who won the 145-pound Bert Mar title last week, was eliminated in the consolation bracket. He was pinned by Eric Angel from Carlmont, despite leading 10-6. Angel had Mena facedown and was trying for the pin, but had to settle for the near fall, but gained an 11-10 lead. Angel notched a takedown to take a 13-10 lead and got the pin at 3:28.
“I was kind of upset because I knew I could beat him,” Mena said. “Just today, I’m not having the best day. I’m sick and I knew I wasn’t going to have a good tournament.”
MidCals continues with the quarterfinals at 9 a.m. Saturday at Gilroy High. Follow @DispatchERed on Twitter for live results and pictures from the tournament.
