Chris Krough was not at his best Wednesday and yet he finally
had reason to smile.
The Gilroy senior saw his first live action of the season.
Chris Krough was not at his best Wednesday and yet he finally had reason to smile.
The Gilroy senior saw his first live action of the season. While it was far from a dominating performance, the state qualifier from a year ago was able to gain an 8-4 decision in the Mustangs’ 55-6 Tri-County Athletic League win over host Alvarez.
“He had a lot of ring rust,” GHS coach Armando Gonzalez said of Krough, who’s ranked No. 1 at 130 in the Central Coast Section. “He had to make weight for the first time, which is always difficult. He’s struggling with his preseason form while everyone else is in midseason form.”
Freshmen Rodney Balajadia, 119, and Vincent Aboytes, 140, each won major decisions, as did Ethan Ogle. Travis Sakamoto, 145, won by decision.
“Rodney is wrestling like a real champion,” Gonzalez said. “Vincent is really rolling. He’s now 4-0 in league. He’s taking his lumps in tournaments but doing well in duel meets. Travis is also 4-0 in league and won at Cupertino. And Ethan is really solid, competing hard and winning.”
None of the TCAL meets have been close, and yet Gonzalez they serve a purpose.
“We’re taking care of business and getting through the season,” Gonzalez said. “We don’t put a lot of emphasis on them other than the Hollister meet.”
The tournament schedule continues this weekend but the travel itinerary won’t be quite as complex. The Mustangs compete in the one-day Overfelt Tournament that begins at 10am Saturday.
While Gonzalez said it is a very tough tournament, he acknowledges it’s “the easiest one on our schedule so far.”
And yet Gilroy will be pressed to defend its title since Hunter Collins, Martin Gonzalez, Rudy Maldonado and Jesse Rogers all will be left at home. All of them are healthy enough to wrestle but because of the 40-match limit prior to league finals Gonzalez will rest them. Krough, on the other hand, will be among those at Overfelt.
“We have three more duels and two more tournaments in addition to Overfelt,” Gonzalez pointed out.
