Cerritos Narrowly Defeats FCC For Wrestling State Title
by John Van Gaston, CCCSIA
Team Results and Individual Awards
SAN LUIS OBISPO - Knowing that winning just one of their head-to-head matches against Fresno City College would clinch the California Community Athletic Association (CCCAA) State Wrestling Championship, Cerritos College got just that at 149 pounds when Keanu Tom defeated Adrian Gomez, 6-4 in overtime. The win was one of four individual state championships for the Falcons, who captured the title with 167 team points, while the Rams had 159 points. It was the fourth state championship for Cerritos and first since 2002.
The Falcons were in good shape, as they had seven wrestlers in the championships, including 285 pounds, where they were guaranteed a title with both entries. It was the same for Fresno City, who dominated the 125-pound weight class. The Rams won three individual state titles to increase their all-time state lead to 71 champions, with Cerritos a distant second with 54 state title winners.
For his team's efforts, Donny Garriott was named the Coach of the Year, with top assistant Eric Gould garnering the Assistant Coach of the Year nod. Fresno City's 174-pound Mo Nasser was voted the Most Outstanding Wrestler.
Due to an injury he suffered at the Northern California Championships last week, Adrian Camposano was unable to compete in the state championship match. As a result, Arnulfo Olea was named the state champion at 125 pounds.
3rd Place - Gio Castillo (Mt. SAC) pinned Silverio Esparza (West Hills), 1:54
5th Place - Ritchie Taira (Mt. SAC) def. Gary Howe (Cerritos), 5-1
7th Place - Darren Nguyen (Chabot) over Marcos Velasquez (Bakersfield), injury default
NOTES: Arnulfo Olea defeated Camposano, 1-0 in the Northern California finals and placed 2nd at 125 pounds last year.
133 Pounds - Dustin Kirk (Cerritos) def. Alberto Garcia (Palomar), 9-5
Dustin Kirk, a 3rd place finisher at 125 pounds in 2013, was looking to avenge his only loss of the season, a 10-9 decision to Garcia in the Southern California championship match last weekend. Kirk held a 4-2 lead after the first period and allowed a reversal late in the second period to tie the match. He escaped with :20 seconds left and then opened the third period with another escape point. He put the match out of reach on a takedown with :32 seconds remaining in the third period to secure the championship.
3rd Place - Albert Landeros (Sacramento City over Travis Roberts (Sierra), 2:12 (Injury)
5th Place - Vicente Hernandez (Fresno City) def. Ronald Collister (Santa Ana), 6-0
7th Place - Arik Onsurez (Bakersfield) pinned Anwar Halteh (Skyline), 2:17
NOTES: In addition to Kirk competing at 125 pounds last year, Alberto Landeros took fourth at 125 pounds, while Vicente Hernandez placed seventh at 133 pounds last season.
141 Pounds - Terrill Sidner (Mt. SAC) pinned Connor Pollock (Cuesta), 4:40
It looked as if Connor Pollock was going to pull off the upset, as it looked like he had Terrill Sidner in bad shape in the second period. But after his two-point near-fall was recorded, Sidner switched his position and got Pollock on his back for the pin.
3rd Place - Isiah Alva (Fresno City) over Jonas Gaytan (Fresno City), MFF
5th Place - Daniel Romero (Rio Hondo) def. Trent Nicholson (Sierra), 11-9
7th Place - Lake Gee (Sacramento City) pinned Dominic Cesena (Chabot), 1:54
NOTES: Eric Ambriz (Cerritos), who did not place this season, took eighth place at 141 pounds last year. Sidner defeated Pollock, 9-2 in the finals of the Southern California Regionals.
149 Pounds - AJ McKee (Cerritos) def. Anthony Rubio (Chabot), 6-3
AJ McKee started slow against Rubio and led 2-0 after two periods, as he recorded a takedown with eight seconds left in the first period for his lone points. After a quick escape to start the third period, McKee surrendered a takedown to Rubio, but reversed him 11 seconds later for a 5-2 advantage. A late escape point by Rubio and riding time for McKee rounded out the scoring.
3rd Place - Brian Sergi (Sacramento City) def. Joaquin Collister (Santa Ana), 10-4
5th Place - Ivan Govea (Fresno City) pinned Johnny Callas (Cuesta), 2:48
7th Place - Rogelio Bravo (San Joaquin Delta) def. Justin Hill (Lassen), 6-5
NOTES: McKee joined his father as a state champion, as Antonio won title in 1988 and 1989 and went 61-0 in his career.
157 Pounds - Keanu Tom (Cerritos) def. Adrian Gomez (Fresno City), 6-4 (ot)
With a flair for the dramatic, Tom trailed 3-1 after two periods and appeared to have won the match with a takedown and only :35 seconds remaining in the third period. But Gomez, who defeated Tom (3-1) in the semifinals of the Fresno Tournament, escaped to tie the match with :14 seconds left. With only :25 seconds left in overtime, Tom got Gomez on a takedown for the state championship.
3rd Place - Joseph Magdaleno-Hudson (East LA) def. Richard Miranda (Santa Ana), 3-2
5th Place - Sean Rafferty (Lassen) tech fall over George Medina (Mt. SAC), 15-0
7th Place - Vincente Gomez (Bakersfield) pinned John Sinclair (Cuesta), 5:10
NOTES: Keanu Tom came in fifth place at 149 pounds last year, while Richard Miranda placed fourth at 149 pounds in 2013. Gomez placed second at 141 pounds last season.
165 Pounds - Victor Pereira (Chabot) def. Daniel Allen (Rio Hondo), 11-6
After an exciting first period, where Victor Pereira almost scored a pinfall, the match was a close 6-4 contest after the first three minutes. But Pereira scored a reversal and three-point near fall to close out the second period for an 11-4 lead that was insurmountable for Allen.
3rd Place - Eric Roberts (Santa Ana) def. Adrian Herrera (East LA), 10-6
5th Place - Peter Donchev (Palomar) pinned Joseph Else (Cuesta), 6:27
7th Place - Adam Busch (Sacramento City) def. Erik Colin (Palomar), 12-9
NOTES: Peter Donchev placed sixth at 165 pounds in 2013.
174 Pounds - Mo Naser (Fresno City) pinned Zack Wally (Chabot), 2:38
The two were sizing each other up for the first two minutes of the match until Naser got Wally down for a takedown. After working himself into position, Naser got Wally on his back and secured the pin.
3rd Place - Dylan Clarke (Cerritos) def. Kolton Martin (Mt. SAC), 6-2
5th Place - Cesar Luna (Bakersfield) pinned Micah Macias (Santa Ana), 5:40
7th Place - Tytin Johnson (Lassen) pinned Amir Bakhshi (Cuesta), 5:42
NOTES: Naser defeated Wally, 11-3 in the Northern California Regional championship match.
184 Pounds - Will Gockel Figge (Fresno City) def. Max Kumashiro (Cerritos), 3-1 (ot)
Neither wrestler was able to get an advantage in a match that pitted the #3 and #4 ranked wrestlers in the state. Both were aggressive in overtime and after Kumashiro missed on his move, Gockel-Figge countered with a move that allowed him to score a takedown with :19 seconds left in overtime and earn the state title.
3rd Place - Alex Graves (Palomar) def. Logan Paxon (Sacramento City), 6-1 SV
5th Place - Nathan Rodriguez (Mt. San Antonio) def. Thomas Cross (Shasta), 9-3
7th Place - Raul Hernandez (Santa Ana) def. Jack Robinett (Cuesta), 7-3
NOTES: Nathan Rodriguez placed fifth at 184 pounds last year, while Thomas Cross took sixth place two years in a row. This was the only weight that did not have the state's top-ranked wrestler (Alex Graves) in the finals.
197 Pounds - Jack Murphy (Bakersfield) def. Oscar Martinez (Cerritos), 3-2
Looking for the biggest upset of the tournament, fifth-ranked Oscar Martinez was tied with #1-ranked Jack Murphy at the conclusion of the second period. But a quick escape point by Murphy in the third period turned out to be the difference in the match in a 3-2 score.
3rd Place - Jeremiah Gerl (Cerritos) def. KeAndre Johnson (Mt. San Antonio, 3-2
5th Place - Francisco Vargas (Skyline) pinned Dom Freesha (Fresno City), 1:39
7th Place - Talyn Latour (San Joaquin Delta) def. Fred Duerr (Santa Rosa), injury default
NOTES: Jeremiah Gerl placed seventh at 184 pounds in 2013.
285 Pounds - Robert Chism (Cerritos) pinned Jesse Gomez (Cerritos), 6:42
A battle of teammates turned out to be a crowning achievement for Robert Chism, who ended the season undefeated by pinning his Cerritos teammate. It was a scoreless first period and with Chism leading 1-0 in the third period, he got Gomez down and then on his back. Once he did, it was over and Chism earned the pin and the state title.
3rd Place - Javier Gonzales (Rio Hondo) pinned Andrew Cruz (Mt. San Antonio), 4:52
5th Place - Timothy McMihelk (San Joaquin Delta) def. Andrew Singer (Fresno City), 8-5
7th Place - Jimmy Dawson (Sierra) pinned Jacob Richards (Sacramento City), 2:48
NOTES: Robert Chism took fourth place last year at 285 pounds.