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JV Grapplers Win Waterford Pins Loss On Cougar Varsity Wrestlers
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A tough 3-point loss to Waterford in league action went on the books for Escalon wrestlers this week, hosting the Wildcats on Wednesday, Jan. 6.

"The varsity lost 39-36, it was a very disappointing dual, we had three people out and we had guys lose matches that we felt they should have won," head coach Derek Scott explained. "I just didn't think we wrestled that well."

Six wrestlers did put wins on the board for Escalon, four of them coming on pins.

Christian Franks won by pin at 119 pounds, Brendan Wing won by pin at 140, along with Brandon Williams at 189 pounds and Travis James at 215. Taking decisions were Jason Robbins, a 6-3 victory at 130 pounds, and Andrew Baroni at 152 pounds, winning 8-2. On the JV side of the scorebook, Escalon had a solid effort and earned a 52-19 win in the league match.

"We felt the JVs did very well, I was very pleased with their performance overall," said Scott.

Wins at the JV level came from Chaz Welborn, 119 pounds; Keenon Tavares, 125; Kenny Ring, 135; Scott Nunes, 140; David Gonzales, 152; Cody Hodgson, 160; Shane Silveira, 171; Vic Carrillo, 189; and James Ristrim, 215.

On Saturday, Escalon played host to several teams in the Mel Focha JV Tournament, and top finishers for Escalon were Damon Hopkins, earning a first place medal at 112 pounds and Danny Luna taking first place in one of the 130-pound brackets.

Second place finishers in the competition were Austin Jones at 119, Keenon Tavares at 125, Jaren Gonzales at 130, Michael Stevens, 189; Nick Payan and Joey Gutierrez at heavyweight.

In third place were Kenny Ring, 130 pounds; Anthony Furtado, 125; Aaron Dizon, 140; Cody Hodgson, 160 and Jobany Picazo, heavyweight.

"As a team, everyone is getting better," Scott noted of the JV squad. "We were impressed this weekend with Hopkins, Gonzales, Luna and Gutierrez and I really want to thank all the Escalon High parents and the Club parents for helping us out over those couple of days."

After Saturday's all-day Focha tournament, the Escalon Wrestling Club put on a Sunday tournament, which parents against assisted with, noted Scott. Results of that tournament were not available at press time but will be included in the Jan. 20 issue of The Times.

This weekend, the varsity wrestlers take center stage, hosting the two-day annual Lloyd C. Engel Tournament, with action both Friday and Saturday. Competition begins with matches starting at 9 a.m. Friday and continues on Saturday, with semi final and final rounds anticipated late Saturday afternoon.

"We have 25 teams from the area taking part," said Scott, adding that the level of competition will be tougher this year than in the past. "It's going to be hard for some of our kids to even get seeded."