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Escalon Wrestling Club
wrestling1

The Escalon Wrestling Club (EWC) saw 45 of its wrestlers compete in the penultimate qualifying event on the journey leading to the 2016-17 State of California Wrestling Alliance for the Youth (SCWAY) Kids State Championships on March 24 and 25 at Buchanan High School in Clovis. The SCWAY Zone 2-3 Tournament was held at Oakdale High School on Sunday, Feb. 26 with nearly 500 youth grapplers from Lodi north to Merced south with Murphys east and Vacaville west as Zone borders. Of the 45 competing, 35 earned medals with 32 of them punching their ticket to Clovis. This is a significant improvement over the 2016 Zone 2-3 qualifier, with 28 competing and 21 medaling. The EWC had two champions in 2016 and this year it had a half dozen gold medalists. All champions earned a SCWAY Zone 2-3 Singlet to proudly display while competing at the state tournament. The top six placers in each respective Advanced Division age group and weight class bracket (ages 5-15) automatically qualified; with the top eight in brackets with 11 or more wrestlers earning a chance to compete for a state title.

Individual results – All SCWAY State Qualifiers (except Beginners)

Zone 2-3 Champions: Vincent “Tornado” Reis, brothers Niko and Xander Birakos, Thomas Rowe, Jamin Miller, Gideon Gerber.

Silver Medalists: Tyler Bogle (Beg.), Tyler Powell, Griffin Gerber, JW Mills, Austin Roberts, Jaden Fontes.

Bronze Medalists: Alex Gutierrez (2016 SCWAY state champ), EJ Lewis, Sebastian Snow, Giovanni “Gio” Ruiz, Luca Cerasi, Ace Krasko and Donovan Martinez (Beg.).

Fourth Place: Ryan Lewis, Frankie “LL Beast” Rodriguez, Aiden Kreiger, Frankie Laney, Luke Bates.

Fifth Place: Aaron Quiroz, Archer Sanders, Hayden Castro, Malachi Coble.

Sixth Place: Preston Berhorst, Freddy Velasco, Gabrielle Meneses, Garrison Gerber, Christian Rowe (got to semifinals before injury forfeit).

Next up for the Club is the prestigious Tournament of Champions (TOC) competition at Del Oro High School in Loomis on March 11 with some EWC junior high school age wrestlers qualifying for it at designated tournaments throughout the season.