The leading narrative heading into the 42nd edition of the California State Wrestling Championships is about the ability of No. 3 Clovis to transcend history and break some high profile records. The three-time defending state champion Cougars is prohibitive favorites to four-peat, as they qualified all fourteen wrestlers to the state tournament. In addition, the team point record (256.5) and total placer record (10) are in their sight.
Clovis' Nick Nevills, the nation's No. 1-ranked heavyweight, is after his third state championship and has not lost a match since his sophomore season in the state semifinals (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)The other notable narrative is about the star power in the Golden State this year. Nevills and Nikko Villareal (Gilroy), who is ranked No. 8 at 145 pounds, are after third state titles; while No. 20 Adrian Camposano (Central), No. 10 Israel Saavedra (Modesto), No. 13 Mason Pengilly (Porterville), Johnny Parada (San Fernando), No. 1 Zahid Valencia (St. John Bosco), No. 3 Anthony Valencia (St. John Bosco), and No. 4 Jeramy Sweany (Vacaville) are after second state titles.
Team Overview
As already stated, Clovis is the prohibitive favorites to win the state title. However, with four other Fab 50 teams ranked within thirteen spots of one another, the race for second should be highly interesting. No. 32 Poway leads the way with 12 state qualifiers, two of whom are nationally ranked -- No. 20 Sergio Enloe (138) and No. 13 Ralphy Tovar (145). Also in the offing are No. 35 Buchanan with eleven state qualifiers; No. 39 Clovis West with nine, led by No. 16 Michael Knoblauch (126); No. 44 Vacaville with eight, led by No. 4 Sweany (220); and unranked Gilroy, which qualified seven to state, including a pair of nationally ranked kids in No. 8 Villarreal (145) and No. 15 Paul Fox (152).
Weight-by-Weight Breakdown
106: The pair of nationally ranked wrestlers in this weight class is in opposite halves of the draw. No. 5 Mejia has beaten No. 11 Joey Cisneros (Redwood) three times this season, including the last two weekends in the divisional and section finals. The four other viable contenders for this championship all exited the Southern Section -- sophomore David Gonzales (San Dimas), freshman Zander Silva (Alta Loma), junior Michael Rangel (Calvary Chapel) senior Chris Lacayo (Santiago Corona).
Rangel and Silva are both in the first quarter of the draw, while Silva is “alone” in the second quarter of the draw; however, he could face a legitimate challenge in the winner of a second round bout between Isaac Blackburn (Del Oro) and Chris Marin (Clovis West) just to hit the semifinal. Lacayo, the only wrestler to beat Mejia all season, and Cisneros exit the third quarter of the draw; while Gonzalez is “alone” in the bottom quarter bracket.
113: Senior Vincente Elizalde (Brawley), who placed third at state last year and is without a loss this season, is the highest ranked wrestler in the weight class at No. 15 nationally. He is joined by defending state champion, No. 20 Adrian Camposano (Central), in the national rankings. Three other wrestlers placed at state last year: Durbin Lloren (Buchanan), Perez Perez (Windsor), and Nico Colunga (Oakdale); while Junior freestyle All-American Matt Gamble (Monache) and Central section champion J.J. Figueroa (Bakersfield) are also legitimate title threats.
Going down by quarter brackets, Lloren is alone in the top quarter, Gamble and Colunga feature in the second, Perez and Figueroa are in the third, while the pair of nationally ranked wrestlers in Elizalde and Camposano would meet in the bottom quarterfinal.
120: Defending state champion Israel Saavedra (Modesto) is ranked No. 10 nationally, and the clear favorite to repeat. Three other wrestlers with a podium appearance are in this weight bracket: returning state runner-up Gionn Peralta (Vacaville), Roy Galvan (La Quinta), and 2012 placer Julian Gaytan (Clovis). An outside contender in this weight class is sophomore Evan Wick (San Marino). Qualifying out of the San Joaquin section, Saavedra and Peralta are in opposite halves of the draw. None of the four other names mentioned are in Saavedra's top half; Peralta would face the winner of a possible round of 16 match between Gaytan and Galvan in the quarterfinal, and then most likely meet Wick in the semifinal.
126: Two of the nine wrestlers to previously win a California state title are in this weight class in Johnny Parada (San Fernando) and three-time state placer No. 13 Mason Pengilly (Porterville). These two wrestlers happen to be in opposite halves of the draw. The other three in this weight class that are returning state placers include No. 16 Michael Knobluach (Clovis West), who is 1-2 against Pengilly this season but won 4-3 in this past weekend's Central section final; Khristian Olivas (Clovis); and Daniel Ruiz (Madera).
Parada and Olivas would likely meet in the quarterfinal round, which would be a rematch of what was viewed at the time as an upset win for Olivas, 5-4 over Parada in the Doc Buchanan semifinals. The winner of that match would likely meet Knoblauch in the semifinals. Should things go to plan in the bottom half, the semifinal would be between Pengilly and Ruiz.
132: One of the biggest shocks of last season came in the state semifinals when the since graduated Danny Williams (Lemoore/University of Oklahoma) upset defending state champion Zahid Valencia (St. John Bosco) 3-2 in the semifinal round. That loss remains the only one for Valencia in his three-year high school career to date. Even with three other returning state placers in this weight class, it would again be a stunner if No. 1 Valencia did not win the state title.
Those other returning state placers are returning state runner-up Wyatt Wyckoff (Paradise), Julian Flores (San Marino), and two-time state placer Isaiah Hokit (Clovis). Other contenders in the field pack behind Valencia are Central section champion Matt Ontiveros (Central) and freshman sensation Anthony Mantanona (Palm Desert). In terms of the draw, Flores does not have any of the other five names listed here in his quarter, while Wyckoff and Mantanona are in the other quarter of the top half bracket. Down in the lower half, Valencia is likely to see Hokit in the quarterfinal, and then Ontiveros in the semifinal.
138: Three nationally ranked wrestlers reside in this weight class, No. 6 Michael Longo (Santiago Corona), No. 18 Emilio Saavedra (Modesto), and No. 20 Sergio Enloe (Poway). Longo placed sixth at state last year, was third at the Ironman, and fourth at the Super 32 Challenge; Saavedra placed top four at state as a freshman and sophomore, and is a three-time Flo Nationals placer; while Enloe has yet to place at state, but was champion at Reno TOC and upset Longo 8-7 in the Raul Huerta Invitational final earlier this season.
Also meriting attention in this weight are returning state placer Abel Contreras (Porterville), returning state qualifiers Uzo Owuama (Bloomington) and McCoy Kent (Enochs), and freshman Luke Troy (Calvary Chapel). In terms of the draw, Longo and Kent would likely meet in the top quarterfinal, Contreras and Enloe in the second quarter, Owuama is by himself in the third quarter, while Saavedra and Troy would meet in the round of 16 within the bottom quarter bracket.
145: Even as a two-time state champion, No. 8 Villarreal has four other state placers in this bracket with him. Given the history with Villarreal, derailing Alex Cisneros on his way to a fourth state title two years ago, one should know what nothing is a guarantee. Those other state placers are No. 13 Ralphy Tovar (Poway), who lost 4-2 to Villarreal this season in the Temecula Valley final; Justin Thomas (Santiago Corona); Lorenzo de la Riva (Folsom); and two-time state placer Chris Garcia (Clovis West).
Also to watch in this weight class is junior Conner Francis (Buchanan), who is in his third state tournament appearance and has finished runner-up to Garcia in tournaments the last three weeks. Tracking the draw, Thomas and Tovar are likely to meet in the top quarterfinal, with Garcia as the favorite to join one of them in the top half semifinal; de la Riva and Francis are likely to meet in the round of 16 from the third quarter, while Villarreal has a rather clear path through the bottom quarter.
152: Two nationally ranked wrestlers lead the way in this weight class: No. 13 P.J. Klee (Cardinal Newman), who has yet to compete in a state level championship, as he was closed out of National Preps in two years at Blair and was ineligible last year upon returning to California; and No. 15 Paul Fox (Gilroy), a three-time state placer, who was runner-up at state the last two years. Also meriting attention here are returning state placer Nolan Kistler (Martin Luther King), four-time state qualifier Tyler Zimmer (Clovis West), and Central section champion Dominic Kincaid (Clovis).
Klee is well-positioned to clear the second quarter of the top half bracket, and see the winner of a Kistler vs. Kincaid quarterfinal in the semifinal round. In the bottom half, Zimmer and Fox would have to be considered favorites to hit the semifinal.
160: Even without a nationally ranked wrestler, there are still four returning state place-winners, which will provide this weight class with plenty of juice. Leading the way is Alexander Graves (San Marcos), the highest returning placer, as he took fifth last year. The other three returning medalists are a trio of Southern section competitors. Freddie Garcia (Santiago Corona) beat both two-time placer Bryan Salinas (Northview) and Aaron Negrette (Calvary Chapel) on the way to that section title last week. Also to note here is returning state qualifier Josh Hokit (Clovis), who won the Central section title.
Breaking down the draw, Graves and Negrette are slated to meet in the quarterfinal round, with the winner most likely to see Salinas in the top half semifinal. Based on bracket position, Hokit and Garcia are the most likely matchup in the bottom semifinal.
170: This is in essence a two person weight class, anchored by the pair of Junior National freestyle All-Americans in No. 3 Anthony Valencia (St. John Bosco) and No. 20 Bryce Martin (Bakersfield). Valencia was state champion two years ago, and runner-up last year, while Martin finished fourth at state last year. When the two wrestlers met in the Doc Buchanan final, it was a 12-6 decision victory for Valencia. Assuming no upsets, this would be the state finals match.
182: A pair of returning state runners-up, both in the top five nationally anchor this weight class. No. 4 Nick Fiegener (Folsom) holds a 3-0 record on the season against No. 5 Corey Griego (Sultana). Fiegener upended Griego 6-3 in the consolation semifinals at the Walsh Jesuit Ironman, 4-2 in the Doc Buchanan final, and 3-2 in the Temecula Valley final. Should the two wrestlers meet again, it would likely be for the state title on Saturday night.
The weight class does feature two other returning state placers, Alec Gamboa (Madera) and Johnny Beltran (Servite). They are both a clear step behind the two front-runners; Gamboa has lost twice by fall to Fiegener this season, while Beltran has suffered defeats by technical fall to both Fiegener and Griego. The bracket sets Beltran in the same half as Fiegener, and Gamboa in the same half as Griego, with each of those matchups being in the semifinal round.
195: This is the weakest weight of the state tournament, with only one returning state placer -- returning state sixth Clayton Hartwell (James Logan) -- and zero nationally ranked wrestlers. However, he is not the favorite, as he has suffered losses to both Ian Baker (La Costa Canyon) and Dylan Bollinger (Sultana) during the course of the season.
The favorite here is now three-time state qualifier Baker, who was runner-up at the Reno TOC and a NHSCA Junior Nationals champion last spring. Ranked second here is returning state qualifier Bollinger, who was runner-up at both Doc Buchanan and Temecula Valley. Another name to watch is now three-time state qualifier Matt Weiss (Clovis), who spent the bulk of his season at 220 pounds, and is the Central section champion. Based on draw, Baker is in the opposite half of the three leading challengers; while Weiss and Hartwell are most likely to meet in the third quarterfinal for the right to face Bollinger in the bottom half semifinal.
220: Defending state champion Jeramy Sweany (Vacaville), ranked No. 4 nationally and a runner-up in both Junior Greco-Roman and the Flo Nationals last year, is the strong favorite in this weight class. However, there are three returning state medalists to stand in his way: the undefeated Gabriel Gonzales (Washington Union), Victor Raigoza (Orland), and Cortes Morales (Clovis West). In terms of the draw, each wrestler occupies a quarter of the bracket by themselves; Gonzales and Raigoza up top, with Morales and Sweany down low.
285: Seeking a third state title, No. 1 Nick Nevills (Clovis) is the strong favorite in this weight class. He has not lost a single match since the state semifinal of his sophomore year, and is on a 101-match winning streak. Don't expect that streak to be ended this weekend even with two other returning state placers in this weight class, No. 17 Nour Abdullatif (Roosevelt) and Chance Eskam (Carlsbad).
Abdullatif, like Nevills, is undefeated on the season -- quite frankly because he hasn't faced Nevills yet; while Eskam was runner-up at Reno TOC due to injury default, and then runner-up at the Doc Buchanan losing to Nevills by fall late in the second period. In terms of draw, Abdullatif and Eskam would meet in the top semifinal, with Nevills (deservedly) alone in the bottom half of the bracket.
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