The first dual meet of the season against a legitimate opponent
in Cupertino proved to be no match for San Benito Thursday, as the
host Haybalers throttled the Pioneers 68-10 at Mattson Gym.
The first dual meet of the season against a legitimate opponent in Cupertino proved to be no match for San Benito Thursday, as the host Haybalers throttled the Pioneers 68-10 at Mattson Gym.
Able to stretch their legs outside the tight quarters of their wrestling room, and to see a different opponent other than their teammates, San Benito delivered seven wins by fall out of the 14 matches and dispatched Cupertino in less than an hour.
“It was good to see them finally wrestle against another team,” coach Matt Olejnik said. “We still have a lot of work to do, but for the first time out of the chute, it’s the first step to being in shape.”
Olejnik noted that most of his wrestlers were wrestling up a weight class Thursday, as the team’s hydration tests from one week ago prevent any wrestler from drastically altering their weight before a meet.
Nonetheless, San Benito, in almost every weight class, dominated the dual against Cupertino.
The night started at 140 pounds, where Cupertino’s Kirby Haraguchi won by an 11-3 major decision over San Benito’s Steven Borba. However, Borba was one of the wrestlers who was up a weight, as the ‘Baler grappler will eventually be at 135 pounds as the season progresses.
From there, though, it was all San Benito.
The ‘Balers would go on to win the next eight matches, and the streak was only stopped due to a forfeit at 112 pounds after a San Benito wrestler did not have proper medical clearance. But Eddie Tovar (152), Enrique Lucatero (160), Martin Garcia (215), Buddy Barraza (275) and Kenny Salcedo (103) all won their matches by fall.
At 171, Fernando Lucatero’s opponent spent all night trying to escape from the grasp of the CCS qualifier’s reach, but to no avail. Although the Pioneer did technically escape six times, Lucatero triumphed with a 21-6 technical fall.
“Both the Lucatero brothers,” Olejnik said, “they were smooth and slick.”
The coach also highlighted the play of Zach Rodriguez, who won his 130-pound match by fall, and the lightweight Salcedo.
San Benito will now host the 25th Annual Fehlman/Baxter Hollister Duals starting today at Mattson Gym. The tournament will be dual meet-style between such teams as Atascadero, Dos Pueblos, Harbor, Independence, King City, Los Banos, Mission San Jose and Monta Vista.
The two-day tournament will commence today at 1 p.m., and will reconvene on Saturday at 9 a.m.
Varsity
SB 68, CUP 10
103 – SB, Salcedo def. Hawkins, fall; 112 – CUP, Sharfi, forfeit; 119 – SB, Jr. Davila def. Erfanian, 5-2 dec.; 125 – SB, Lopez def. Arita, fall; 130 – SB, Z. Rodriguez def. Huang, fall; 135 – SB, Coelho def. Messaros, fall; 140 – CUP, Haraguchi def. Borba, 11-3 maj. dec.; 145 – SB, C. Solis def. Martin, forfeit (bleeding); 152 – SB, Tovar def. Chang, fall; 160 – SB, E. Lucatero def. Penikalapati, fall; 171 – SB, F. Lucatero def. Cho, 21-6 tech. fall; 189 – SB, forfeit; 215 – SB, Garcia def. Huynh, fall; 275 – SB, Barrazo def. Marvin, fall.
Junior Varsity
SB 69, CUP 7
