Four Haybalers earned individual titles and three more finished
runner-up during Saturday’s Tri-County Athletic League
Championships in Gilroy, where San Benito took second place with
218 points.
GILROY
Tim Christenson’s decision to take two years off from wrestling only made victory that much sweeter on Saturday at the Tri-County Athletic League Championships in Gilroy.
The San Benito senior grappler, who wrestled varsity his freshman year at 103 pounds, focused on baseball during his sophomore and junior seasons, only to return to the mat this year.
“I worked out a lot, but I didn’t wrestle,” Christenson said of his sophomore and junior campaigns. “I always believed in myself, but this was hard to fathom.”
Christenson, who on Wednesday narrowly defeated Gilroy’s Adam Rosso by a 4-3 decision, edged his Mustang counterpart by a 3-2 decision on Saturday in the 145-pound TCAL championship, and essentially put his two-year absence from the wrestling mat in a different light.
“I regret it,” he said.
“I hadn’t wrestled in so long, so I didn’t know how I’d do or how I’d compete. I have it in me, but it takes years of experience to wrestle at the level of some of these guys.”
Christenson, who along with Junior Davila, Miguel Martin del Campo and Adam Davis, was one of four individual champions for San Benito during Saturday’s TCAL finals at Gilroy High, where the Balers took the runner-up spot with 218 points and improved upon last year’s third-place standing, when they compiled 220 points.
“We had some good weights, but we still have some inconsistencies,” San Benito head coach Brian DeCarli said. “I was looking at it that we’d have seven guys in the finals, and we did that. But some of our matches left something to be desired.
“Overall, it was a pretty day good day, but it could have been a lot better.”
Gilroy, which for the first time last year didn’t win the TCAL tournament, returned to its perch when it racked up 257 points behind seven individual champions.
The Mustangs nearly had eight individual champions, too. But Christenson’s rematch bout with Rosso fared in favor of San Benito.
“He’s strong. He’s stout,” Christenson said of Rosso. “I just tried to be quicker than him.”
Christenson held a 3-1 lead over Rosso heading into the third round, and managed to remain on his feet for the better part of the two-minute period after Rosso scored an escape early on to cut the deficit in half.
“It’s tough to wrestle the same guy again,” Christenson said.
With the San Benito-Gilroy dual meet from last Wednesday a mere memory — the Mustangs won 47-25 — Christenson’s meeting with Rosso on Saturday was one of several rematches between the two rival schools.
Junior Davila squared off against Gilroy’s Rodney Balajadia a second time on Saturday, and in the 119-pound final, no less. Davila previously defeated Balajadia by a 6-3 decision last week, but had more difficulty with the Mustang on Saturday.
“On Wednesday, he would shoot at the same (left) leg, but he’d shoot straight,” Davila said on Saturday. “Today he would shoot, but he’d sweep it and I was getting kind of frustrated. I didn’t know how to stop it.”
The change in styles by Balajadia clearly gave Davila more problems on Saturday, three days removed from his 6-3 decision. On Saturday, the two wrestlers were knotted at 5-all midway through the third period.
“He switched up his style and caught me off guard,” Davila said. “I kind of got my mind off the match.”
But Davila said he came out more focused in the third round, and after Balajadia tied it with an escape, Davila countered with a quick shoot to Balajadia’s left leg before picking him up for a takedown-slam.
Davila eventually won by a 7-5 decision, and earned the TCAL title in the process.
“I saw an opening and it worked,” he said.
Both Miguel Martin del Campo and Adam Davis saw an opening against their respective opponents, too. At 189 pounds, Martin del Campo defeated Salinas’ Nick Castillo by fall (3:40) to earn the individual title, while Davis made quick work of North Salinas’ Gerald Omictin when he defeated his 215-pound opponent by fall in just 40 seconds.
One match from Saturday that didn’t take place on Wednesday was the 130-pound final between Gilroy’s Willie Fox and San Benito’s Zack Rodriguez.
The senior Baler suffered minor concussions at both the Fehlman/Baxter tournament and the Coast Classic in mid-December, and was held out of the San Benito lineup as a result. Rodriguez said he wasn’t cleared to compete until last Monday, and the TCAL Championships acted as his triumphant return.
Rodriguez marched all the way to the championship final before falling to Gilroy’s Fox by fall (3:57).
“I didn’t expect him to be that tough, but he’s a good wrestler,” Rodriguez said of Fox. “I think I should have done a little better, but …”
Considering the situation, Rodriguez was pleased to have another chance, as he and 13 others from San Benito will advance to the Central Coast Section Championships later this month.
Rodriguez (2nd, 130 pounds) will be joined by Davila (1st, 119 pounds), Mikey Soto (2nd, 140), Christenson (1st, 145), Luke Diller (2nd, 171), Martin del Campo (1st, 189), Davis (1st, 215), Robb Rodriguez (4th, 112), Jay Garcia (3rd, 125), Eric Henry (3rd, 135), Justin Raine (4th, 160), Anthony Gatto (5th, 103), Edgar Ortega (5th, 152) and Nick Angelo (6th, 285).
The CCS Championships will be held Feb. 19-20 at both Independence and Overfelt high schools in San Jose.
“There is no more room for moral victories,” DeCarli said. “We’re not doing that anymore. It’s put-up-or-shut-up time.
“To move on you have to win, regardless of the situation.”
Tri-County Athletic League Championships
TEAMS
1, Gilroy, 257; 2, San Benito, 218; 3, Alisal, 170; 4, Palma, 146.5; 5, North Salinas 105; 6, Salinas, 99; 7, Everett Alvarez, 24.5.
INDIVIDUAL
103 — 1, L. Dominguez, Gilroy; 2, J. Alonzo, Alisal; 3, A. Espinoza, Everett Alvarez; 4, N. Busby, Palma; 5, A. Gatto, San Benito; 6, A. Fragoso, North Salinas.
112 — 1, E. Lopez, Alisal; 2, N. Renteria, Salinas; 3, J. Gonzalez, Palma; 4, R. Rodriguez, San Benito; 5, G. Martinez, North Salinas; 6, J. Yanez, Gilroy.
119 — 1, J. Davila, San Benito; 2, R. Balajadia, Gilroy; 3, C. Moreno, Alisal; 4, S. Eastman, Palma; 5, L. Combs, North Salinas; 6, A. Farias, Salinas.
125 — 1, J. Delgado, Gilroy; 2, A. Morado, Alisal; 3, J. Garcia, San Benito; 4, C. Palacios, Palma; 5, A. Galapon Olivas, Salinas.
130 — 1, W. Fox, Gilroy; 2, Z. Rodriguez, San Benito; 3, A. Nunez, North Salinas; 4, O. Mendez, Alisal; 5, N. Short, Palma; 6, C. Perales, Salinas.
135 — 1, B. Kastl, Gilroy; 2, E. Meza, Alisal; 3, E. Henry, San Benito; 4, D. Proa, Salinas; 5, A. Reyes, Palma.
140 — 1, E. Tapia, Alisal; 2, M. Soto, San Benito; 3, M. Lucero, Gilroy; 4, A. Noza, North Salinas; 5, E. Farfan, Palma.
145 — 1, T. Christenson, San Benito; 2, A. Rosso, Gilroy; 3, R. Sarmiento, Palma; 4, E. Antonio, North Salinas; 5, C. Ivey, Salinas; 6, A, Gonzalez, Alisal.
152 — 1, V. Aboytes, Gilroy; 2, S. McVannel, Salinas; 3, N. Abulencia, Palma; 4, J. Antonio, North Salinas; 5, E. Ortega, San Benito; 6, J. Ochoa, Alisal.
160 — 1, D. Kastl, Gilroy; 2, M. Sarmiento, Palma; 3, D. Guzman, Salinas; 4, J. Raine, San Benito; 5, H. Bueno, Alisal; 6, J. Rodriguez, North Salinas.
171 — 1, A. Berber, Alisal; 2, L. Diller, San Benito; 3, A. Martinez, Palma; 4, B. Torricer, Gilroy.
189 — 1, M. Martin del Campo, San Benito; 2, N. Castillo, Salinas; 3, A. Toste, Gilroy; 4, R. Galvan, Everett Alvarez; 5, S. Nakamura, North Salinas; 6, J. Pulealii, Palma.
215 — 1, A. Davis, San Benito; 2, G. Omictin, North Salinas; 3, J. Talauban, Palma.
285 — 1, L. Barragan, Gilroy; 2, B. Pulealii, Palma; 3, T. Avila, Alisal; 4, C. Flores, North Salinas; 5, M. Avila, Salinas; 6, N. Angelo, San Benito.
