Jennifer Espinoza isn’t going to let a swollen knee keep her
from competing this weekend. There’s just too much at stake.
”
I’m gonna be ready, for sure,
”
she said.
”
I just don’t know if the doctor is gonna hold me out or not.
”
A junior at San Benito High School, Espinoza has every intention
of joining fellow female wrestlers Alexis Sumaya, Sydney Lomanto
and Samantha Barrientos at the Central Coast Section Girls
Wrestling Championships on Saturday at Oak Grove High. It’s perhaps
because, unlike years past, this weekend’s CCS tournament comes
with an added bonus
— a chance to compete in the very first CIF Girls Wrestling
State Invitational.
HOLLISTER
Jennifer Espinoza isn’t going to let a swollen knee keep her from competing this weekend. There’s just too much at stake.
“I’m gonna be ready, for sure,” she said. “I just don’t know if the doctor is gonna hold me out or not.”
A junior at San Benito High School, Espinoza has every intention of joining fellow female wrestlers Alexis Sumaya, Sydney Lomanto and Samantha Barrientos at the Central Coast Section Girls Wrestling Championships on Saturday at Oak Grove High.
It’s perhaps because, unlike years past, this weekend’s CCS tournament comes with an added bonus — a chance to compete in the very first CIF Girls Wrestling State Invitational.
“It’s definitely a benefit,” said Espinoza, a 98-pound wrestler who’s been out of the lineup the last two weeks due to her swollen right knee. “They’ve never had [a state tournament] for the girls before, so it’s a pretty big change.”
The Girls Wrestling State Invitational is a first for the California Interscholastic Federation, the state’s governing body for all high school athletics.
Although an unofficial state tournament has been held in Hanford in years past, the CIF announced in August the implementation of an official all-girls state tournament after a series of successful regional tournaments held last January saw some 704 female athletes from 173 schools participate statewide.
The first-ever girls wrestling state invitational is slated for Feb. 25-26 at Lemoore High School.
Although there is no guarantee, as only the top four in each weight class advance, the added level of a state tournament for the female wrestlers certainly provides an attractive sidenote to this Saturday’s CCS Championships, where there will be much more at stake than just a spot on the podium.
Espinoza said she was going to have her knee drained on Thursday, and should be ready and able come Saturday morning.
“I’m just thinking about it as any other regular tournament,” she said. “It’s a regular tournament with more benefits to it.”
Of the four Balers who are expected to be in attendance, Espinoza was the lone San Benito wrestler who also competed at the varsity level this season — a factor that may benefit her come Saturday. But with only five female wrestlers in the room this season for the Balers, the group has had to go up against their male counterparts — and often — whether they’re on varsity or not.
“We mix it up with the guys. They are like our older brothers, in a way,” said Sumaya, who feels the all-girl CCS championships, as well as the upcoming all-girl state tournament, will provide a much more even playing field for the female wrestlers.
Sumaya and fellow freshman Sydney Lomanto are still seeking additional experience on the mat, though the added bonus of wrestling for a spot at state — and being one of the first to do so — isn’t lost on the first-year grapplers.
“It provides a lot of motivation,” Sumaya said, later adding, “But I’m really nervous. I still have a lot of learning to do — my technique and the moves and how to get it all down right.
“But I’m just gonna do my best and see what happens along the way.”
Both Lomanto and Sumaya went 0-2 last Saturday at The Bash, a junior varsity invitational that was hosted by San Benito and welcomed some 53 female wrestlers to Hollister.
“I did my best,” Sumaya said.
For Barrientos, though, it was hopefully a precursor of things to come. The sophomore grappler finished in second place at 116s, falling in the final to Cady Chessin of Los Gatos.
The runner-up standing understandably provided a boost of confidence to the sophomore wrestler entering this weekend’s CCS tournament.
“It just gets me more into that feel for this weekend, and gives me a lot more confidence,” said Barrientos, who is enjoying her first year of wrestling. “I’m just getting better and better every time I go out to practice.”
The CCS Championships will kickoff Saturday morning at 10 a.m. on four mats at Oak Grove High, and are expected to run until approximately 4 p.m. The championship finals are slated for 6 p.m.
As for Espinoza, she expects to be ready to go on Saturday with a healthy knee, although she is aware the deck is stacked against her, considering her lack of mat time the last few weeks.
“I’ll just have to be wrestling harder than the rest of them,” she said.
