On Jan. 22, the Gabrielino High School wrestling team played an at-home tournament against 24 schools in its first individual varsity tournament. The boys expected to place are seniors Baron Bahn Thai, Caleb Cordoba, and Joseph Martinez. Scores were not available at press time.
“We had a few [tournaments] lined up before but unfortunately, due to covid, they had to be canceled,” stated Marcelino Ruiz, the head wrestling coach.
On Jan. 20, the team played against Mountain View High School in an individual tournament. Gabrelino took the victory, 40-24.
In the past, Mountain View’s main technique was to use the element of surprise once the opportunity arose in order to counter Gabrelino’s tactics. In recent games, Gabrelino made the effort to not give the opposing team any type of hope.
The girls started off strong accompanied by the cheers of their fellow teammates. For the boys, there was a short-come losing streak at the start. Their efforts led into back-to-back pins which eventually resulted in an overall victory.
“[I feel] really nervous, I feel ready,” stated player Karina Vargas, freshman, before her first match. “I’ve watched [the opponents] matches before.”
TAKEDOWN Freshman Karina Vargas pins her opponent to the mat, scoring a crucial point for GHS in a tense match in the small gym against the Mountain View High School Spartans on Jan. 20.
Coach Ruiz reflected on the situation of the wrestlers on the team.
“Right off the bat, we were missing a few wrestlers in our line up which affected us,” said Ruiz.
On Dec. 4, the wrestling team competed in a frosh-off tournament against Arroyo High School. Arroyo’s wrestling team has always stood out to Gabrielino due to their principled coaches and staff. The Gabrielino team appreciates the challenge of the neck-to-neck competition between both schools.
The team is putting the brand new wrestling building into productive use with new improvements every day. The main goal is to build the program as great as can be.
“We are improving. It’s a little tough since we are the highest contact sport on campus,” Coach Ruiz stated. “So it is a challenge [for our players] to stay healthy.”
On Jan. 8, varsity wrestling was supposed to play an away from home tournament against John Glenn High School. Unfortunately, the tournament was canceled due to Gabrielino closing for health and safety concerns.
“I was really excited about [that tournament]” stated Ruiz. “That was a bummer and I know my boys are excited to compete and bring home another trophy.”
The boys varsity wrestling team is 1-1 for league tournaments with a total match score of 5-6.
