Hilltop High School’s annual dual format wrestling tournament rolled onto the mat last Saturday with 10 teams, including three Metro Conference squads looking to make an early season impression.
The Olympian High School Eagles (4-1) accomplished that feat with a runner-up finish to the team champion Mira Mesa Marauders (5-0). The San Ysidro Cougars (2-3) placed fourth while host Hilltop (3-2) finished seventh.
Individual medals were also awarded based on records from each dual. Olympian junior Noah Soria captured a gold medal in his 144-pound weight class with a 5-0 showing.
Silver medals went to five Eagles with 4-1 records: senior Will Costa (113 pounds), sophomore Luis Bue (120 pounds), senior Roman Jimenez (134 pounds) junior Ian Ramos (140 pounds), and senior Andres Gonzalez (157 pounds). Senior Sam Carbajal (165 pounds) finished third with a 3-2 record in his weight class.
“We’re in the hunt for the league title,” OHS coach Joey Schaeffer said. “We hope to send eight or nine to Masters.”
San Ysidro’s medalists included Frank Zambada (134 pounds) and Anthony Saavedra (heavyweight) with gold, Joseph Garcia (146 pounds) and Jaiden Dominguez (159 pounds) with silver and Aidan Hernandez (108 pounds), Leo Medrano (215 pounds) and Jiryah Liburd (215/heavyweight) with bronze.
Zambada, who was appearing in his first varsity tournament, finished 5-0 with three pins and two technical falls while Saavedra (three pins) improved to 14-3 on the season.
Hilltop’s medalists included juniors Lucas Mendez (175 pounds) and Erik Nelson (215 pounds) with gold at 5-0, junior Ricardo Delatorre (165 pounds), seniors Isaac Medrano (152 pounds) and Cole Rivera (113 pounds) and junior Daniel Hernandez (126 pounds) with silver at 4-1 and Chris Leal (142 pounds) and Michael Maddy (heavyweight) with bronze at 3-2.
“We’re coming together as a group,” Hilltop coach Thomas Juarez said. “We’re working hard. Once we get everyone healthy and on their correct weight, we’ll be a dynamic team.”
Pool A
Mira Mesa (4-0)
Patrick Henry (2-2)
San Ysidro (2-2)
Hilltop (2-2)
Escondido (0-4)
Pool B
Olympian (4-0)
San Marcos (3-1)
Mt. Carmel (2-2)
San Pasqual (1-3)
Central Union (0-4)
Round 1
Mira Mesa 72, Escondido 12
San Ysidro 51, Patrick Henry 39
Olympian 64, Central Union 16
Mt. Carmel 46, San Pasqual 30
Round 2
Hilltop 46, Escondido 30
Mira Mesa 41, Patrick Henry 36
Olympian 41, San Marcos 37
Mt. Carmel 42, Central Union 24
Round 3
San Ysidro 64, Escondido 6
Mira Mesa 54, Hilltop 25
Olympian 51, San Pasqual 24
San Marcos 63, Central Union 14
Round 4
Patrick Henry 51, Escondido 6
Hilltop 47, San Ysidro 36
San Marcos 54, San Pasqual 18
Olympian 47, Mt. Carmel 22
Round 5
Mira Mesa 54, San Ysidro 26
Patrick Henry 45, Hilltop 30
|San Pasqual 41, Central Union 35
San Marcos 35, Mt. Carmel 21
Medal Round
First place: Mira Mesa 58, Olympian 17
Third place: San Marcos 40, San Ysidro 35
Fifth place: Mt. Carmel 45, Patrick Henry 21
Seventh place: Hilltop 48, San Pasqual 42
Ninth place: Central Union 40, Escondido 30
Photos by Phillip Brents
San Ysidro vs. San Marcos
