The Metro Conference reaped a bountiful harvest at last Saturday’s San Diego Section divisional wrestling championship tournaments as eight local mat men walked out of the gym with individual championship medals.
The Division IV tournament at Mater Dei Catholic High School, which showcased the section’s smaller schools, actually produced the biggest bite with four Metro gold medalists.
They included three grapplers from host Mater Dei Catholic: Jonas Ullsperger (134 pounds), Aaron Olmos (162 pounds) and Uriel Beristain (172 pounds). Castle Park senior Hassan Montiel (197 pounds) also walked off the mat with a gold medal.
The Division I tournament, hosted by Otay Ranch High School, produced two more Metro CIF champions: Eastlake’s Michael Johnson (147 pounds) and Otay Ranch’s Jonathon Wu (172 pounds).
San Ysidro’s Pablo Perez won the 172-pound individual championship at the Division II tournament at Del Norte High School while Montgomery’s Chase Riegg captured the 287-pound heavyweight title at the Division III tournament at Brawley High School.
Six more South County mat men recorded runner-up finishes: Eastlake’s Ben Martinez (122 pounds) and Olympian’s Royce Casiano (162 pounds) at the Division I tournament; Julian Winnie (108 pounds) and Christian Winnie (115 pounds) at the Division III tournament; and Mater Dei Catholic’s Karl Moreno (128 pounds) and Thomas Schmitt (184 pounds) at the Division IV tournament.
The 14 division finalists is an impressive number. But the next step — this weekend’s San Diego Masters state-qualifying tournament at Olympian High School—is a bit more challenging.
Only the top four place-finishers in each weight class at Masters advance to the state tournament March 3-4 in Bakersfield.
Shining stars
Certainly, the Division IV championship tournament provided its share of local highlights.
“We have a lot of athletes who might make it to Bakersfield (the state tournament),” tournament director Scott Ullsperger explained. “We have some good wrestlers who are competing at the Division IV level this year.”
Mater Dei Catholic set a school record with its fifth-place team finish. The Crusaders advanced seven wrestlers to the semifinals and five to the finals.
Joining the younger Ullsperger, Olmos and Beristain in the Division IV finals were teammates Karl Moreno (128 pounds) and Tommy Schmitt (184 pounds). Both Moreno and Schmitt recorded second-place finishes in their respective weight classes.
Semifinalists for MDCHS also included Cade Congden (154 pounds) and David Monjaraz (222 pounds). Monjaraz battled back to capture third place in the division while Congden placed fifth.
Jonas Ullsperger and Olmos each won their finals matches by pins while Beristain won by a major decision.
“It feels really good to win the CIF championship knowing how I was injured and wrestled up two weight classes last year,” explained Jonas Ullsperger, who pinned Army-Navy Academy freshman Dylan Rutherford in 1:51 in the championship round.
“Finally this year I’m going out as a Metro and CIF champion. I feel good about going to Masters (this weekend).”
Ullsperger (26-3) and Olmos (42-4) each recorded four pins in as many matches at the Division IV tournament.
Ullsperger collected four first-period pins, including fall times of 33 and 44 seconds in his first two matches.
Olmos, who is ranked fourth in the state, had three first-period pins. He pinned his first opponent in 20 seconds.
Olmos pinned Guajome Park Academy senior Dakota Freaner in 4:50 in the finals.
Beristain (31-8) advanced to the championship round on the strength of three pins, including one totaling just 15 seconds. He out-pointed Valley Center junior Anastas Serebryakov 10-0 in the championship round.
Montiel, who dropped down a weight class for the CIF tournament, pinned Valley Center’s Manuel Perez in 5:23 to earn a first-place medal for the Trojans.
Montiel was injured for most the season and entered the tournament unseeded. But that didn’t matter. He defeated the tournament’s third-seeded wrestler, Imperial’s Sebastian Jiminez, by a 3:14 pin in the quarterfinals and pinned the tourney’s second-seeded wrestler, Holtville’s Edwin Rubin, in 3:28 in the semifinals.
Montiel finished the tournament with three pins in as many trips to the mat to improve his modest record to 14-5 on the season.
The record-setting team showing was not lost on any of the Crusader mat men.
“It was exciting,” Olmos said.
Division I
Six Sweetwater district teams competed at the Division I tournament. Olympian placed fifth in the 18-team field while Eastlake was ninth, Otay Ranch was 12th, Chula Vista was 14th, Bonita Vista was 16th and Sweetwater was 17th.
Top-seeded Johnson defeated second-seeded Jesus Barajas of Escondido by a 7-4 decision to win the 147-pound individual title. Johnson, who won last year’s Division I 138-pound championship, finished 4-0 in this year’s tournament.
Wu, seeded second, pinned top-seeded Nathan Toms of Mission Hills in 1:48 to capture the 172-pound title.
Meanwhile, Martinez dropped a 1-0 decision to top-seeded Erik Marquez of San Marcos to place runner-up at 122 pounds while Casiano lost by a 3:58 pin to top-seeded Elijah Davis from Vista in their championship bout.
Division II
San Ysidro (fifth place) and Hilltop (13th place) both competed in the 18-team field at the Division II tournament.
Perez, seeded third, recorded a 5-1 decision over top-seeded Celso Silva of Poway in the championship round. Perez won his first three matches by pins, including his first match in 57 seconds.
Division III
Mar Vista (sixth place), Montgomery (13th place) and Southwest (17th place) competed in the 19-team field at the Division III tournament.
Riegg, seeded fourth, pinned second-seeded Brandon Toji of Brawley in 5:49 to win the heavyweight title. Riegg finished 3-0 on the day with two pins.
Julian Winnie dropped a 3-0 match to top-seeded Helmer Nunez of Brawley to finish runner-up at 108 pounds while older brother Christian Winnie, also seeded second, scored three sub-minute pins to reach the 115-pound championship bout but fell by a 5:37 pin to top-seeded Nathan Kiddoo of Ramona in the finals.
Christian Winnie reeled off pin times of 30, 55 and 57 seconds in his opening three matches.
Mat attack
Valley Center won its eighth Division IV team championship by out-pointing runner-up Holtville 223-193.5. Imperial captured third place with 186.5 points while Mount Miguel finished fourth with 159 points.
Imperial senior Nick Hart became a four-time Division IV champion when he pinned Mater Dei Catholic’s Moreno in 2:38 in the championship round. Hart’s younger brother Nathan won the 140-pound title with a 12-3 major decision.
“It’s just surreal; I can’t explain it,” Nick Hart said after the awards presentation. “It was awesome. My coach gave me some good advice and I followed it. I’m the first at my school to be a four-time CIF champion.”
He has yet to advance to the state meet but that could change this weekend, “I’m seeded third overall (in the section,” he said. “I’m ready for Masters.”
Road to state
•The opening day at Masters on Friday, Feb. 24, begins at 10 a.m. and concludes at 6:30 p.m. Semifinals are scheduled Saturday, Feb. 25, at 10:45 a.m., followed by the consolation semifinals at 12:15 p.m. The finals are scheduled to start at 4 p.m., followed by an awards presentation at 6:30 p.m.
•Mater Dei Catholic (Division IV) finished third and San Ysidro (Division II) finshed fourth at this year’s section dual meet championships.
SAN DIEGO SECTION
BOYS WRESTLING CHAMPIONSHIPS
Division I
Otay Ranch High School
Top Teams
Points: 1. Rancho Buena Vista 199; 2 San Marcos 181; 3. Vista 179.5; 4. El Camino 142.5; 5. Olympian 133; 6. Mira Mesa 108.5; 7. Mission Hills 96; 8. Helix 94.5; 9. Eastlake 93; 10. Carlsbad 92.5; 11. Escondido 84.5; 12. (tie) Otay Ranch, Torrey Pines 43; 14. Chula Vista 26; 15. San Diego 23; 16. Bonita Vista 22; 17. Sweetwater 20.5; 18. Calexico 16
Top Individuals
108 Pounds
4. Zachary Ramos (Olympian); 8. Ernesto Bustamante (Eastlake)
115 Pounds
5. Jordan Bendorf (Bonita Vista); 8. Antonio Collazo (Eastlake)
122 Pounds
2. Benjamin Martinez (Eastlake); 4. Anthony Ortiz (Chula Vista)
128 Pounds
3. Ethan Ramos (Olympian); 7. Joseph Fonseca (Sweetwater)
134 Pounds
4. Paul Crampton (Eastlake); 6. Andres Espinoza (Olympian); 7. Francisco Herrera (Sweetwater); 8. Daniel Reyes (Bonita; Vista)
140 Pounds
6. Kevin Moyna (Eastlake); 8. Brenden Gregorio (Olympian)
147 Pounds
1. Michael Johnson (Eastlake); 7. Luciano Parra (Olympian)
154 Pounds
3. Sithara Diunugala (Otay Ranch); 6. Abraham Pena (Olympian)
162 Pounds
2. Royce Casiano (Olympian)
172 Pounds
1. Jonathon Wu (Otay Ranch); 5. Joshua Juarez (Olympian); 6. Michael Morgan (Eastlake); 8. Guillermo Gonzalez (Sweetwater)
184 Pounds
4. Camryn Griffin (Olympian); 6. Richard Corpus (Eastlake)
197 Pounds
6. Julius Burgess (Olympian)
222 Pounds
7. Luis Castro (Olympian)
287 Pounds
5. Jason Miller (Olympian); 6. German Contreras (Chula Vista)
Division II
Del Norte High School
Top Teams
Points: 1. Poway 358.5; 2. Rancho Bernardo 299.5; 3. Steele Canyon 142; 4. Granite Hills 122; 5. San Ysidro 112; 6. Valhalla 104.5; 7. Southwest El Centro 87; 8. Grossmont 73.5; 9. Del Norte 63.5; 10. Westview 55; 11. Canyon Crest Academy 53; 12. Oceanside 51.5; 13. Hilltop 49; 14. San Pasqual 47; 15. Fallbrook 39; 16. Scripps Ranch 35; 17. Patrick Henry 29; 18 Hoover 14
Top Individuals
108 Pounds
6. Marc Nunez (Hilltop); 7. Joseph Lopez (San Ysidro)
115 Pounds
5. Israel Ramirez (San Ysidro)
122 Pounds
4. Kazu Tsukamoto (Hilltop)
8. Juan Castro (San Ysidro)
134 Pounds
5. Brandon Delgadillo (San Ysidro)
140 Pounds
6. Jakob Balderas (San Ysidro)
147 Pounds
6. Sebastian Botello (San Ysidro)
154 Pounds
6. Josh Eikamp (San Ysidro)
172 Pounds
1. Pablo Perez (San Ysidro)
184 Pounds
6. Javier Puga (San Ysidro)
197 Pounds
5. Christopher Dominguez (Hilltop); 7. Aldo Rosales (San Ysidro)
Division III
Brawley High School
Top Teams
Points: 1. Brawley 303.5; 2. Ramona 160.5; 3. Mt. Carmel 158.5; 4. Central Union 130.5; 5. La Costa Canyon 119; 6. Mar Vista 94; 7. University City 91.5; 8. Monte Vista 76; 9. West Hills 73; 10. Point Loma 72; 11. Orange Glen 68; 12. El Capitan 67; 13. Montgomery 48; 14. La Jolla 37; 15. Morse 31; 16. Serra 26; 17. Southwest 16.5; 18. Cathedral Catholic 15; 19. El Cajon Valley 11
Top Individuals
108 Pounds
2. Julian Winnie (Mar Vista)
115 Pounds
2. Christian Winnie (Mar Vista)
128 Pounds
7. Roy Figueroa (Mar Vista)
134 Pounds
8. Anthony Molina (Mar Vista)
147 Pounds
6. Nathaniel Binham (Mar Vista)
8. Victor Alvarez (Mar Vista);
162 Pounds
4. Mathew Frith (Mar Vista)
184 Pounds
7. Oscar Luna (Southwest)
222 Pounds
3. Andrew Villagomez (Montgomery); 7. Noah Ballesteros (Southwest)
287 Pounds
1. Chase Riegg (Montgomery)
Division IV
Mater Dei Catholic High School
Top Teams
Points: 1. Valley Center 223; 2. Holtville 193.5; 3. Imperial 186.5; 4. Mt. Miguel 166; 5. Mater Dei Catholic 159; 6. St. Augustine 98.5; 7. Sage Creek 82.5; 8. Madison 78.5; 9. Santana 74; 10. Army-Navy Academy 66.5; 11. Guajome Park Academy 51; 12. Clairemont 48.5; 13. Christian 43; 14. Castle Park 41; 15. Mountain Empire 35; 16. Mission Bay 20; 17. (tie) Julian, Lincoln 19; 19. Maranatha Christian 18; 20. High Tech High Chula Vista 16; 21. Kearny 4; 22 (tie) Crawford, Palo Verde 0
Top Individuals
128 Pounds
2. Karl Moreno (Mater Dei Catholic)
134 Pounds
1. Jonas Ullsperger (Mater Dei Catholic); 5. Nicholas Walden (High Tech High Chula Vista)
154 Pounds
5. Cade Congden (Mater Dei Catholic)
162 Pounds
1. Aaron Olmos (Mater Dei Catholic)
172 Pounds
1. Uriel Beristain (Mater Dei Catholic)
184 Pounds
2. Thomas Schmitt (Mater Dei Catholic)
197 Pounds
1. Hassan Montiel (Castle Park)
222 Pounds
3. David Monjaraz (Mater Dei Catholic)
