View photos/Mike Griffin Pueblo West's Dalton Overby (in black) tries to get behind Centennial's Josiah Gallegos.

Wrestling team grapples with injuries

Garcia fares well at elite tourney in Denver

By MIKE GRIFFIN
The Pueblo West View

Competing in a tournament tougher than the state championship, the Pueblo West High School wrestling team came home with some encouraging results.

Senior 145-pounder Jordan Garcia placed fourth at the Top of the Rockies Invitational at Centaurus, and his two losses were against guys he won't have to worry about at the state tournament - one from Wyoming and one from a Class 5A school.

"Jordan wrestled awesome," West coach David Falls said.

Top of the Rockies brings together the top teams in the region. In addition to facing the teams likely to rule at the Class 4A state championship at Denver's Pepsi Center in February - teams like Roosevelt, Alamosa and Pueblo South - the Cyclones also got to face top teams from Class 5A and from other states around the region.

In their first trip to the tournament, the Cyclones saw success beyond Garcia's, as Marc Guerrero (152) and Jordan Munoz (160) narrowly missed podium places.

Finishing 28th out of 30 in the team standings is largely a reflection of the fact that the Cyclones just don't have a full team these days, thanks to injuries and other issues.

"I'd like to fast-forward to February for the whole team," Falls said. "We're dropping like flies."

February will bring the regional and state tournaments - the two weekends the Cyclones spend their whole season preparing for - and the time can't come soon enough.

West's Tyler Yates tangles with Gerald Trujillo.

Already without a 103-pounder on their roster, the Cyclones have lost their 171, 189 and 215 pounders in recent weeks.

Senior Nathan Fetty (171) was injured at the Centennial Invitational several weeks ago, and may return before the end of the season. The others may not.

The depleted Cyclones went into their dual match at Centennial last Thursday with an 0-4 record in South-Central League duals, and they gave up four of 14 matches off the bat by forfeiting at 103, 171, 189 and 215. Centennial also forfeited two matches, leaving just eight to be wrestled.

The Cyclones came up big, winning six of eight to post a 42-33 win over the Bulldogs.

"We wrestled really well," Falls said.

After Centennial forfeited at 135, Mitch Myers schooled Centennial's Jack Ortega for a technical fall, 18-1, at 140 pounds.

Garcia pinned Tim Romero at 145, Guerrero pinned Angelo Andrini at 152 and Munoz pinned Damien Griego at 160 to give the Cyclones a commanding 29-0 lead.

They needed it as they forfeited the next three matches. With a 29-18 Pueblo West lead, heavyweight Tyler Yates took the mat against Centennial's Gerald Trujillo.

Despite giving up about 40 pounds, Yates used a second-round flourish to score three points in three seconds. He escaped after having started the round on bottom, and Trujillo lost his footing as Yates got away. Yates pounced on him for a takedown and led 3-0 with 37 seconds left in the round.

Trujillo scored an escape late in the second round and another early in the third, and when Yates was whistled for stalling late in the third, Trujillo forged a 3-3 tie and sent the match to overtime.

After a neutral first overtime, the big men exchanged escapes in the second and third overtime rounds.

But with just a couple of seconds left on the clock in the fourth overtime, Trujillo caught Yates up high, pulled him off balance and drove him backward to the mat for the winning takedown.

Zach Johnson controls Centennial's Luke Campbell.

After the teams exchanged forfeits at 103 and 112, Centennial's Josiah Gallegos pinned Dalton Overby to draw the Bulldogs within two at 35-33.

But Cody Meyer gave the Cyclones breathing room with a 12-2 win at 125 pounds and Zach Johnson finished things off with an 8-3 victory at 130 to help West finish strong.

The Cyclones are scheduled to host East for a dual meet tonight. It will be the team's last home dual of the year, making it a big night for the seniors.

"The last home dual is always kind of sentimental," Falls said.

After the dual, the team will head to Brighton for an invitational on Saturday.

Email

Print