Ceres High School's varsity wrestling team completed its amazing run through the VOL dual-meet season last Wednesday.
The Bulldogs defeated East Union and Central Valley to lock up sole possession of second place (7-1). Ceres High earned the right to compete at the Sac-Joaquin Section Team Duals by virtue of its runner-up finish.
"That's been our goal since our freshman year," senior leader Keegan Overbey said. "We've talked about it forever."
Overbey, Curtis Hulstine, Tony Spinella, Christian Moore, Shawn Amirfar, Wesley Schwieger, Nick Moran, Christian Moore, Erik Eisenbeis, Gabe Balderas, Brandon Christeson, Rajdeep Singh, Chad Atchison, Lucas Silva, Kevin Hartley and Ruben Sanchez have all played a part in the team's success this season.
Schwieger, Eisenbeis, Hulstine, Balderas, Spinella, Silva, Amirfar, Overbey, Moran and Moore picked up wins in Ceres High's 55-20 pasting of East Union.
Wesley won by pin (0:14) over Peter Barrington at 112 pounds.
Eric won by pin (0:57) over Christopher Cardenas at 189 pounds.
Curtis won by pin (1:16) over Caleb Davis at 125 pounds.
Gabe won by pin (1:20) over Robert Guillory at 103 pounds.
Tony won by pin (1:28) over Alfredo Rincon at 160 pounds.
Lucas won by pin (1:53) over Rodrigo Alvarez at 215 pounds.
Shawn won by pin (3:33) over Ryan Treat at 145 pounds.
Keegan won by major decision (16-5) over Jason Cortez at 135 pounds.
Nick won by decision (8-4) over Steven Teeple at 140 pounds.
Christian won by forfeit at 171 pounds.
Ceres High cruised to a 72-4 victory over its crosstown rival.
Spinella won by pin (0:58) over Evan Elliot at 160 pounds.
Eisenbeis won by pin (1:08) over Johnny Proctor at 189 pounds.
Moran won by pin (1:27) over Tony Cordova at 140 pounds.
Rodriguez won by pin (5:18) over Noel Farias at 152 pounds.
Schwieger won by technical fall (15-0) over Rose Moore at 112 pounds.
Singh won by major decision (14-0) over George Youkhama at 130 pounds.
Amirfar won by decision (13-10) over Jaime Tadeo at 145 pounds. Shawn was awarded three near-fall points as time expired.
Overbey won by injury default over Derek Earnest at 135 pounds. Keegan held a 6-0 lead before the match was stopped midway through the first round.
Silva lost by major decision (15-5) to Josh Beckhart at 215 pounds.
Balderas (103), Christeson (119), Hulstine (125) Atchison (171) and Sanchez (285) all won via forfeit.
Ceres High's lone loss in league came against state-ranked Oakdale (8-0). The Bulldogs beat seven other teams, including Sonora and Weston Ranch for the first time since Jon Nowicki and Steve Festa took over the program in 2006-07.
"It makes such a big difference to have the same coaches for four seasons," Festa said. "I wish every athlete had that opportunity. You form a bond. I'm just happy to be around these kids. They're special."
Ceres High will make its first-ever appearance in the Section Team Duals this Saturday at Rosemont High School.
"We're confident," Overbey said. "We know our program's good and we proved it. We put in a lot of hard work."
"I'm definitely pleased," said Amirfar, a fourth-year member of the Bulldogs. "It's amazing how good everyone's gotten. We've come a long way. Hopefully, we'll have a strong showing in Sacramento at team sections."
"We hold a high standard for these kids," Festa said. "We do our job to prepare them. When it comes to wrestling, we give them all the credit."
The Bulldogs defeated East Union and Central Valley to lock up sole possession of second place (7-1). Ceres High earned the right to compete at the Sac-Joaquin Section Team Duals by virtue of its runner-up finish.
"That's been our goal since our freshman year," senior leader Keegan Overbey said. "We've talked about it forever."
Overbey, Curtis Hulstine, Tony Spinella, Christian Moore, Shawn Amirfar, Wesley Schwieger, Nick Moran, Christian Moore, Erik Eisenbeis, Gabe Balderas, Brandon Christeson, Rajdeep Singh, Chad Atchison, Lucas Silva, Kevin Hartley and Ruben Sanchez have all played a part in the team's success this season.
Schwieger, Eisenbeis, Hulstine, Balderas, Spinella, Silva, Amirfar, Overbey, Moran and Moore picked up wins in Ceres High's 55-20 pasting of East Union.
Wesley won by pin (0:14) over Peter Barrington at 112 pounds.
Eric won by pin (0:57) over Christopher Cardenas at 189 pounds.
Curtis won by pin (1:16) over Caleb Davis at 125 pounds.
Gabe won by pin (1:20) over Robert Guillory at 103 pounds.
Tony won by pin (1:28) over Alfredo Rincon at 160 pounds.
Lucas won by pin (1:53) over Rodrigo Alvarez at 215 pounds.
Shawn won by pin (3:33) over Ryan Treat at 145 pounds.
Keegan won by major decision (16-5) over Jason Cortez at 135 pounds.
Nick won by decision (8-4) over Steven Teeple at 140 pounds.
Christian won by forfeit at 171 pounds.
Ceres High cruised to a 72-4 victory over its crosstown rival.
Spinella won by pin (0:58) over Evan Elliot at 160 pounds.
Eisenbeis won by pin (1:08) over Johnny Proctor at 189 pounds.
Moran won by pin (1:27) over Tony Cordova at 140 pounds.
Rodriguez won by pin (5:18) over Noel Farias at 152 pounds.
Schwieger won by technical fall (15-0) over Rose Moore at 112 pounds.
Singh won by major decision (14-0) over George Youkhama at 130 pounds.
Amirfar won by decision (13-10) over Jaime Tadeo at 145 pounds. Shawn was awarded three near-fall points as time expired.
Overbey won by injury default over Derek Earnest at 135 pounds. Keegan held a 6-0 lead before the match was stopped midway through the first round.
Silva lost by major decision (15-5) to Josh Beckhart at 215 pounds.
Balderas (103), Christeson (119), Hulstine (125) Atchison (171) and Sanchez (285) all won via forfeit.
Ceres High's lone loss in league came against state-ranked Oakdale (8-0). The Bulldogs beat seven other teams, including Sonora and Weston Ranch for the first time since Jon Nowicki and Steve Festa took over the program in 2006-07.
"It makes such a big difference to have the same coaches for four seasons," Festa said. "I wish every athlete had that opportunity. You form a bond. I'm just happy to be around these kids. They're special."
Ceres High will make its first-ever appearance in the Section Team Duals this Saturday at Rosemont High School.
"We're confident," Overbey said. "We know our program's good and we proved it. We put in a lot of hard work."
"I'm definitely pleased," said Amirfar, a fourth-year member of the Bulldogs. "It's amazing how good everyone's gotten. We've come a long way. Hopefully, we'll have a strong showing in Sacramento at team sections."
"We hold a high standard for these kids," Festa said. "We do our job to prepare them. When it comes to wrestling, we give them all the credit."
