Central Valley High School's varsity wrestling team avoided finishing in last place in the Valley Oak League dual-meet standings with a 36-21 win over Manteca Wednesday night in Ceres.
"It's a good send-off for our seniors," head coach Joe Stewart said. "We finished our season right."
The sixth-place Hawks posted a 2-5 record on the year.
The 1-6 Buffaloes finished in a tie for last place with East Union.
Sonora (7-0), Oakdale (6-1), Weston Ranch (5-2), Sierra (4-3) and Ceres (3-4) took first, second, third, fourth and fifth, respectively.
"I wish we could have had our full team against East Union and Sierra," said Stewart, whose program was forced to compete short-handed earlier this year because of disciplinary and eligibility problems.
Central Valley won six of the meet's first seven matches to take a commanding 26-6 lead against Manteca.
Freshman Adrian Santana posted a 7-3 victory over Cory Smith in the 125-pound division.
Freshman Jaime Lomeli defeated Bryce Copeland 15-8 at 130 pounds.
Junior Victor Tubera won by technical fall (16-1) over Casey Benson at 140 pounds.
Senior Louis Bracamonte pinned Steven Saunders with 55.7 seconds remaining in the first period at 152 pounds.
Senior Carlos Gonzalez won by major decision (20-8) over Estevan Garcia at 160 pounds.
"For a kid that's wrestled only two years, he's picked it up quick," Stewart said. "He's starting to get cauliflower ear. That says a lot about the way he wrestles. He's a brawler."
Added Gonzalez: "I was pretty happy to perform to the best of my abilities. I took shots that I learned in practice."
Anthony Martinez won via major decision (17-9) over Cliff Bordi at 171 pounds.
Central Valley's Josh Beckhart (freshman), Stephen Wade (senior) and Marisol Gonzalez (senior) didn't win their matches, but avoided losing by pin. That coupled with the stellar wrestling of seniors Justin Lomeli and Mike Tubera helped the Hawks hold off the Buffaloes.
Beckhart lost 3-2 to Rick Honeycutt at 189 pounds.
Wade lost 7-0 to Zach Williams at 285 pounds.
Gonzalez lost 11-5 to Brandon Vilysack at 103 pound.
Vilysack's hardfought win closed the gap to 26-21 for Manteca.
Lomeli and Tubera responded with dominant performances in their respective weight classes to seal the victory.
Justin pinned Marcus Gonzales with one minute remaining in the third period at 112 pounds.
Mike earned a major decision (15-4) over Gabriel Rellamos at 119 pounds.
Central Valley matched its record from last season by winning two of its final three duals. The Hawks upset crosstown rival Ceres High 37-33 at Phil de la Porte Gym on Jan. 23.
"We trained hard and never gave up," Gonzalez said when asked about his team's strong finish. "We wrestled with heart."
"It's a good send-off for our seniors," head coach Joe Stewart said. "We finished our season right."
The sixth-place Hawks posted a 2-5 record on the year.
The 1-6 Buffaloes finished in a tie for last place with East Union.
Sonora (7-0), Oakdale (6-1), Weston Ranch (5-2), Sierra (4-3) and Ceres (3-4) took first, second, third, fourth and fifth, respectively.
"I wish we could have had our full team against East Union and Sierra," said Stewart, whose program was forced to compete short-handed earlier this year because of disciplinary and eligibility problems.
Central Valley won six of the meet's first seven matches to take a commanding 26-6 lead against Manteca.
Freshman Adrian Santana posted a 7-3 victory over Cory Smith in the 125-pound division.
Freshman Jaime Lomeli defeated Bryce Copeland 15-8 at 130 pounds.
Junior Victor Tubera won by technical fall (16-1) over Casey Benson at 140 pounds.
Senior Louis Bracamonte pinned Steven Saunders with 55.7 seconds remaining in the first period at 152 pounds.
Senior Carlos Gonzalez won by major decision (20-8) over Estevan Garcia at 160 pounds.
"For a kid that's wrestled only two years, he's picked it up quick," Stewart said. "He's starting to get cauliflower ear. That says a lot about the way he wrestles. He's a brawler."
Added Gonzalez: "I was pretty happy to perform to the best of my abilities. I took shots that I learned in practice."
Anthony Martinez won via major decision (17-9) over Cliff Bordi at 171 pounds.
Central Valley's Josh Beckhart (freshman), Stephen Wade (senior) and Marisol Gonzalez (senior) didn't win their matches, but avoided losing by pin. That coupled with the stellar wrestling of seniors Justin Lomeli and Mike Tubera helped the Hawks hold off the Buffaloes.
Beckhart lost 3-2 to Rick Honeycutt at 189 pounds.
Wade lost 7-0 to Zach Williams at 285 pounds.
Gonzalez lost 11-5 to Brandon Vilysack at 103 pound.
Vilysack's hardfought win closed the gap to 26-21 for Manteca.
Lomeli and Tubera responded with dominant performances in their respective weight classes to seal the victory.
Justin pinned Marcus Gonzales with one minute remaining in the third period at 112 pounds.
Mike earned a major decision (15-4) over Gabriel Rellamos at 119 pounds.
Central Valley matched its record from last season by winning two of its final three duals. The Hawks upset crosstown rival Ceres High 37-33 at Phil de la Porte Gym on Jan. 23.
"We trained hard and never gave up," Gonzalez said when asked about his team's strong finish. "We wrestled with heart."
