Unbeaten through its first four Central California Conference dual meets, Central Valley’s varsity girls wrestling team suffered its first league loss while falling 78-3 at Atwater on Jan. 23.

The Hawks and Falcons shared the CCC’s overall championship last winter.

“We had a lot of girls that were sick with the flu,” said Aryanna Jimenez, who prevented the shutout by accounting for Central Valley’s lone individual victory on the night. “We couldn’t perform to our fullest.”

The host Falcons totaled 30 of their points on five forfeits versus the shorthanded Hawks.

Jimenez won by decision (3-2) against Jessica Garcia at 121 pounds.

Visiting Central Valley defeated Merced 39-23 on Jan. 21.

Jimenez won by decision (11-5) against Corrina Lemus at 121 pounds.

Mia Mendoza won by forfeit at 126 pounds.

Isabella Pelayo won by forfeit at 131 pounds.

Abigail Garcia won by forfeit at 137 pounds.

Kim Hernandez won by forfeit at 142 pounds.

Savannah Gomez won by forfeit at 160 pounds.

Samantha Espinoza won by forfeit at 235 pounds.

Host Central Valley will close out the CCC dual season this Wednesday against Patterson on Senior Night.

Mustangs 39, Bulldogs 36

Ceres High’s varsity girls wrestling team sustained a 39-36 loss during its Western Athletic Conference dual-meet showdown with Mountain House on Jan. 22 at Phil de la Porte Gymnasium.

“If we pushed a little harder, we could have won,” Bulldogs’ 131-pound senior grappler A.C. Lugo said. 

Ceres High dropped to 2-4 in the Western Athletic Conference standings.

“Ninety percent of our team is first-year wrestlers,” Ceres High head coach Curtis Hulstine said. “From where we started to where we are now, we’re drastically better.”

“We got a lot of young girls on the team,” Lugo added. “They’ve gotten tougher.”

The Bulldogs and Mustangs both forfeited four individual matches during the dual.

Ceres High won just one of the four contested bouts.

Lugo pinned Abigail Christa in the first round.

“This might be my last home match,” Lugo said. “I tried giving my all. I made sure to be aggressive. I recalled everything I learned in the room.”

Lugo improved her WAC dual record to 2-2.

A second-year grappler, Lugo was named Ceres High’s Most Improved wrestlers as a junior.

“I never have to worry about her,” Hulstine said. “She’s always working hard in the room. She sets a very good example for others to follow.”

Mercedes Wood won by forfeit at 235 pounds.

Karen Vang won by forfeit at 150 pounds.

Mariana Ramirez won by forfeit at 143 pounds.

Jazzmin Suarez won by forfeit at 137 pounds.

Elizabeth Mercado won by forfeit at 101 pounds.

Ceres High’s Katie Garcia (hand) and Angie Huerta (sick) did not compete against Mountain House.

“We didn’t have a full lineup,” Hulstine said. “We have some injuries on the team and girls that are sick.”

The Bulldogs’ 2019-20 roster features 12 wrestlers, including just three returners. 

“We have a lot of lot of young girls on the team,” Lugo said. “From beginning to now, they’ve learned a lot. They’ve gotten tougher.” 

“We’re building,” Hulstine added. “We haven’t competed to our ability.”

Ceres High will wrap up the WAC dual season this week.

The Bulldogs will compete against the Grace Davis Spartans.

BOYS WRESTLING

Ceres High’s varsity boys wrestling team evened its Western Athletic Conference dual-meet record at 3-3 last week.

The Bulldogs erased an 18-0 deficit on their way to posting a 48-33 win over the Mountain House Mustangs on Jan. 22 at Phil de la Porte Gymnasium.

Ceres High snapped a two-match losing streak.

“It gives us fire under our skin to keep it going,” Bulldog 145-pound senior grappler Edison Jimenez said. “We can still get first if we win the (WAC) tournament.”

The Bulldogs won eight of the dual’s 14 individual matches.

Jimenez pinned Cannon Waters in the first round.

Federico Parra pinned Timothy Huynh in the first round at 132 pounds.

Adrian Martinez pinned Jonathan Carlson in the first round at 195 pounds.

Angel Figueroa pinned Jaiden Leus in the second round at 182 pounds.

Arturo Estrada (120s), Diego Armas (152s), Gabe Flores (170s) and Josh Ofisa (220s) were all awarded forfeit victories.

“We have a lot of young guys on the team,” Jimenez said. “Our coaches are doing a good job building them up.”

The Bulldogs will close out the WAC dual season against Grace Davis this week.

Jimenez and his senior teammates will compete at home for the final time.

“If we wrestle to the best of our ability, we can put up a good fight,” he said. 

Hawks drop to 0-5

Central Valley’s varsity boys wrestling program lost to Atwater and Merced this past week.

The Hawks dropped to 0-5 in the Central California Conference dual-meet standings.

“Everybody tried their hardest,” Central Valley 182-pound grappler Ruben Valenzuela said. “Most of the teams are really good. They also have more experience.”

Host Atwater posted a 45-30 win over Central Valley on Jan. 23.

Valenzuela won by pin in the first round (0:37) versus Nicholas Valenzuela.

He improved his overall record to 26-3.

Nicholas Genasci won by pin in the first round (1:03) versus Maximiliano Sanchez at 106 pounds.

Kyle Hendrix won by pin in the second round (2:26) versus Indy Russell at 152 pounds.

Juan Lezama won by pin in the second round (2:57) versus Christian Macias at 195 pounds.

Roman Ramirez won by decision (15-8) versus Alejandro Martinez at 170 pounds.

Juan Melgoza won by decision (6-4) versus Giovanni Huerta at 138 pounds.

Merced rolled to a 52-16 win over visiting Central Valley on Jan. 21.

Valenzuela won by forfeit.

Natanael Lezama won by pin in the first round (1:12) versus Jesus Moua at 285 pounds.

Juan Lezama won by major decision (9-1) versus Ethan Perez at 195 pounds.

Central Valley will host Patterson on Senior Night today. The CCC dual finale will get underway at 6 p.m.

BASKETBALL

Ceres High’s varsity boys basketball team showed flashes of competitiveness against first-place Lathrop and Mountain House last week.

“We’re trying to figure out how to be consistent for four quarters,” Bulldogs’ head coach T.J. Walker Jr. said.

Ceres High cut a 15-point deficit to three before losing 83-70 to visiting Lathrop Friday evening at Phil de la Porte Gymnasium.

The Bulldogs dropped to 7-15 on the year and remained in fourth place in the Western Athletic Conference standings (1-7).

The Spartans improved to 15-5 and 7-1.

Lathrop handed Ceres High its sixth straight loss.

“We’re struggling to find a win,” Walker said. “The boys are continuing to work hard for themselves and the program.”

Bulldog junior forward Samar Singh collected 23 points and grabbed 11 rebounds versus the Spartans. 

Sophomore forward Verlis Smith added 19 points.

Ceres High lost 70-55 at Mountain House on Jan. 22.

The Bulldogs trailed 47-17 at the break.

Ceres High got within nine points in the fourth quarter.

“It was a different game in the second half,” Walker said. “We played well.”

Singh tallied 19 points and 10 rebounds against the Mustangs (15-7, 7-1).

Junior forward Andrew Kommavong had 16 points.

Kommavong competed at the JV level a year ago.

“He’s worked his way up the ladder because of his work ethic,” Walker said. “He’s figuring out how to play at this level. The game is a lot quicker.”

Ceres High will play host to Beyer (13-8, 7-1) today and Grace Davis (5-17, 0-8) on Friday at 7:15 p.m.

“Every game is an opportunity for us to get better,” Walker said. 

CV girls lose again

The Central Valley youth-laden varsity girls basketball program’s struggles continued this past week.

Head coach Jesse Padilla remained positive after the Hawks lost their 30th straight game dating back to last season.

“The effort is there,” he said. “They’re getting after it. We’ll get through this and hit the summer hard.”

Central Valley dropped to 0-15 overall and 0-7 in the Central California Conference after being beaten by Merced and El Capitan.

“Not playing all summer long hurt us,” Padilla said. “We didn’t get to work on anything until we started the season. We went backwards instead of forwards.”

Central Valley lost 67-13 to Merced on Thursday in Ceres.

Sophomore Alyssa Rojo scored a team-high 11 points for the Hawks.

Junior Gabby Benenati added two points.

Host Central Valley lost 66-10 to El Capitan on Jan. 21.

Benenati led the Hawks with five points.

Nora Vera and sophomore Carmen Carranza contributed three and two points, respectively.

Central Valley trailed 9-2 at the end of the first quarter.

“We find things we need to work on every game like rebounding and keeping our turnovers down,” Padilla said. 

Central Valley will begin the second half of the CCC season this week.

The Hawks will compete against the Golden Valley Cougars this Thursday at 7:15 p.m. in Merced.