Central Valley’s varsity boys wrestling program will send five grapplers to the Sac-Joaquin Section Masters Tournament.

Ryan Palecek, Michael Miller, Ruben Valenzuela, Kyle Hendrix and David Martinez secured individual berths after finishing in the top eight in their respective weight brackets at the Division-III Championships this past week at Atwater High School.

“It’s an honor to be one of the five guys to make it,” Hawks’ senior Ryan Palecek said. “I’ve been working hard the last four years to get to where I’m at.”

Added Central Valley head coach Rob Beckhart: “The guys are having success. It’s good to see.”

Palecek placed second in the 182-pound weight class.

He posted a 3-1 record.

“I’m peaking at the right time,” Palecek said. 

Palecek is enjoying his best season to date with the Hawks.

“I train with Ruben and Michael,” Palecek said. “They push me the most. Without them, I wouldn’t be as good as I am.”

Miller, a senior transfer from Grace Davis, placed second at 140 pounds.

He compiled a 3-1 record.

 “Michael is an elite wrestler,” Beckhart said. “He doesn’t need me to coach him. He needs me to motivate him.”

Miller lost 7-1 to state-ranked Rickey Torres of Oakdale during the championship match.

“His plan was to get to the finals and wrestle Rickey Torres,” Beckhart said. “He made that happen. He just fell short of winning.”

Valenzuela placed fourth at 160 pounds.

He won three of five matches.

“The things he’s doing as a freshman are impressive,” Beckhart said. “But there’s still a lot of room for improvement.”

Hendrix, a junior, placed seventh at 132 pounds.

He won three of five matches.

“I’m happy for Kyle,” Beckhart said. “He’s been our warrior all year long. He’s advanced to the second day of every tournament we’ve gone to.”

Martinez, a senior, placed seventh at 152 pounds.

He won three of five matches.

Central Valley finished ninth overall in the team standings at Divisionals.

The Hawks totaled 80.5 points.

Oakdale (295), Vista del Lago (217) and El Capitan (161) placed first, second and third, respectively.

“There were some great teams there,” Beckhart said. “We want to be considered one of those teams one day.”

The Masters tourney will be staged Feb. 15-16 at Delta College in Stockton.

The top six finishers in each weight class qualify for the CIF State Meet.

“My goal coming into the season was to make it to Masters,” Palecek said. “Maybe I set the bar too low. I’d definitely like to make it to state.”