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New-look CV finishes fifth overall at Division-IV tournament
Three CV grapplers qualify for Masters
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Christian Oliver (pictured) and Hawk teammates Luis Saucedo and Joaquin Garcia will compete at the Sac-Joaquin Section Masters Tournament this week.

It was supposed to be a rebuilding year for Central Valley High School's varsity wrestling program.

The new-look Hawks racked up 111.5 points on their way to a fifth-place finish at the Sac-Joaquin Section Division-IV Varsity Wrestling Championships this past week at Foothill High School.

"I'm happy with their overall performance," Central Valley head coach Rob Beckhart said. "All but one of our wrestlers placed. There's stuff we need to get better at."

Luis Saucedo, Joaquin Garcia and Christian Oliver earned individual berths to the Masters competition by finishing among the top four grapplers in their respective weight brackets.

Saucedo (113 pounds, 2-1 record) and Garcia (182s, 2-1) both placed second.

Luis won by pin over Union Mine's Isaac Heape and technical fall over Lincoln's Skyler Evans. He lost by major decision to Livingston's Rainer Colina.

Joaquin won by pin over Liberty Ranch's Brandon Ritchie and Foothill's Damareia Woodard. He lost by major decision to Placer's William Thorton.
Oliver (120s, 3-1) took third.

Christian won by pin over Patterson's Steven Rincon and El Dorado's Declan Russell, and decision over Ceres High's Luis Camarillo. He lost by major decision to Foothill's William Peterson.

"Joaquin is wrestling extremely hard right now," Beckhart said. "He's doing the stuff we're asking him to do. That's why he's successful."

The Hawks had 10 wrestlers advance to the second day of Divisionals, including Saucedo, Garcia, Oliver, Gabriel Martinez, Angel Gonzales, Jose Castillo, Severo Vazquez, Andrew Marquez, Adrian Badillo and Jason Beckhart.
Gabriel (170s, 3-2) just missed qualifying for Masters as he finished in fifth place.

Gonzales (132s), Castillo (138s), Vazquez (145s), Marquez (152s), Badillo (195s) and Beckhart (220s) all placed sixth.

David Lezama (285s, 0-2) did not place.

Central Valley finished behind Rosemont (130), Los Banos (122), Cordova (121.5) and El Dorado (119) in the team standings at Divisionals. "The kids are disappointed," coach Beckhart said. "We were in first place for a day and a half. I have to remind myself we were rebuilding this year."

The Hawks' 2014-15 lineup consisted of four veterans and 10 newcomers.

Central Valley still managed to win its first-ever Western Athletic Conference overall title. The Hawks went 6-0 in the conference dual-meet standings for the second straight season. Central Valley also advanced to the Sac-Joaquin Section Division-IV Team Duals for the third time in five years.