Wrestlers compete in Chukchansi
Tyler Takeda/The Madera Tribune
Madera South’s Diego Jaimes records a takedown to win his 128-pound semifinal match in double overtime. Jaimes was one of two Madera South wrestlers to earn spots in the finals of this weekend’s Chukchansi Invitational a Madera South.
With teams working to get their line-ups set and wrestlers to the mat, more than 40 schools participated in the 15th annual Chukchansi Invitational at Madera South over the weekend.
Madera South had the best showing of four Madera-area schools with a fifth place overall finish. They had two wrestlers reach the finals.
Madera South, Madera, Liberty and Matilda Torres didn’t field full teams, but coaches were able to see how their wrestlers fared against some top competition
The Chukchansi is considered one of the best early-season tournaments in the state and, according to coordinator Sal Gonzalez, it’s the first two-day tournament of the season.
Madera South had five wrestlers place in the top eight. Matilda Torres and Madera each had two wrestlers in the top eight, as well.
Liberty only fielded two wrestlers ahead of their tournament on Saturday.
Madera South
The Stallions, under new head coach John Petty, had a pretty good showing at its own tournament with a fifth place finish. They were within 10 points of earning a top three trophy.
Leading the way for the Stallions were 128-pounder Diego Jaimes and 162-pounder Isaiah Garza, who each reached the championship match.
In his first match of the tournament, Jaimes advanced to the quarterfinals with 6-4 victory and advanced to the semifinals with a dominant 12-0 win. He picked up a 5-3 win in the semifinals in double overtime to advance to the championship match.
He lost by technical fall in the title match to Bullard-Fresno’s Hayden Zinkin.
At 162 pounds, Garza picked up a pin at the end of the first period in his first match He picked up a pin a minute into the first period in the second round. In the quarterfinals, Garza recorded his third straight first period pin.
In the semifinals, he lasted a little longer before recording a second period pin. He lost to Casey Aikman of Ukiah in the championship match.
Moises Cornejo-Hernandz lost his first match at 108 pounds. He then won his next four matches to advance to the medal rounds. He won by a 7-3 decision in his first consolation match.
Cornejo-Hernandez then recorded three straight pins. He recorded a second period pin and two in the first period before losing by a 10-8 decision in the consolation semifinals.
In the fifth-sixth place match, Cornejo-Hernandez seemed to have run out of steam and lost by an 8-0 decision.
Jonathan Spraggins, wrestling for the first time in three years because of injuries, had a good first tournament. He won his first two matches by first period pins to advance to the quarterfinals.
However, he lost by pin to the eventual runner-up in the quarters. Spraggins then defeated Madera’s Julio Garcia by a 5-2 decision to advance to the consolation quarterfinals. He lost by a third period pin in the quarterfinals, but earned a berth in the sevent-eighth place match.
Spraggins finished off his opponent by a pin 43 seconds into the third period for a seventh place medal.
At 197 pounds, Angel Castellanos lost his first match after receiving a first-round bye. He won his next two matches by pin and received an injury default in the consolation quarterfinals. Castellanos lost by third period pin, but received a spot in the seventh-eighth place match. He pinned his opponent 41 seconds into the second period for seventh place.
Madera Coyotes
The Coyotes only took six wrestlers to the Chukchansi Invitational, including two at 222 pounds, and came away with two medalists.
Freshman Solomon Reyes lost his first match of the tournament at 115 pounds. He then won his next five matches to advance to the consolation semifinals.
He recorded a first period pin in the first round o the consolation bracket and then recorded two more pins. He advanced to the quarterfinals with a 7-4 win and won a 5-0 decision in the consolation quarters.
After a loss by pin, Reyes lost in the fifth-sixth place match by a second period pin.
Sergio Reyes advanced to the 287-pound semifinals in his first tournament of the year. He won his first match by a first period pin and then picked up a second period pin. In the quarterfinals, Rios recorded a 6-3 win, but lost by a third period pin in the semifinals.
Rios lost in the consolation semifinals by a tough 3-1 decision and then lost by a 6-5 decision in the fifth-sixth place match.
Matilda Torres Toros
The Toros only took five wrestlers, all under 140 pounds, to the Chukchansi, but came away with a pair of medalists.
At 122 pounds, Abraham Galvan won his first match by a pin just 25 seconds into the match. He lost his quarterfinal match by a first period pin.
In the consolation round, Galvan won by a third period pin and advanced to the semifinals with a second period pin.
He lost in the consolation semis by a second period pin. However, he earned a fifth place medal with a dominating 14-3 victory.
Pablo Adame picked up a 17 second pin in his first match at 128 pounds. He followed that up with a pin with six seconds left in the match. However, he lost to Madera South’s Jaimes by major decision, 12-0, in the quarterfinals.
Adame won his first consolation bracket match by a 5-1 decision, but lost in the third round in the quarterfinals to place him in the seventh-eighth place match.
He recorded a second period pin to earn a seventh place medal.
Madera, Matilda Torres and Liberty will each wrestle Saturday at the liberty Duals at Liberty High School. Meanwhile, Madera South will battle in the Reedley Classic on Saturday.
