In all, Tracy and West each had 12 wrestlers in the tournament. None of the local wrestlers brought back awards, but six of them came within a couple of matches of the medal rounds.

West High coach Ed Carlos said that the tournament is similar to the state tournament, where wrestlers compete in a big arena in front of a large crowd. He added that the competitive level is similar to the sectional Master’s tournament, which determines who will qualify for state competition.

“I told the guys, ‘If you place at this tournament, the section will notice you and you’ll be a wrestler people will talk about,’” Carlos said.

Tracy assistant coach Larry Nicholson said the team’s goal isn’t so much to win awards. It’s to put wrestlers up against the best competition they’re likely to face prior to the section meets.

“This gives our guys a chance to see what the best guys in the state are like,” Nicholson said.

He added that tournaments like this also teach wrestlers that before they get on the mat, they have to overcome intimidation from other wrestlers. He said that’s how he motivated his son, Chase, to come within two matches of the eighth-place round.

“I told him this is a learning experience and you can compete with anyone here if you’re ready to wrestle,” Nicholson said.

Tracy’s Chad Fraga, wrestling in the 287-pound class, was 3-2 for the day and was one match away from the eighth-place round when he lost a 2-11 decision to Ben Duca of Archbishop Riordan High of San Francisco.

Wrestlers to come within two matches of the medal rounds were West’s Matt Thompson (191), 2-2 for the tournament, and Kris Merrill (287), also 2-2 for the tournament. Carlos said Merrill was behind in his match Friday against Alex Becker of Davis High of Modesto when he scored a reversal to put the match into overtime. Merrill won that match 4-3 after three overtime rounds.

Tracy wrestlers to come within two matches of the medal rounds included: Daniel Nunes (127), who was 2-2 for the day; Chase Nicholson (137), who went 2-2; Dylan Smith (162), who went 2-2. Smith won his first match and, in his second match, Central Catholic’s T.J. Belton pinned Smith with 22 seconds left in the third round, and Belton went on to take first place in the 162-pound weight class.

Also going 3-2 for the tournament was Tracy’s Zack White (147), whose wins included a 4-3 overtime decision in the consolation bracket over West’s Adam Crandall, who was 1-2 for the day.

Other wrestlers who went 2-2 for the tournament include: Tracy’s Josh Mandeville (121), Tracy’s Danny Martinez (142), West’s Hewey Burnett (142), West’s Tyler Higaki (173), and Tracy’s Marc Chapple (191). Wrestlers who went 1-2 for the tournament include West’s Dylan Richards (105), West’s Trevor Manaois (114), and West’s Dan Aflague (121).

In the team scores Tracy placed 29th and West placed 41st. The top three teams were Central Catholic, Turlock and Douglas County.

Tracy’s San Joaquin Athletic Association rivals Lincoln and Chavez placed 18th and 27th, respectively, and Franklin and Bear Creek placed 50th and 53rd. West’s Tri-City Athletic League rival McNair placed 14th and St Mary’s and Edison placed 47th and 48th.

Napa Valley Girls Classic

Tracy wrestlers Danielle Rond and Xiomara Fonseca went on the road this past weekend for the Napa Valley Girls Classic.

Fonseca went 2-3 for the tournament and took eighth place in her weight class. Rond went 1-2 and was eliminated in the third round of the consolation bracket.

On Friday, Rond won her first match on a 4-2 decision, and Fonseca won by pin in 58 seconds. Rond lost her second match by pin in the third round, and Fonseca lost on a 0-7 decision in her second match.

On Saturday, Rond controlled her third-round match in the consolation bracket until she lost her balance and her opponent reversed and pinned her 48 seconds into the first round. Fonseca won her third-round match by pin in three minutes, 18 seconds after she ran up a score of 10-2.

Fonseca lost her next match 0-7. In the match for seventh place, Fonseca took the advantage in the first round but was pinned in the second round.

“We learned a lot and know what we have to work on this week,” coach Darryl Rond said. Both girls will compete again this weekend at the California Interscholastic Federation Northern California Regionals tournament at Inderkum High in Sacramento.

Weston Ranch Duals

Tracy’s junior varsity team went 2-3 in a series of dual matches Saturday at Weston Ranch High. The JV team beat teams from Manteca and Weston Ranch, and lost to teams from Lathrop, Lincoln and Buhach Colony high schools.

Individual wrestlers to go undefeated were Jentrell Woodward (215) and Seth Mahaffy (171), who each went 4-0 for the day, and Conrad Jayne (189), who went 3-0. Zack Blackwell (103) went 4-1 and Nate Yerian (140) went 3-2.