Ripon heavyweight Liam Ferris won first place Saturday in the Trans-Valley League wrestling championships with a second-round pin over Escalon’s Frank Rodriguez at Ripon High.
The two big men battled to a 0-0 tie after the first round. The smaller Rodriguez chose bottom to start the second period which led to his downfall. Ferris rode Rodriguez mercilessly until notching the pin 51 seconds into the second round.
“I knew I was heavier than him,” Ferris said. “So, I knew once I got on top of him he was going to tire out. Once he put his foot out, I had long arms and I reached around, grabbed it, and used my strength for the rest.
“I thought it was a little funny when he shoes bottom because I knew I had the weight advantage.”
Just like the heavyweight championship match, Ripon’s Jacob Hughes and Hughson’s Aden Tomlinsen were scoreless after the first period. Midway through the second round Hughes caught Tomlinsen out of position and moved in for the pin.
“I flipped him over and he was adjusting,” Hughes said. “And I was able to scoop his head, pull his shoulder down and get the pin.
Ripon’s Landen Rhodd (145) fell behind Hughson’s Jesse Rodriguez at the beginning of the first period but then turned it on to score an 11-6 win for third place.
“I knew I had to get a takedown off the jump,” Rhodd said. “I had been watching him wrestle and he shoots a lot so I had to get the jump on that.
“He got tired in the second period, so I was just working him getting more points and in the end he just got too tired so I worked him.”
Ripon’s Brian Banales (113) and Peyton Reiseck (195) claimed third place via their opponents’ injury defaults. Teammates Austin Barros (120), Bradley Eldredge (132), Porter Myers (152), Callen Thomason (170) and Joaquin Rodriguez (220) all finished fourth.
The top four finishers advance to the two-day Sac-Joaquin Section Division V Championships beginning Friday at Hughson High.
Girls
Ripon’s Jade Dias (123) and Kamalpreet Kaur (118) placed first.
“I’m really excited that I finished first,” Dias said. “I have really been trying hard and wrestling is one of the most difficult things I have ever done. I’m really excited about it.
“I am ready to take on Divisionals and hopefully place.
Trinity Diaz (108), Layla Giuntoli (139), Jeevika Chaudhary (152) and Samantha Lawrence (191) finished second for the Indians and will join Dias and Kaur and the rest of the Ripon squad at the two-day all-comers CIF South Regionals in Ceres at Central Valley High beginning Friday.
