SACRAMENTO — Ripon only took four wrestlers to the 2009 Foothill High Tim Brown Memorial Wrestling Tournament, a two-day event starting Friday at the Sacramento high school.
Both 171-pounder Ryan Mackey and Heavyweight Matt Baker made it to the second day, with Mackey taking fifth overall in a stacked weight class.
The No. 1, No. 4 and No. 5 wrestlers in the state at 171 pounds were on hand at Foothill, as well as three state-level honorable mentions.
“It was a beast,” Ripon head coach Glen White said of Mackey’s bracket. “Ryan lost in the quarterfinals to a wrestler from Sutter who made it to the finals. He met the No. 4 wrestler from El Dorado in the consolation semifinals, and at first he was getting beat pretty good. But then Ryan threw him and was pinning him until the kid complained of not being able to breathe.
“Ryan ended up losing by a couple of points.”
Mackey rebounded, however, with a win over Escalon’s Charlie McDonald in the fifth-place match.
McDonald and Mackey will square off in the rematch Wednesday at Escalon.
“We’re really happy with how Ryan wrestled,” White said. “He had a little trouble at Five Counties, it was his first time wrestling at 171, but he performed well this weekend against quality competition. I’m pretty satisfied, I know he’s not as satisfied just because he’s so overly competitive, but he proved he can wrestle with the top kids in the state.”
Baker, meanwhile, went 2-2 over the course of the two-day event, qualifying for Saturday action with an impressive Friday.
Following Wednesday’s meeting with the Cougars, Ripon will face Hughson to conclude the Trans Valley League regular season.
The league tournament follows a week later.
Both 171-pounder Ryan Mackey and Heavyweight Matt Baker made it to the second day, with Mackey taking fifth overall in a stacked weight class.
The No. 1, No. 4 and No. 5 wrestlers in the state at 171 pounds were on hand at Foothill, as well as three state-level honorable mentions.
“It was a beast,” Ripon head coach Glen White said of Mackey’s bracket. “Ryan lost in the quarterfinals to a wrestler from Sutter who made it to the finals. He met the No. 4 wrestler from El Dorado in the consolation semifinals, and at first he was getting beat pretty good. But then Ryan threw him and was pinning him until the kid complained of not being able to breathe.
“Ryan ended up losing by a couple of points.”
Mackey rebounded, however, with a win over Escalon’s Charlie McDonald in the fifth-place match.
McDonald and Mackey will square off in the rematch Wednesday at Escalon.
“We’re really happy with how Ryan wrestled,” White said. “He had a little trouble at Five Counties, it was his first time wrestling at 171, but he performed well this weekend against quality competition. I’m pretty satisfied, I know he’s not as satisfied just because he’s so overly competitive, but he proved he can wrestle with the top kids in the state.”
Baker, meanwhile, went 2-2 over the course of the two-day event, qualifying for Saturday action with an impressive Friday.
Following Wednesday’s meeting with the Cougars, Ripon will face Hughson to conclude the Trans Valley League regular season.
The league tournament follows a week later.
— Brandon Petersen
