RIPON — They were expecting one opponent.
Instead they got two.
Denair High unexpectedly piggy-backed onto Ripon’s Trans Valley League opener against Riverbank Tuesday night, turning what was a scheduled dual into an impromptu tri-meet.
No matter.
Ripon was more than convincing in dispatching the pair — 56-12 — against Riverbank and 66-11 against Denair.
Senior Ryan Mackey (189 pounds) moved to 14-0 on the young season with a pair of first-round pins.
Mackey managed a 12-second fall against Riverbank’s Angel Duarte, and took a little over a minute in snagging his second fall against Denair.
Mackey was non too happy with the length of his second win.
“(I’m) pretty frustrated, I wasn’t working it right,” he said. “There’s always room for improvement. Good to get the win, now I’ve got to start cutting (weight) for (the) Five Counties (tournament in Huntington Beach) in two weeks.”
Ripon head coach Glen White is extremely excited about Mackey’s potential this season. Besides Daniel Linder (125), Mackey is the only other senior on Ripon’s squad this year. He also its unquestioned leader.
“Ryan is never really satisfied,” White said. “He wants to dominate. He knows he’s got some tough tournaments coming up, so he’s rounding into shape.”
In moving to 1-0 in TVL action, Christian Spence (215) collected a pin 1 minute, 51 seconds, while Jordan Williamson (135) needed just 19 seconds to earn a pin of his own.
Nick Curtice (171) also impressed, dominating technically for a 17-0 technical fall in the second round.
“Nick’s doing a good job,” White said. “He started wrestling as a freshman and he’s coming into his own. I’m glad we have him. He’s got a great attitude and he’s a good athlete.”
Ripon (1-0 TVL, 2-0 overall) heads to Calaveras Friday and Saturday for the Gordon Hay Tournament.
The Indians next dual is Wednesday, when they travel to Mariposa.
“I’m happy with how we wrestled tonight,” White said. “I didn’t know what to expect, but it’s been a while since I’ve enjoyed a dual like I did tonight.”
Said Mackey: “The team is pretty young, but from what we showed, I’m pretty happy about it. Hughson, Escalon, Waterford, we have a shot at taking all those teams.
“We’re young, but we’ll perform when we need to.”
