After freshman Gabe Ballesteros lost his semi-final match on Friday, he knew that in order to earn All-American honors, it would require four more wins.
Led by a pair of second place finishes, the Cerritos College wrestling team finished in fifth place at the Southern California Championships on Saturday and have qualified eight wrestlers for the CCCAA State Championships.
In their final Southwest Conference match of the year, the Cerritos College wrestling team was only able to win three matches and suffered a 25-12 loss to Mt. San Antonio College at Excelsior High on Thursday.
On the strength of eight wins, the Cerritos College wrestling team recorded a 32-10 Southwest Conference win over Rio Hondo College at Excelsior High on Thursday night.
Sophomore Tyree Cox won all four of his matches at 174 pounds on Saturday to capture the championship of the Lassen Tournament, which was held in Reno, NV.
In their first Southwest Conference match of the season, the Cerritos College wrestling team dropped a 26-16 match against host Palomar College on Wednesday.
Competing at the Southern Regional Duals at Palomar College on Saturday, the Cerritos College wrestling team won their first match, but dropped their next two.
The Cerritos College wrestling team had two of their entries advance to the championship match in two weight classifications, as they compiled 58.5 team points to come in sixth place at the Santa Ana Tournament on Saturday.
On the strength of first place finishes by freshman Gabriel Ballesteros (Mesa, AZ HS) and sophomore Tyree Cox (Lancaster HS), the Cerritos College wrestling team placed second at the West Hills Tournament on Saturday.
The Cerritos College wrestling team opened the 2012 season by winning three of the four matches in which they competed at the Mt. San Antonio Duals on Saturday.