In their Southwest Conference opener, the Cerritos College wrestling team opened with a 34-10 home win over Santa Ana College. The Falcons (6-0, 1-0), ranked #2 in the state, will travel to Rio Hondo College next Wednesday for another conference match.
125 Pounds - #1 Jonathan Prata (CERR) def. Hector Camarena (SA), 19-2 (technical fall)
Maintaining his undefeated record, freshman Jonathan Prata (Downey HS) got to work quickly against Hector Camarena. After getting a quick takedown, he followed it with a two-point near fall and after a second takedown in the period, added a four-point near fall before the end of the period. A pair of two-point near falls in the second period was followed by a four-pointer, which ended the match at the buzzer to end the second period.
133 Pounds - Jose Mata (SA) def. #5 (125 pounds) Jose Lozano (CERR), 12-0 (major decision)
Competing in his first match at 133 pounds this season, freshman Jose Lozano (North Torrance HS) had a solid first period, where the match remained scoreless. However, in the second period, Jose Mata got Lozano on his back and scored a pair of four-point near falls, with the second coming at the end of the period. After escaping in the third period, Mata added a last-second takedown and went on to record the shutout.
141 Pounds - #3 (133 pounds) Andres Gonzalez (CERR) def. #5 Ali Kaveh (SA), 6-3
Ranked #3 in the state at 133 pounds, sophomore Andres Gonzales (Capistrano Valley HS) made a good impression in his first match at 141 pounds this season. Taking on #5-ranked Ali Kavez, Gonzales picked up a pair of points with a takedown with :38 seconds left in the first period. Kaveh earned an escape point before the end of the first and added another to start the second period, before Gonzalez produced another takedown with 1:24 left in the second period. Holding on to a 4-3 lead with 2:00 left, Gonzalez added an escape point and riding time to round out his victory.
149 Pounds - Richard Gurule (CERR) win by forfeit
157 Pounds - #5 Benji Navarette (SA) def. #6 (149 pounds) V'ante Moore (CERR), 8-2
Taking on #5-ranked Benji Navarette, freshman V'ante Moore (Lawndale HS) suffered his first loss at 157 pounds on the year. Ranked #6 at 149 pounds, Moore found himself trailing, 7-0 after the second period and was nearly pinned, but the clock ran out and had to absorb a four-point near fall. The match was scoreless after the first period. He picked up his two points in the third period, when Navarette was penalized twice for stalling.
165 Pounds - #1 (157 pounds) Larry Rodriguez (CERR) win by forfeit
174 Pounds - Cobe Hatcher (CERR) win by forfeit
184 Pounds - Danny Serrano (SA) def. Jarrod Nunez (CERR), 7-5 (double OT)
In one of two matches that went into overtime, sophomore Jarrod Nunez (Mayfair HS) took a 4-0 lead over Danny Serrano in the first period after an aggressive takedown and two-point near fall. But Serrano started his comeback when he reversed Nunez before the end of the first period and added another early in the second period. Needing at least an escape to be in position to tie the match, Nunez received it with :57 seconds left in the third period, with Serrano earning a point due to riding time. The two completed their 1:00 overtime without scoring, as well as each of their :30 second periods where each wrestling tried to escape to earn a point and the win. In the second overtime, Serrano was able to score a takedown with :18 seconds left to pick up the win.
197 Pounds - #4 Hamzah Al-Saudi (CERR) def. Jean Karlos Navas (SA), 19-4 (technical fall)
Riding the momentum of winning the Santa Ana Tournament, #4-ranked Hamzah Al-Saudi (Palisades HS) got stronger and stronger as the match went on against Jean Karlos Navas. Al-Saudi led just 2-1 in the first period, but a pair of takedowns and a last-second four-point near fall put him in front, 10-2 after the first three minutes. Two more takedowns and subsequent near falls earned him a technical fall win with :14 seconds left on the clock in the second period.
285 Pounds - #3 Randy Arriaga (CERR) def. Joseph Nava (SA), 3-2 (OT)
The night was capped off with another overtime match, as #3-ranked Randy Arriaga (Capistrano Valley HS) was the beneficiary of two stall points, which aided him in his win. Trailing, 2-1 with time running out in the third period, Joseph Nava was penalized a point for stalling with :23 seconds left. Then, in overtime, another one-point stalling penalty with :48 seconds left gave Arriaga another point to secure the win.
Photos by Daryl Peterson
