The Cerritos College wrestling team won three of their four matches at the Southern California Team Dual Championships on Saturday. Over the course of the day, the Falcons (10-3) posted wins over East Los Angeles College (51-0), Santa Ana College (29-18) and Cuesta College (31-13), while their 24-18 loss to Palomar College prevented them from competing for the championship. The team will resume Southwest Conference competition on Wednesday when they travel to Rio Hondo College for a 7:00 p.m. dual meet.

Cerritos vs. East Los Angeles: Along with receiving a pair of wins by forfeit, the Falcons posted four pins. Freshman Kody Davis (Chino Valley, AZ HS) needed 6:12 to pin his opponent at 149 pounds, while he was leading, 18-2 at the time of the pin. Freshman 157-pound Dylan Moreno (Downey HS) led 6-0 in the first period when he got a pin in 2:02, while freshman Joel Villa (Citrus Hill HS) earned his pin in 1:15 at 174 pounds. The quickest pin of the match came at 197 pounds, with sophomore Elijah Wilson (Long Beach Poly HS) needing just :32 seconds. Freshman Anthony Vargas (Citrus Hill HS) finished off his match in the first period with a 18-1 win at 133 pounds, with freshman John Robles (Santa Fe HS) earning a 4-2 win at 184 pounds, with sophomore 285-pound Barry Gee (Fountain Valley HS/Santa Ana College) recording the same score.

Cerritos vs. Palomar: The team struggled at the middle weights, with the Comets opening a 24-9 lead with just two matches remaining. It was a 9-5 Falcon lead after sophomore Estevan Cabanas (Canyon Springs HS) won, 12-6 at 133 pounds and freshman Rchard Pocock (California HS) posted a pin in 2:29 at 141 pounds. Palomar won the next five matches, including Robles getting pinned at 184 pounds. Villa trailed 4-3 after two periods at 174 pounds, but surrendered four third period points to suffer a loss. Sophomore Oscar Martinez (Corona Centennial HS) responded with a pin in 6:34 at 197 points, with sophomore Jesse Gomez (Buena Park HS) adding a 5-4 overtime win to close out the match.

Cerritos vs. Santa Ana: Facing the Dons for the second time in three days, the Falcons pulled away from a tight 20-18 team score with wins in the final two weight classes. At 197 pounds, Martinez earned a 4-3 overtime win and Gomez posted a pin in 1:15 to secure the win. Each team had to default weights due to injuries, while Vargas recorded his second technical fall at 133 pounds, with a 22-1 win. Villa also won, as his 8-4 decision at 174 pounds gave the team a 20-15 lead with three matches left.

Cerritos vs. Cuesta: Facing the Cougars for the first time this year, the Falcons jumped out to a 19-0 lead, thanks to pins by freshman 125-pound Ryan Sainz (Norwalk HS) in 4:55 and freshman Benjamin Gonzalez (Loara HS) in 2:22 at 149 pounds. Freshman Blake Moser (Gig Harbor, WA HS) recorded a pin at 174 pounds in his first match of the day, with Cabanas earning the team four points with his 13-3 victory at 133 pounds. Freshman Jacob Collins (Calvary Chapel HS) also posted a win, a 6-2 decision at 165 pounds.

Photos by Daryl Peterson