Taking on some of the toughest teams from outside California, the Cerritos College wrestling team picked up two wins in three dual meet matches at Simpson College on Saturday. The Falcons (17-1) opened the day with a 29-18 win over Southwestern Oregon Community College and followed that with a 30-22 victory over Grays Harbor (WA) College. The day ended with a tough 21-20 loss to national power Clackamas (OR) College. The team will compete in the East Los Angeles Brawl next Saturday.

Cerritos vs. Southwestern Oregon College: The Falcons won a pair of matches by pins and earned six more team points with a forfeit win at 149 points. At 141 pounds, sophomore Richard Pocock (California HS) needed just 2:21 to pick up his pin, while freshman 285-pound David Zavala (Lakewood HS) earned his in just 1:00 to close out the match. Freshman 197-pound David Van Weems (Corona Centennial HS) remained undefeated on the season with a 12-3 win, while freshman 125-pound Norberto Buenrostro (Citrus Hill HS) posted a trio of four-point near falls in his 13-2 win. Sophomore 157-pound Dylan Moreno (Downey HS) earned the team's other win, which was a tough 11-9 decision. He avoided getting pinned in the third period after opening an 8-4 lead after the first three minutes.

Cerritos vs. Grays Harbor (WA) College: After the first two matches, the Falcons trailed, 10-0 and were aided in their win by three pins and a win by forfeit. The comeback started at 141 pounds when freshman Vincent Dehakiz (El Dorado HS) held on for a 6-5 win, with the only third period point being his riding time advantage. Freshman Wyatt Gerl (Downey Calvary Chapel HS) got the team closer with his pin in 1:30 at 149 pounds, while Moreno put the team in the lead with a 7-1 victory at 157 pounds. Freshman Kennith Kirk (Elsinore HS) increased the lead to 18-10 with his pin in 1:12 at 165 pounds, while they came closer to winning when freshman Isaiah Leyva (San Jacinto HS) received a forfeit win at 184 pounds. Grays Harbor earned a pin at 197 pounds, but Zavala clinched the win with a pin in 1:10 at 285 pounds.

Cerritos vs. Clackamas (OR) College: Taking on a perennial powerhouse, the Falcons were in a battle until the final weight. At 285 pounds, Zavala trailed 3-2 heading into the third period. He allowed an escape point and was then taken down to fall behind, 6-2. Zavala did escape, but ran out of time trying to get back into the match and suffered a 6-3 decision, with the team falling, 21-20. They led, 14-12 after the first six matches, but fell behind when Leyva was pinned at 174 pounds. Freshman Bryant Vasquez (Fountain Valley HS) put the team back in the lead with his 3-1 win at 184 pounds, with Van Weems coming from behind for a 4-3 win at 197 pounds. Also earning wins in the match were Buenrostro, who picked up a pin in 3:27 at 125 pounds, while Pocock earned an 8-0 shutout at 141 pounds. Kirk also picked up a 14-6 win at 165 pounds.