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Local wrestlers still alive
Seven grapplers reach semifinals of girls tournament
By J.P. HOORNSTRA
Times-Herald sports writer
Saturday, January 29, 2005 -
"The expanding popularity of girls
wrestling" has become a tiresome clich for the mats, bleachers and locker rooms at
Bottari Gym, which took a beating from Friday's capacity turnout for
the Girls California Invitational Wrestling Tournament.
Three hundred thirty-six competitors from across the state, most with a
cadre of families, friends and coaches, packed into the Vallejo High
gymnasium for the fourth straight year of the sport's unofficial state
championship.
At the end of the nine-hour marathon, which covered three out of the
event's five rounds, seven local wrestlers did not lose a match, leaving them
two ins away from a title.
Others are still alive in the consolation bracket, which brought a
smile to coaches for the four local schools involved.
"It was more than what I expected," Hogan coach Ric Manibusan said of
his nine qualifiers. "The majority of the girls are coming back (today). A
couple stepped up and I'm very pleased."
The Spartans' Krystalle Alcantara advanced to the semifinals of the
100-pound weight class with an 11-5 win over Washington's Maritza
Martinez.
"I was in pain; my arms were really tired," Alcantara said after the
match. "I didn't want to give up."
In the 110-pound bracket, Hogan teammates Marissa Gonzales and Jessica
Ortiz advanced with near-simultaneous quarterfinal wins on mats 2 and 3. An
all-Hogan final depends on both winning in the semifinals.
"It's going to be an interesting day," said Manibusan.
Other Vallejo wrestlers advanced to the semifinals in their weight
class - Maria Angara, Jaime Sage, Elizabeth Bustamante and Monica Gonzales.
"The girls are wrestling well - they're battling well," said Mike
Minahen, possibly the busiest man in the building between his tournament
director and head coaching duties. "The tournament's running well. It's been a very
good first day."
The Apaches' most stunning - and disappointing - development Friday was
Lauren Knight's early loss to Stephanie Montez of Arroyo.
Knight, who began the day ranked second in the state as a 138-pounder,
was pinned in the third round by the unranked Montez. Trailing 7-2 and
making little headway against Knight, Montez notched a reversal and held off
the strong opponent.
"I did a move sloppy, that's all," a distraught Knight said afterwards.
St. Patrick-St. Vincent's Alex Tolero, a qualifier out of the Northwest
Region, also went 3-0 to secure a semifinal berth in her weight class.
She rebounded from an 0-4 quarterfinal deficit, and a non-call that
seemed perilously close to her separating a shoulder, to beat Carla O'Connell
of Redondo Union.
"That was a defining moment for that match," Bruins head coach Mike
Price said, "because that point is when she got mad and started really going
after (O'Connell)."
Bethel sophomores Natasha Agtarap and Aegean Bayongan both went 2-1 to
stay alive in the consolation bracket in their weight classes.
"They both did good; could have done better," Bethel coach James Pace
said. "The girls they wrestled today were actually good girls."
As for today, "they will place," Pace predicted.
Day 1 offered several other local highlights.
Hogan's Erin Russell (134) upset top-seeded Mariah Fernandez of Live
Oak with a first-period pin in the second round, sparking an open-palm pump
from Manibusan.
Also, Agtarap squared off with Hogan's Tracy Samonte in a
consolation-bracket matchup for the fourth time this season. Agtarap's
third-round pin was predictable, prompting some cross-town sympathy.
"It's not fair that we always have to go agianst each other," the
Jaguar said. "I've wrestled her all the time and I always win. Tracy wanted to
wrestle somebody new and so did I."
Competition begins at 10 a.m. today.
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Girl's wrestling career started on friendly bet
By BUDDY SHACKLETTE
Staff Writer January 29, 2005
NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- It started out as a bet.
Three years later, Jen Roesch may be the only girl, but she's also a well-respected member of the New Smyrna Beach wrestling team.
"It took a lot of time earning the respect from the guys on the team. There have been several girls that have tried at New Smyrna and they couldn't make it and they dropped off the team in a few weeks," said Roesch, a junior. "It took about a month for the guys to realize I was there to stay and I've gotten a lot of respect from a lot of people."
Roesch was chatting with friends one day during her freshman year when the subject of the high school wrestling team came up.
A longtime friend, who was supposed to try out for the team with her, bet Roesch that a female could never make the team.
It wasn't long before Roesch, the only girl and youngest of three in her family, was on the mat earning her keep.
"The only hard time I got was the guys my freshman year," Roesch said. "They thought I was going to be just another one of those girls that wanted to be around the boys and that was the reason for joining the team and she'll be gone as soon as she has a boyfriend. But that didn't happen."
No, it didn't happen and today, the 17-year old can beat all of her teammates at or below her weight class (112 pounds), and some who are even heavier.
"She's tough. She can whip guys her size and some that are bigger," NSB head coach Mike Strouse said. "She's been injured some this year but, when she's in here, she's one of the hardest workers we've got."
Unlike some of her peers, she wrestles year-round with former boyfriend and teammate Clayton Vanis, who was a senior when Roesch first joined the squad.
Roesch started the season wrestling against the boys but learned it could affect her status for the unsanctioned girls state tournament so she has kept her workouts to NSB's practice room.
After placing sixth at 112 pounds as a sophomore and fifth as a freshman, the third-year wrestler hopes to take the next step by making the finals of today's state meet in Orlando.
"I'm hoping to be state champion this year," Roesch said. "I've gotten a lot better this year, noticeably better, because I've worked so hard and I can beat most of the guys on my team."
Classmates use words like "awesome" and tease others that she can beat them up if they're not careful.
Roesch is just content being the girl among the guys.
"Most of my friends are guys and I guess I was always looked at like a tomboy a little more," Roesch said. "I just haven't found a sport that I like as much. It's so rare and it looks great on college applications."
buddy.shacklette
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Three local girls are champions
Castro Valley, San Leandro finish 2-3 in the team standings
By Jimmy Durkin, CORRESPONDENT, 1/30/05
VALLEJO — A couple of local schools held their heads high Saturday night at the California Girls Invitational Wrestling Tournament at Vallejo High.
The wrestling showcase featured 365 girls from throughout the state, and Hayward Area Athletic League powers Castro Valley and San Leandro finished second and third respectively in the team standings.
The team-championship banner won't have to travel far as the host Vallejo High Apaches were the surprise winners with 157 points. Castro Valley had 126 points and San Leandro 105.
The Pirates and Trojans combined for three individual champions, as each team had
two girls reach the finals.
The event, which is in its fourth year, is not sanctioned by the California Interscholastic Federation, but it is viewed as the state championships by those who compete.
Castro Valley's Sharlee Solis (128 pounds) won her second consecutive CGIT tournament title, pinning Terra Nova's Ivy Bier.
"This is probably the best girls competition because of all the girls that are here," Solis said. "I'm happy I won."
Solis's win finished her 22-0 season.
One of the most exciting matches of the day came in the 162-pound weight class, pitting San Leandro sophomore Stevie Ratto against Neana Morris of Santa Paula. Morris took an early 3-0 lead.
Ratto closed to 3-2 before she pinned Morris to win the title.
"I knew that if I was on top I could get her," Ratto said. "It's amazing, I never thought I'd ever make it, especially my sophomore year."
Ratto was joined atop the medal stand by teammate Stella Brown.
Brown was dominate in winning her second consecutive CGIT title, pinning Ukiah's Ashlee Evan-Smith in the 146-pound class.
Castro Valley's Gabrielle Solis fell just short of joining her sister Sharlee as a state winner, losing 2-0 to defending champion Michelle Jimenez of Andrew Hill in the 100-pound class.
The match was scoreless until the final minute.
Albany's Maia Matalon, who lost to Brown in the semifinals, rebounded to win her third-place match.
Amador Valley's Lauren Neves finished sixth in the 110-pound division.
Vallejo became the surprise of the day when it sent four girls to the finals, with Elizabeth Bustamante (116) and Jamie Sage (122) winning titles.
Other winners included Santa Monica's Jazzy Green (105), Northview's Tatiana Padilla (110), Monterey's Shelby Brown (140), Paradise's Amy Havens (154), and River City's Rachel Gomez (173).
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Osceola repeats as champion
Five winners set the pace as the hosts overwhelm the competition.
By Bill Mayville
Special to the Sentinel January 30, 2005
KISSIMMEE -- Osceola won five individual titles and cruised to the
school's third consecutive girls wrestling state championship Saturday at
Kissimmee Middle School.
The girls finals attracted 51 teams and more than 150 individual
competitors, a record for the fledgling sport. Despite the increasing
number, girls wrestling remains unsanctioned by the Florida High School
Athletic Association.
Osceola's championship effort was spearheaded by senior Vanity Vazquez,
who won her third consecutive state championship in the 103-pound class.
Osceola accumulated 224 points, outdistancing second-place University
(155) by 69 points. Next were Lake Brantley (82), St. Cloud (72) and
Poinciana (70.5).
Osceola placed eight girls into the championship round.Joining Vazquez
atop the winner's podium were Jolene Sun in the 125-pound class, Breisja
Gallo (135), Jenny Glover (160) and Michele Smith (189).
Osceola's Lakia Henderson, Shandanee Todd and Maria Isaac were
runners-up.
Once again, the gym was packed to near-capacity. It is a good sign for
the sport, according to tournament director and Osceola Coach Jim Bird.
"We have 150 girls here, and that's a lot of girls in the state of
Florida wrestling," Bird said. "The competition is getting better all the
time."
Bird said his older wrestlers helped develop his young team this
season.
"They had a lot of adversity this year," he said. "We expected the
older girls to do well, and they did, but they held the young girls to a
higher standard."
Championship Finals
103: Vanity Vazquez (Osc) p. Christina Brayboy (Titusville) 1:52; 112:
Audrey Shockley (Lemon Bay) dec. Jessica Votour (Venice) 15-10; 119:
Ashley Dehnz (Palmetto Ridge) p. Jeannette Valentin (Poinciana) 0:52; 125:
Jolene
Sun (Osc) dec. MariCarmen Hernandez (Poinciana) 8-2; 130: Anna Smith
(Lyman)
dec. Maria Isaac (Osc) 8-5; 135: Breisja Gallo (Osc) p. Libni Alvarado
(Poinciana) 1:28; 140: Katherine Perez (Univ) p. Kiesha Dawson (Oviedo)
4:09; 145: Leila Maloff (Douglas) p. Valerie Oquendo (Titusville) 1:59;
152:
Natasha Guzman (SW Miami) dec. Amanda King (St. Cloud) 7-1; 160: Jenny
Glover (Osc) p. April Williams (St. Cloud) 1:40; 171: Samantha Hall
(Lake
Brantley) p. Shandanee Todd (Osc) 2:48; 189: Michele Smith (Osc) p.
Julie
DeJesus (Univ) 4:46; 215: Sarah Elliot (Univ) p. Jessica King (Univ)
0:32;
275: Adriana Monje (Univ) p. Lakia Henderson (Osc) 2:37.
--------------------------------------------
Inside High Schools: THE ISSUE: GIRLS WRESTLING AMONG THE BOYS: Coed, at least for now Some have vision girls-only teams may be reality within five years
Darryl Maxie - Staff
Sunday, January 30, 2005
Is it time for "A League of Their Own"?
That, of course, was the title for a 1992 movie on the women's professional baseball league of the 1940s, when the country was in World War II.
But today's question applies to high school wrestling. Is it time for the girls to have a league of their own?
Or to answer one movie-title question with a twist on another famous movie phrase --- if you build it, will she (or they) come?
It's not as if there aren't other sports with relatively small numbers of participants, like gymnastics.
As it stands now, the girls wrestle on boys teams because there are no girls teams. And where there is no available team for girls to participate, the Georgia High School Association and Title IX make it clear that they can suit up right alongside the boys.
That they do --- and have done so for years, though in small numbers --- remains a hot topic of debate. And that some have succeeded --- Tri-Cities' Patrice Crenshaw, who qualified for state four years ago, Nikita Boles at Columbia and Shona Colbert at Flowery Branch now, to name three --- only fuels the fire.
Oh yeah, and women's wrestling is an Olympic sport.
In places like Florida, California, Hawaii, Michigan and Texas, separate girls wrestling is already reality. But Georgia's a different story.
"Judging by the numbers we have now, it doesn't look promising," said Woodward Academy wrestling coach Pete Fritts Jr. "But that's not to say it couldn't happen."
One of those who would love to see it happen in Georgia believes it is at least five years away.
Mercedes Castaneda, the women's wrestling director for Team Georgia --- that's the USA Wrestling affiliate here --- has three daughters.
One is a fourth-grader she envisions becoming a high school wrestler. Among that set, Castaneda said, interest in the sport in Georgia has grown by 300 percent in the last year.
"If our growth continues at its present rate and the interest continues to grow, it could happen in another five years," Castaneda said.
"Just for the fact that you'd have to convince the Georgia High School Association, you'd have to convince the coaches to be able to work in the funding into the budget. And it's not an expensive sport. The gear is a singlet and shoes. You can get that for under $100."
It isn't that Castaneda wouldn't rather see it happen sooner than later.
"Even if you say let's start next fall, it still might not take off," she said. "I'd hate for it to start too early and see it fail."
So Castaneda concentrates on youth-level wrestling.
"We want to help girls get the message that it's OK to wrestle and there shouldn't be a stigma attached to it," she said. "Girls wrestling is hard to understand if you've never watched it."
--- Do you have thoughts on this subject? E-mail your opinions to Darryl Maxie at dmaxie@ajc.com. Please include your full name and hometown.
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SPOTLIGHT – 'Like one of the guys'
By THOM CHALFAN, Sports Editor
Sunday, January 30, 2005
It is not unusual to see female athletes playing on high school men's teams. Many play on area soccer teams when there is no women's teams at the school.
Two Pasquotank students have stuck it out in a decidedly male-dominated sport – wrestling – and are having success with it.
Freshman Andrea Hughes and sophomore Melissa Griffey have filled the void in the 119- and 125-pound weight classes for the Panthers this season.
"We don't promote female wrestling, but it's a sport and so far, it's open," Pasquotank coach Phil Mayo said. "They happened to come out. They tried out and we had some openings at the spots they are in. They come out and do the drills, the conditioning with everybody. So far, it's paid off. If they're going to be out in that room they can learn the drills and learn the technique. If I could just get them a little stronger, they'd be competitive."
Both Hughes and Griffey got their start in wrestling at Pasquotank Middle School under current Currituck coach David Sawyer. A comment from Hughes started a foray into wrestling.
"It started on a dare from then-soccer coach David Sawyer," Andrea's father, Kevin, said. "Andrea was saying how soccer was tough – that it was wearing her out and it was a hard sport. David Sawyer said 'if you want to see tough, you ought to try wrestling.' So she showed up for wrestling practice and she's been going ever since."
Griffey started wrestling because her friends wrestled. But it wasn't easy convincing her family to let her participate.
"I had two best friends that were guys and they started wrestling," Griffey said. "In seventh grade I was wrestling manager. It took a whole summer to convince my mom to let me do it. They when I was in eighth grade, I decided to do it."
Hughes' mother, Dawn, wasn't terribly concerned about Andrea new sport, but she does think about the possibility that her daughter could get hurt.
"My only concern is injuries," she said. "I'm worried about something long-term. That's about it."
"In middle school it wasn't too bad," Kevin Hughes said. "In seventh and eighth grade, there's not that big of a strength difference between a 105-pound female and a 105-pound male. But in high school, she's wrestling against young men. There is a definite strength disadvantage."
The strength difference is the one thing the wrestlers and coaches agree holds them back when wrestling against boys. What they lack in strength, they have to make up for in skill.
"In Andrea's case, she's at the weight where the technique has paid off for her," Mayo said. "If she hits the moves, she gets some points."
"Unfortunately, Melissa has to move up into a higher weight class where the boys are just a little too strong for her," Sawyer said. "Once we get to the girls' states where she's wrestling other females, it's really going to pay off."
As coach Mayo said, Hughes and Griffey go through the same training regimen as the rest of the team. Other than things like weigh-ins, the two are just another part of the team.
"I get treated like one of the guys, so it's all good," Hughes said. "I like it. I'd rather not be treated as a girl."
Griffey says that she doesn't look at wrestling on the men's team any differently than it would be if it were a women's team. She says she looks at the guys she wrestles as just another opponent.
But they same can't be said for the competition.
"They really don't want to lose to a girl," Griffey said. "When they lose to a girl, it's like the worst thing. They really take it to you. They don't play games."
"They all treat me the same," Hughes said. "Most of the guys underestimate me, but then I've got to show them."
The guys always try to beat Hughes and Griffey, but they are not always successful.
"Andrea – as well as Melissa – they've both upset some boys this year," Mayo said. "I don't have the records with me, but Andrea has probably won 10 matches this year. That's a lot of heartbreak for a young man."
Hughes and Griffey will next try to help Pasquotank in the state team dual tournament beginning Tuesday. After that, they will be headed off to girls' state, where both have won two straight championships.
Hughes won a title in the high school division last year as an eighth-grader.
"Andrea Hughes is by far one of the finest female wrestlers I've ever seen," Sawyer said. "I'm really proud to coach her. I'm looking forward to getting her back in about another three to four weeks. She'll be going to the girls' states."
"I really think that in a couple of years, you'll see her in one of the finer colleges."
Sawyer believes that Hughes will also fare well against other girls at the national championships in Detroit this summer.
With all of the time devoted to wrestling, hard choices have to be made. Hughes no longer plays soccer. She said that her mother made her choose between the two sports and she chose to wrestle.
But does she still think soccer is tough?
"Soccer is so simple compared to this," Hughes said. "This is hard."
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Vallejo girls take team title at wrestling championships
By J.P. HOORNSTRA, Times-Herald sports writer 1/30/05
Elizabeth Bustamante, right, of Vallejo High, puts a leg hold on Alex Tolero of St. Patrick-St. Vincent in the girls state wrestling final Saturday at Vallejo High. Bustamente won the match to be crowned state champion in the 116-pound weight class. Photo: J.L. Sousa/Times-Herald |
The look on Maria Angara's smiling face told the story.
Just 36.4 seconds earlier, pinned precariously underneath Santa Monica High's Jazzy Green, the Vallejo wrestler's eyes welled with tears as she clutched her tender right elbow.
When the final buzzer sounded to conclude the match, Angara arose from underneath Green, almost surprisingly, with a broad grin. She had lost the match, 8-6, but something greater was at stake.
"The Vallejo program gave me the ability to be first," she said, "so getting first place as a team is like saying 'Thank you' to (the school)."
In addition to a team title at the Girls California Invitational Wrestling Tournament on SaturDAY - Vallejo outpaced second-place Castro Valley 157-126 - the Apaches' Elizabeth Bustamante (116 pounds) and Jaime Sage (122) won individual titles in a strong showing for the host school., Vallejo had qualified just eight wrestlers for the unofficial state championship (third-place San Leandro brought 16 and Castro Valley had eight) but six placed among the top eight in her class. Angara (105) and Monica Gonzalez (173) lost narrowly on points in championship matches to earn second place.
Sage, a senior, shed tears of joy after beating close friend Shareese Mulholand of Tracy to win her title.
"After all these years of hard work, now I'm first in state," she said with a look of disbelief. "I didn't see that coming."
Mulholand was probably thinking the same thing after Sage recorded a lightning-quick escape to start the second period; Sage said she had never notched an escape on Mulholand before. That gave her the confidence to go up 10-0 before Mulholand's late takedown provided the 10-2 final score.
As for the team title, Sage said, "It can't get much better than that."
Bustamante's victory also went through a familiar opponent: St. Patrick-St. Vincent junior Alex Tolero. The win was nearly as lopsided as Sage's, 6-2, as Bustamante never trailed in the match.
"I'm relieved," she said. "Last year I came in seventh place, and now I'm happy to say I'm first in state."
Tolero wrestled exclusively against boys last season and did not enter the state tournament. She had previously lost twice to Bustamante, and predicted before the tournament that her cross-town rival would be waiting in the final.
"She is fast and she is strong," Tolero said of Bustamante. "Win or lose, I'm still happy."
Gonzalez battled through a problematic shoulder injury in her match against River City's Rachel Gomez, who had already beaten three times this year. She nonetheless had a 6-1 lead on Gomez midway through the second period.
Gonzalez, a freshman, wasn't expected to compete for a title after she drew Santa Paula's Megan Richardson, a three-time state champion, in the semifinal matchup. In what might have been the match of the day, the Apache recorded a stunning second-period pin of Richardson.
"It wasn't that big of a deal," Gonzalez said. "If I'd lost it wouldn't have mattered because I've got three more years."
Jennifer Fernandez (100) and Angela Miller (146) placed fifth for Vallejo.
Hogan capped a solid two days with 89 team points, good enough for fourth place. Two Spartans, Marissa Gonzales (110) and Krystalle Alcantara (100), finished third, Jessica Ortiz (110) finished fourth and Erin Russell (134) and Stephanie Norman (154) placed seventh.
Alcantara lost to eventual champion Michelle Jimenez (Andrew Hill) in the semifinals before beating Imperial's Priscilla Caldera for third.
Of Jimenez, Alcantara said: "She looked like she worked out. Much more than I do."
Head coach Ric Manibusan was ecstatic about the top-5 finish and his team's overall effort.
"Out of the nine (wrestlers who qualified), two are graduating. Hopefully we can bring back seven," he said.
Bethel's Aegean Bayongan, fifth in the 105-pound bracket, was the only other local medalist., Vallejo's Eunice Tjon, in attendance Saturday, was a state champion at 108 pounds last season. The Apaches had not won two individual girls titles in the same year since 2002, when Shiela Lerit and Lenci Landaker won at Bottari Gym.
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Three local girls are champions
Castro Valley, San Leandro finish 2-3 in the team standings
By Jimmy Durkin, CORRESPONDENT, 1/30/05
VALLEJO — A couple of local schools held their heads high Saturday night at the California Girls Invitational Wrestling Tournament at Vallejo High.
The wrestling showcase featured 365 girls from throughout the state, and Hayward Area Athletic League powers Castro Valley and San Leandro finished second and third respectively in the team standings.
The team-championship banner won't have to travel far as the host Vallejo High Apaches were the surprise winners with 157 points. Castro Valley had 126 points and San Leandro 105.
The Pirates and Trojans combined for three individual champions, as each team had
two girls reach the finals.
The event, which is in its fourth year, is not sanctioned by the California Interscholastic Federation, but it is viewed as the state championships by those who compete.
Castro Valley's Sharlee Solis (128 pounds) won her second consecutive CGIT tournament title, pinning Terra Nova's Ivy Bier.
"This is probably the best girls competition because of all the girls that are here," Solis said. "I'm happy I won."
Solis's win finished her 22-0 season.
One of the most exciting matches of the day came in the 162-pound weight class, pitting San Leandro sophomore Stevie Ratto against Neana Morris of Santa Paula. Morris took an early 3-0 lead.
Ratto closed to 3-2 before she pinned Morris to win the title.
"I knew that if I was on top I could get her," Ratto said. "It's amazing, I never thought I'd ever make it, especially my sophomore year."
Ratto was joined atop the medal stand by teammate Stella Brown.
Brown was dominate in winning her second consecutive CGIT title, pinning Ukiah's Ashlee Evan-Smith in the 146-pound class.
Castro Valley's Gabrielle Solis fell just short of joining her sister Sharlee as a state winner, losing 2-0 to defending champion Michelle Jimenez of Andrew Hill in the 100-pound class.
The match was scoreless until the final minute.
Albany's Maia Matalon, who lost to Brown in the semifinals, rebounded to win her third-place match.
Amador Valley's Lauren Neves finished sixth in the 110-pound division.
Vallejo became the surprise of the day when it sent four girls to the finals, with Elizabeth Bustamante (116) and Jamie Sage (122) winning titles.
Other winners included Santa Monica's Jazzy Green (105), Northview's Tatiana Padilla (110), Monterey's Shelby Brown (140), Paradise's Amy Havens (154), and River City's Rachel Gomez (173).