News
Lady Sandies win state duals title
From staff reports1/23/05
GRAPEVINE-In just its fourth year of existence, the Amarillo High girls
wrestling team has a state championship trophy.
The Lady Sandies knocked all five opponents they faced to capture the
2004-05 state duals title at Grapevine High School on Saturday. The
six-team field advanced to the tournament through regional rankings. AHS
defeated each team in the pool-play style tournament.
"The girls turned in their best performance of the year," AHS head
coach Charles Rose said. "It's an incredible feeling because it wasn't just
one or two girls - it was the whole team. Everybody wrestled great. They just
pulled it all together and got it done. It's been a dream year."
AHS opened the tournament with a 49-6 win over The Woodlands. Toni
Cortez (95 pounds), Erica Stewart (102), Clarissa Dalke (165) and Kristina
Pendergrass (185) received forfeits. Bethany Courkamp (110), Whitney
White (119), Lilli Cortez (128) and Melissa Paxton (148) all recorded pins
for AHS.
Lilli Cortez, who wrestled despite a shoulder injury, went 2-1 in the
tournament with both wins coming via pin. Rose substituted Bridgette
Carillo for Cortez against Frisco Centennial and Arlington High to give her
shoulder a rest.
"She came up to me and said she wanted to wrestle, but I knew we could
come up with enough points to win those without having to wrestle her," Rose
said of Lilli Cortez.
In the second dual, AHS toppled Arlington Bowie 39-18. Toni Cortez,
Stewart, Courkamp, Lilli Cortez and Dalke registered pins. White scored a 6-2
decision over Emily Erwin.
AHS then topped Frisco Centennial, 30-24. Courkamp pinned Emily Barton,
and Hannah Skinner (138) pinned Haley Hunter. Toni Cortez, White and
Carillo were pinned, and Stewart and Kayla Reed (148) lost decisions. Dalke,
Pendergrass and Marchay Coffey (215) won by forfeit.
"That was the only dual that was even close. We benefitted from the
forfeits in that one," Rose said. "In all the others, we really dominated."
In a 33-14 win against Arlington High, AHS got pins from Toni Cortez,
Stewart, Courkamp, White and Dalke. Skinner defeated Sasha McElroy 8-3.
The Lady Sandies closed the deal with a 42-12 pasting of Frisco,
getting pins from Courkamp, White, Reed and Dalke.
Dalke, a senior, said the title is gratifying because of the teamwork.
"It's awesome," Dalke said. "It's been so phenomenal because so many of
the underclassmen went out and put their hearts out there. We just have a
bunch of team unity. Everybody came together because everybody knew what this
meant."
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Athletes of the Week: Youngsters provide needed victories for AHS wrestlers
By Jeremy Heath
jeremy.heath@amarillo.com
Amarillo Globe-News
Publication Date: 01/25/05
With one senior hampered by a shoulder injury, another wrestling in the
toughest weight division in the state and another coming off knee
surgery, the Amarillo High girls were going to need points from younger members
of the team to bring home the state duals title.
They got those points - and ultimately brought home the crown - because
of sophomore Bethany Courkamp and freshman Whitney White.
Courcamp, wrestling in the 110-pound weight division, pinned all five
of her opponents Saturday at Grapevine High School, propelling the Lady
Sandies to a championship in their first trip to the state duals. White (119) went
4-1 during the weekend.
Courkamp's five pins (30 points) were a major factor for the Lady
Sandies, and her six-point pin of Frisco Centennial's Emily Barton was the
difference in a 30-24 dual victory.
The Globe-News has selected Courkamp the Amarillo National Bank Female
Athlete of the Week.
AHS coach Charles Rose said he thought Courkamp could win three
tournament matches. He never imagined she could win five - especially by pin.
"She did a great job," Rose said. "She was pretty good last year, but
she didn't work that hard and didn't push herself. This year she's
self-motivated and pushes herself, and it paid off."
Senior Hannah Skinner, who entered the tournament 31-0, wrestled in the
tough 138-pound weight division and went 3-2 during the weekend. Senior
Lilli Cortez (128) was able to wrestle in three of the five duals
because of a shoulder injury. Senior Clarissa Dalke (165) was wrestling in her
second tournament since having anterior cruciate ligament surgery. Erica
Stewart (102) was the only senior at full strength.
Courkamp said she didn't think about the importance of her role.
"I just went out there and went after them and did my best," she said.
"If I went out there and gave my best, I knew good things would happen."
Cortez, who Courkamp described as "the momma of the team," said she has
enjoyed watching the sophomore grow up on and off the mat.
"When she first came in here, I knew she could be good," Cortez said.
"She was kind of timid at first, kind of quiet, but she has really taken her
place on the team."
Cortez said she knew Courkamp had the ability to be a factor at the
state duals, but she wasn't sure how she would perform.
"At the beginning of the season, she wasn't wrestling like we knew she
could," Cortez said. "But this weekend she shined. She stepped up to
the plate and hit a home run every time."
With Palo Duro's defending state champion Brittany Owens wrestling at
110, Rose said Courkamp will have to continue to improve to advance out of
the district and region and into the state tournament.
He said the confidence she gained from her performance at the state
duals could be the boost she needs.
"For Beth to get out of district, it will be tough," Rose said. "But if
she gets out of the district, wrestling like she wrestled this weekend,
she's got it made."
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Pac-5 athlete followed her heart to success
By Leila Wai 1/25/05
Advertiser Staff Writer
University High junior Desiree Memea is happy her father can watch her wrestling matches, partly because he didn't want her to wrestle initially, but mostly because he isn't even in Hawai'i.
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"He can't yell at me now, because he has to watch from all the way over there," she said.
Over there is Bahrain in the Middle East, where her father, Mack Memea, is a petty officer of the Navy. He watches videos of her matches that are uploaded on the Internet by one of her coaches, Bryan Sanders.
"Des e-mailed an attachment of her final match which she won and what a great feeling to see her progression from last year 'til now," Mack said in an e-mail. "Whatever chance I get I would call back to see how she did and ask her what she could have done to counteract her opponent."
When Memea picked up wrestling a year ago, her father was against her participating "at first because people were getting hurt," she said. "He didn't have faith in me at first. He said, 'Girls can't wrestle, you don't have the mentality to do it.' "
But things changed "after I won my first match," she said. Memea was fourth in the state tournament in 2004, and was a second-team Interscholastic League of Honolulu all-star. Memea also earned All-American honors after she placed third in the 175-pound division at the Junior National Championships last summer at Fargo, N.D.,
This year she is considered a top state contender for her weight division. The state tournament is in March.
"When wrestling came around, my wife and I were surprised that Des wanted to try out for wrestling," Mack said. "I'm glad I was wrong. I'm now eating my words. Des later confessed she was determined to make the team and do well so she would not have to hear me tell her, 'I told you so.' "
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Mack left O'ahu in December and is scheduled to return in June, just before Memea goes on her second trip to the Junior Nationals.
"It's sad," Memea said. "It's hard on my mom (Terry), (because) all my brothers and sisters play sports, too.
"(Wrestling) keeps my mind off of things because it's always on wrestling."
She said she speaks to Mack almost every day, and he gives her pointers on her wrestling.
"He just thinks he knows," she said. "He watches tapes (of matches), and tells me, 'She did something like this, so you should do it, too.' "
Memea wrestles against the boys on Pac-Five's squad and some of the coaches, because there is no other girl of weight or caliber similar to her.
"She's pretty competitive, so she actually scores points against some of the boys," Pac-Five coach Aaron Sekulich said.
"I never thought I would be talking to her like I would my son about moves and strategies in wrestling," Mack said.
Sekulich said the competitive nature that drives Memea to beat the boys is why she has been successful in wrestling.
"She works hard because she doesn't like to lose," he said. "She's positive, she's energetic and very friendly. She's very competitive by nature."
She may be competitive, but at first she was hesitant about picking up wrestling, for reasons far different than her father.
"The whole jumping on the scale and wearing tight clothes isn't my thing," she said.
Memea, who lives in 'Ewa Beach, wakes up at 5:30 every morning to get to school, which is near the University of Hawai'i-Manoa. School ends at 3:30 p.m., just in time to help her Pac-Five teammates set up wrestling mats in the Education Laboratory School (formerly University Laboratory School) cafeteria, where they hold their practices.
"As long as all the mats are set up by 4 we don't have to do any running," she said. "It's not common at all. Everyone else (at other schools) just goes to a set room. When I first came, I thought it was normal. Then I went to Kamehameha and saw they had it all set up all the time."
She thanked her wrestling coaches, including Sekulich and Pac-Five associate head coach John Schmidtke, for their help.
"I love them and I'm thankful for them," she said. "They got me this far in a short time."
Mack shares her sentiments.
"I'm happy for her that she took up wrestling, and I'm very proud she did it for herself and not what we as parents think she should have done," he said. "I'm grateful for her wrestling coaches (also her basketball coach for believing in her) in instilling the confidence she needed and directing her motivation and desire to do well in the competition."
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Middle school wrestler holds her own with boys
Aisha I. Jefferson 1/25/05
Shelley Fountain still is fuming over her daughter's winning a middle-school wrestling match by forfeit last week.
Taylor Knowles, a Union Grove Middle School student, walked onto the mat to wrestle a Newton County middle-school boy when the referee lifted her hand up, declaring her the winner.
"Well, I was confused," Fountain said, adding she had contacted the ACLU regarding the matter.
Apparently Veterans Memorial Middle School has a policy not allowing its male wrestlers to wrestle girls.
Fountain said Veterans Memorial Assistant Principal James Peek told her his school would not allow it "because a boy (wrestler) from his school had been beaten previously by a girl and had to suffer public humiliation."
Taylor won an earlier match that day by pinning a Newton County middle-schooler to the ground.
Peek, along with Veterans Memorial wrestling coach Eric Johnson, referred all questions to a Newton County Schools spokeswoman, Sherri Viniard, who said she'll have a comment in a couple of days.
Union Grove wrestling coach Matt Ferrari said Taylor had opponents forfeit three other times before last week's incident. However, he said they've "never had it happen with administration."
Fountain said she did not push the issue those times because Taylor, who started wrestling last school year, was new to the sport.
In spite of Wednesday's setback, Taylor, 13, placed second in her 110-pound division during the Metro Middle School Athletic League's wrestling tournament Saturday. Her team placed first in the event.
"It made me want to go up there and beat my opponent more," said Taylor, who she started wrestling for the challenge. "Nobody had done it before."
Taylor is Union Grove's first and only girl wrestler.
Ferraris said he is not surprised Taylor placed second in the tournament.
"She can hold her own with anybody else. She earned her starting spot on the team," he said adding, Taylor is strong-willed
Taylor will begin her freshman year at Union Grove High School this fall.
The high school has never had any girls on its boys wrestling team.
Now her wrestling season is over, Taylor said she is not sure if she is ready to make history again but will know by the end of this school year if she will try out for the high school team.
"I haven't decided yet because there's a few boys in the high school who don't like me," she said. Taylor said she plans to talk to school officials and some coaches before making her decision.
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Boys take second at Lindhurst; girls send three to state
By Vince Vosti - Sports editor 1/25/05
Paradise wrestlers Kyle Bergstedt and Tyden Wing won titles and eight other Bobcat wrestlers placed, as the Bobcats took second place at Saturday's 26-team Jason White Memorial tournament at Lindhurst High School.
Paradise, which won the team title at the Jason White Memorial in 2004, finished behind Carson High School of Carson City, Nev.
Host Lindhurst High School took fourth.
"I thought (Paradise) wrestled great," wrestling coach Mike Gulbransen said. "All but one wrestler won two matches, and all but two placed."
Wing, who just joined the team for the season three weeks ago, improved his overall record to 6-1, winning four of his five matches at 137 pounds Saturday by fall.
Wing closed out Saturday's performance with a first-period pin against Daniel Hodges of Lindhurst.
Bergstedt kept his overall record unblemished with a three-victory performance at 191 pounds. Bergstedt won two of his matches by technical fall, the other by pin.
Jason Peppler took second at 173 pounds. Peppler won three matches by fall before losing in the finals to Live Oak's Gabriel Ceja.
Joel Degischer (154) had three pins on his way to a third-place finish, while Chris Winslow (142) took fifth with a tournament record of 3-2.
Justin Etchison (147) placed at a tournament for the first time in his career, taking sixth. Lafe Cornwell reached the semifinals at heavyweight, but also finished sixth. Kyle Zangl (132) and Keith Hutchison (154) placed seventh.
Both Zangl and Hutchison won four matches, but lost to the eventual champions early. Seventh-place was as high as one could wrestle-back with an early-round defeat.
Paradise will host Lassen Wednesday evening.
Havens wins regional
Paradise wrestler Amy Havens won the 152-pound weight class and teammates Eva Garlinghouse and Dianna McGlothlin qualified for the state tournament for girls Saturday at the Northeastern California Invitational Classic, held at Hogan High School in Vallejo.
The California girls' state tournament will be held this weekend at Vallejo High School, in Vallejo.
The performance by the three wrestlers at the Northeastern California Invitational Classic was good enough for them to take fifth place in the team standings.
Havens, who had won every girls' match this year by pin entering Saturday's action, continued her string by winning each of her matches Saturday by fall.
Havens was named the tournament's outstanding wrestler for upper weight wrestlers.
Garlinghouse earned a return trip to state with a sixth-place performance at 144 pounds, while McGlothlin parlayed her first appearance in a regional tournament by taking fourth place in the 114-pound weight class.
This was the fifth tournament victory of the season for Havens, a two-time All-American wrestler who won a state title in 2004. Havens also took third place in the Junior National Freestyle championships last summer.
Havens won the most outstanding wrestler award at the first tournament she wrestled in this season, the North Bay Ladies Classic women's wrestling tournament in December.
Havens also won tournaments in San Leandro and Hamilton before capturing a title two weeks ago in the Napa Valley Girls Classic wrestling tournament, held at Vintage High School.
The Napa Classic, a two-day event, is the largest girls' wrestling tournament in the western United States, with a combined 285 girls from four states participating in the various weight classes.
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BEA Bucs win Maher Invitational
Bucs' Rasmussen, Nagel, Ruser, Sturtz win titles; Forstner, Ulmen take individual crowns for Jayhawks
By CHARLIE SORRELLS
Sentinel Sports Editor 1/25/05
BLUE EARTH -- Ty Sturtz's timing proved impeccable on Saturday.
The Blue Earth Area heavyweight waited until the last two seconds of a one-minute overtime to wrap up the 6th annual Dick Maher Invitational team crown for the hometown Bucs on Saturday.
Sturtz literally tumbled the last of three consecutive higher-seeded opponents Brainerd junior Ryan McKay via a crossface fend-off and whirling takedown during the 275-pound title match's waning seconds for the meet-ending 3-1 decision.
More importantly, the junior yeoman's third victory of the day extended the Bucs' final margin of victory over runner-up Brainerd to seven and a half points during the 10-team competition.
"We were only up on Brainerd by three and a half points entering Ty's match," said Blue Earth Area mentor Randy Wirtjes. "If we lose at heavyweight, we lose the team title by a half-point. So, yes, his (Sturtz) win was extremely important to our cause today.
"Ty had an outstanding day, defeating three guys seeded higher than him, including the No. 2-ranked heavyweight in Class A (Montgomery-Lonsdale senior Jared Franta) in the semifinals."
Sturtz opened with a 7-0 quarterfinal win over fourth-seeded Mike Frost of Austin before overhauling the lofty-ranked Franta via a hard-fought 5-2 semifinal decision.
Sturtz literally finished what junior 103-pound teammate Kelli Rasmussen began about an hour and a half earlier Saturday night the Bucs' championship run.
Rasmussen etched her name into the Maher Invitational's record books by becoming the first-ever female grappler to capture a gold medal in the esteemed prep wrestling event.
Rasmussen started her day with a 6-2 quarterfinal decision over Madelia/Truman freshman Kevin Leiferman before pressing Waterville-Elysian-Morristown eighth-grader Derek Marzahn's shoulders to the mat in 1:12 during semifinal action.
The Buc junior phenom then built a 5-0 first-period lead over Montgomery-Lonsdale eighth-grader Nate Friederich via a takedown and a three-point near-fall.
Rasmussen registered two second-period takedowns while allowing an escape before trading third-period reversals to capture the 103-pound championship with an 11-3 major decision.
"Kelli's (wrestling) experience paid off today for us. She really dug in there and got the job done against some good competition," said Wirtjes.
Between Rasmussen and Sturtz, senior Eric Nagel and junior Trevor Ruser claimed the 125- and 145-pound Maher weight crowns to add scoring punch to the Bucs' total team effort.
Ruser offset an early takedown by Brainerd senior Kyle Dukowitz during their championship match with an escape and a heel-pick takedown for a 3-2 lead with 10 seconds remaining in the first frame.
Ruser and Dukowitz then exchanged escapes during the final two periods, with the Buc 145-pounder netting a 4-3 decision.
Nagel managed to post a 5-0 victory over Madelia/Truman sophomore standout Tyler Stevensen during the 125-pound finale.
While Stevensen still generated valuable points to the Jayhawks' fourth-place team showing of 137.5 points via his runner-up finish at 125, teammates Andy Forstner and Darrek Ulmen brought home gold medals after reaching their respective championship matches.
Forstner, who earned the 2004 Maher Invite's outstanding wrestler award, established a 5-0 first-period edge via a takedown and a three-point near-fall at Austin junior Dan Rysavy's expense.
Forstner, the No. 2-ranked 119-pounder in Class A, then recorded the only takedowns of the second and third frames to produce a 9-1 major decision over Rysavy.
Ulmen, meanwhile, denied Blue Earth Area senior 152-pounder Eric Esser from adding an individual title to the Bucs' list of credits on the meet.
Ulmen countered Esser's first-period takedown with a reversal before erasing a pair of Esser escapes with a takedown and two-point near-fall with a minute remaining in the third period en route to the 6-4 decision.
Martin County West senior 130-pounder David Anderson, Blue Earth Area junior 135-pounder Kurt Sohn and Madelia/Truman senior 140-pounder Chris Leiferman each reached their respective championship matches, but settled for silver medals on the day.
Anderson, who pinned United South Central's Nick Stevermer in 1:14 and Lake City's Eric Swiggum in 3:03 earlier in the meet, battled Brainerd junior Jake Patnode to a 7-all tie after two completed periods before Patnode erupted for five third-frame points to pocket the 12-7 decision in their gold-medal match.
Leiferman closed his deficit to Class A 10th-ranked Jon Roemhildt of WEM to 6-3 behind a third-period reversal, but the visiting Buc 140-pounder closed his 11-3 win with five unanswered points.
Sohn, however, fought his way back to 6-all during his 135-pound title match with Class A No. 2-ranked Kenny Sandt of USC to force two overtimes.
After a scoreless one-minute first extra session, Sandt broke free from Sohn with a mere two seconds remaining during the pair's 30-second second overtime to capture the gold medal.
Blue Earth Area (4-0) plays host to United South Central in dual-meet action on Tuesday night, Martin County West (0-1) faces Nicollet and the host Cardinals in a triangular in Fairmont on Tuesday night, while Madelia/Truman travels to Arlington on Thursday night to square off against Sibley East in dual action.
2004 Dick Maher
Wrestling Invite
At Blue Earth
Team Standings: 1. Blue Earth Area 203.5 points; 2. Brainerd 196; 3. Lake City 173.5; 4. Madelia/Truman 137.5; 5. Austin 116; 6. United South Central 111.5; 7. Worthington 89; 8. Waterville-Elysian-Morristown 78; 9. Montgomery-Lonsdale 49.5; 10. Martin County West 28.
Individual Results
103 pounds: Championship: Kelli Rasmussen (BEA) major dec. Nate Friederich (M-L) 11-3. 3rd Place: Scott Padmos (B) pinned Derek Marzahn (WEM) 0:29. 5th Place: Kevin Leiferman (M/T) pinned Chris Moyer (LC) 3:35.
112: Championship: Tyler Jensen (B) major dec. Seth Amberg (USC) 12-2. 3rd Place: Jim McDermott (A) dec. Nathan Johnson (BEA) 7-0. 5th Place: Rob Thomas (M/T) pinned Wade Dugstad (LC) 4:54.
119: Championship: Andy Forstner (M/T) major dec. Dan Rysavy (A) 9-1. 3rd Place: Nathan Goette (USC) major dec. Nick Lingwall (B) 9-1. 5th Place: Cody Dammann (LC) pinned Byron Kuhns (WEM) 2:48.
125: Championship: Eric Nagel (BEA) dec. Tyler Stevensen (M/T) 5-0. 3rd Place: Wade Carlson (LC) pinned Dan Lasher (B) 3:44. 5th Place: Daniel Sandt (USC) major dec. Scott Echtemach (Wor) 13-1.
130: Championship: Jake Patnode (B) dec. David Anderson (MCW) 12-7. 3rd Place: Tyler Eckhardt (BEA) dec. Eric Swiggum (LC) 8-3. 5th Place: Nathan Wajer (Wor) pinned Nick Stevermer (USC) 1:31.
135: Championship: Kenny Sandt (USC) dec. Kurt Sohn (BEA) 7-6 in 2OT. 3rd Place: Dusty Forstner (M/T) major dec. Nick Loreno (B) 11-2. 5th Place: Dan Copp (LC) pinned David Haberman (Wor) 4:50.
140: Championship: Jonny Roemhildt (WEM) major dec. Chris Leiferman (M/T) 11-3. 3rd Place: Brian Wood (USC) dec. Lucas Torres (BEA) 7-2. 5th Place: Cody Hummel (B) dec. Tom Lukowski (A) 6-3.
145: Championship: Trevor Ruser (BEA) dec. Kyle Dukowitz (B) 4-3. 3rd Place: Sam Stevermer (USC) pinned Tyler Kronemann (M/T) 1:54. 5th Place: Pat Priggen (LC) pinned Dane Jeppesen (Wor) 1:58.
152: Championship: Darrek Ulmen (M/T) dec. Eric Esser (BEA) 6-4. 3rd Place: Mitch Yager (B) pinned Jon Weissinger (LC) 2:52. 5th Place: Cody Schmidt (Wor) dec. Chris Hotzler (USC) 9-7 in OT.
160: Championship: Dave Cunningham (A) dec. Aaron Breyfogle (LC) 6-4. 3rd Place: Cody Hyland (BEA) pinned Mike Muellelleile (WEM) 1:46. 5th Place: Chris Hanson (MCW) dec. Corey Steffl (Wor) 7-4.
171: Championship: Adam Hahnert (B) dec. Andy Graham (A) 5-3. 3rd Place: Chris Wiebusch (LC) major dec. Ryan Slama (BEA) 13-1. 5th Place: Leo Mendez (Wor) pinned Blaine Eser (M/T) 1:51.
189: Championship: Marcus Ball (A) dec. Jacob Vaith (LC) 4-3. 3rd Place: Matt Cowdin (Wor) major dec. Ryan David (M-L) 10-1. 5th Place: Dan Jagerson (BEA) won via a bye.
215: Championship: Jake Atkinson (LC) major dec. Bryant Schroeder (Wor) 9-1. 3rd Place: Robert Frost (A) pinned Grant Jaeche (B) 5:49. 5th Place: Nick Fischer (WEM) pinned Cody Boyer (M-L) 2:32.
275: Championship: Ty Sturtz (BEA) dec. Ryan McKay (B) 3-1 in OT. 3rd Place: Jared Franta (M-L) dec. Jared Thelemann (WEM) 4-2. 5th Place: Alex Johnson (LC) pinned Nate Steffl (Wor) 3:48.
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Alcantara, first at Regionals, hopes to bring Hogan its first state girls wrestling title
By J.P. HOORNSTRA, Times-Herald sports writer 1/25/05
Hogans Krystalle Alcantara, below top, practices a new technique with training partner Joy Quintillan as the Spartans girls wrestling team practices for Fridays state meet at Bottari Gym. Photo: Mike Jory/Times-Herald |
The air was heavy with sweat inside the cozy Hogan High wrestling room, a small box filled with anxious Spartans, on Monday afternoon.
Maintaining some semblance of perspective was merely a luxury for the nine girls whose wrestling season will end in five days. For sophomore Krystalle Alcantara, it's her first state tournament, and she wants to get it right the first time.
The 100-pound grappler must morph into a 98-pound grappler before the tournament begins Friday at 11 a.m., a transformation that requires focus and discipline. Alcantara not surprisingly struggled, lost in the heavy air and the heavy task of not being too heavy, when asked how it would feel to be the first Hogan girl to win a state championship.
"Oh. Wow. That would be ... amazing if one of us did win state," she said in a mellow voice that belied the emotion in her answer.
In a sport where one year of pre-high school competition can catapult an athlete to California prominence, Alcantara is already a force to be reckoned with. She earned the top seed in the Northeast Region's 100-pound bracket by beating Vallejo's Jennifer Fernandez 14-5 in the qualifying meet last Saturday.
And if you ask Hogan head coach Ric Manibusan, the final score was too close.
"She was beating (Fernandez) 14-0," he said. "She got caught in a head-in-arm, and ended up on her back. And that's a mental error right there. You don't sit on a lead; you have to keep going."
Midway through practice Monday, Manibusan raised his voice above the drone of half-nelsons on foam rubber to remind Alcantara of her gaffe: "You almost lost the final because you gave up in the third round. Suck it up!"
Manibusan realizes Alcantara's potential, and he, too, wants to get her state title run right the first time.
"She's good enough to be top three in the state," he said. "She's a decent wrestler, and I want to give her everything I can to prepare her before state comes."
Manibusan first saw Alcantara as an eighth-grader at Franklin Middle School in 2003. She progressed significantly the following year at Hogan, but fell one match short of a state tournament berth.
With only four wrestlers in the 100-pound regional bracket this year (the top six qualify for state), Alcantara was a lock for the state meet. Nonetheless, Alcantara's skill has improved "ten-fold," Manibusan said.
"It was a lot easier to prepare her this year than it was last year. Last year, it was teaching her the moves to get ready. This year, it was preparing her, because she already knows the moves."
Gabrielle Solis (Castro Valley) is the favorite in the 98-pound bracket, having finished first at the Napa Valley Girls Classic on Jan. 15. She and Alcantara, ranked fourth in the 103-pound bracket, have not faced each other yet this season.
So far, the dominating performance last Saturday against Fernandez, who was ranked first earlier this year, stands as Alcantara's biggest win of the year.
If her hard work pays off, that could all change this weekend.
"I hope to win first place, because I want one of those backpacks," Alcantara said, referring to the prize given out to first-place state finishers. "They look really pretty."
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