RENO, Nev. -- The Vanguard University men's wrestling program competed at the Reno Tournament of Champions on Sunday in a high-octane field of wrestlers. Seven NCAA DI programs co-mingled with some top-tier NAIA programs, including perennial powerhouse Grand View (Iowa) and the preseason top-five teams of the Cascade Collegiate Conference (Eastern Oregon, Montana State-Northern, Menlo, Southern Oregon, and Embry-Riddle). The Blue and Gold had some positive results, with Steven Kroesen (JR/Laguna Hills, CA) and Mike Ruiz (SO/Orange, CA) each reaching the quarterfinals before having to go to the consolation side of the bracket. The team finished 16th overall at the event, with Michigan State winning the team title.
What Happened? Kroesen dragged Travis Sherman of Eastern Oregon across the mat, winning 17-2 while giving up only two escapes to start his run in the 141-pound bracket. He then put down three takedowns en route to a 9-3 decision victory over James Emmer of Utah Valley. His quarterfinal opponent, Jordan Hamdan of Michigan State, made the only takedowns of the bout to win 6-2. Moving to the other side of the bracket, Kroesen then had to face another NCAA DI opponent, as he battled Luciano Arroyo of Stanford. The Cardinal wrestler was able to get a hold of Kroesen, ending his day with a 13-5 major decision.
Ruiz had a great start in the heavyweight bracket. He allowed only one escape to Austin Lane of Marian (Ind.) in the first period, with Ruiz dominating the rest of the match to the tune of a 10-1 victory. He then pitched a shutout against Jayden Dobson of Southwestern Oregon CC, winning 6-0, posting two takedowns and a reversal. That pitted Ruiz against Kevin Zimmer of Wyoming, who dictated the matchup, pinning Ruiz in the process. Ruiz seemed in control of his next dual but Paul Sharp of Cal State Bakersfield made a slick move to pin Ruiz in the second period to end his day shy of the top-eight.
The 125-pound bracket saw Matthew Terrence (FR/Fresno, CA) get VU a victory early in the day, as he netted six points in the first period to bypass Branson Magsayo of Southwestern Oregon CC 6-0. He then blanked Tanner Cook of Montana State-Northern 16-0 to send him into a matchup with Esco Walker of Grand View. The two tangled in a very tight dual, with Terrence making a reversal late in the first period to enter the second tied at 2-2. But Walker would make two takedowns the rest of the way and control the tempo of the bout. Terrence made three escapes to keep it close but he would head to the consolation side of the bracket with the 6-5 decision going to the Viking. Meanwhile, Dominic De'Altonaga (SO/Poway, CA) pinned Saoul Prado of Baker in the third period to advance from his opening matchup. But Garrett Ricks of Wyoming sent him to the other side of the bracket with a 14-0 major decision. Both VU wrestlers then picked up wins, with De'Altonaga winning 4-0 over Mitch Warren. Terrence was perfect against Nicholas Stringer of Simpson, putting up a 15-0 technical fall win in the second period. De'Altonaga drew a rematch with Ricks as the brackets progressed, with the second meeting being much closer. Ricks made a takedown in the first and each wrestler recorded an escape as well. But try as he might, De'Altonaga could not snag a takedown of his own, bowing out after the 3-1 decision defeat. Terrence squared off against Paul Mascarenas of Grand View and the Viking made three takedowns, with Terrence collecting only three escapes, as Mascarenas won 7-3.
Julian Leon (FR/Fontana, CA) lost 12-4 against Southern Oregon's Simon Graeber 12-4 to start his venture in the 133-pound bracket. Unfortunately, his tournament soon ended as he lost to fellow Raider Hunter Sparks 5-3, even though Leon made the opening takedown. Joey Navarro (FR/Holtsville, CA) made one escape against Diego Machado of St. Ambrose (Iowa) in the 157-pound bracket but not much else, as he was pinned in the second period. He then exited the event as Joseph Mora of Cal Baptist defeated him 15-3.
Bryant Avila (FR/Rialto, CA) made a takedown and two escapes to upend Dan Terronez of St. Ambrose in the 149-pound bracket. He then faced Graham Rooks of Indiana and put up a good battle, trailing 5-3 after the first period. But he made only one escape in the second, as Rooks emerged with a 7-4 victory. Gabriel Cortez (JR/Covina, CA) was also in the 149-pound bracket and he took an opening victory over Marcus Peterson of Cal Baptist 7-4, as Cortez made the only takedowns in the bout. But Nico Bolivar of Indiana sent him to the consolation side of the bracket with a 13-5 decision. Both Lions then lost for the second time, with Avila losing to Joshua Brown of Cal State Bakersfield 12-3 and Cortez coming up with just a single escape against Terronez, losing out with a decision score of 2-1.
Omar Rosas (SO/El Centro, CA) got taken out of the championship side of the 165-pound bracket by Chance McLane of Oklahoma State 16-1. In a similar fashion, Luke Lussier (JR/Victorville, CA) was shut out by Elliott Rodgers of Marian 16-0. Rosas was then blanked by Cal Stae Bakersfield's Braden Smelser 6-0, with Lussier coming up short against Miles Hoey of Michigan State 6-3.
In the 184-pound bracket, Baron Gaunt (SO/Torrance, CA) fell 11-3 in his first match against Sam Osho of Marian, with Gaunt making only escapes in the matchup. Facing JR Scott of Southwestern Oregon CC, Gaunt accumulated four takedowns and a near-fall move to win 17-5. He then picked up win number two on the day by clobbering Khristian Dove of Cal State Bakersfield 17-2. Eastern Oregon's Kyle Knudtson awaited and each wrestler made a takedown in the first frame. The two grappled some more but Knudtson found an opening and sprung in for the pin, dashing Gaunt's hopes of a run to third.
Isaiah Hernandez (SO/Selma, CA) lost in his opening match to Andrew Herrera of Southern Oregon 11-3, moving him to the consolation side of the 197-pound bracket. Against Amrit Singh of Menlo, Hernandez went behind 2-0 early but escaped to keep the score at a one-point gap. Hernandez then made another escape and his first takedown of the dual to go ahead 4-3 before an escape for Singh leveled the playing field. Singh made an escape in the third and after the clock hit zeros, the bonus point for riding time went to Hernandez, sending the pair to sudden victory. It would be Hernandez who made the decisive move, as he completed a takedown that gave him the 6-4 win. Unfortunately, Talmage Carman of Western Wyoming would be too much to handle, as he won 14-6 to end the tournament for Hernandez.
What was Said? "Our guys competed well," said Head Coach Caleb Flores. "This tournament showed us some areas that we need to get better at. Looking forward to developing our guys before the next competition."
What's Next? The Lions will hit the mat again in the new calendar year, as VU will go up to Atherton for the Menlo Invitational on January 7.