ATHERTON, CA – Menlo Men's Wrestling honored 13 seniors before their sweep against Simpson University on Friday evening. Menlo did not allow a single point against as they totaled 4 pins, 2 tech falls, and 3 decision wins across 8 weight classes. It was a successful senior night and perfect preparation for their Oaks Open happening on Saturday morning!
Oaks Sweep Redhawks
It was a team effort to earn the sweep against the Simpson Redhawks who are currently receiving national votes in the latest NAIA rankings. Nicolas Aguilar (125) kicked off the night with a pin over Peyton Macdonald in the first period. Jesse Gaytan (141) entered the mat as Menlo took a 12-0 lead after a forfeit at 133. Jesse owned the mat from the start and was able to tally an 18-0 tech fall across two periods. Next up was Logan Avina-Barajas (149) who had a much more competitive match. Avina-Barajas was up 3-2 with just a minute left in the match. His opponent was adding up riding time as the clock was winding down when Logan swiftly pulled off the reversal to make it a 5-2 decision. At 157, #3 Kanaipono Tapia would outscore Joseph Andrade 18-2 for the tech fall.
#7 Rysan Leong (165) did what he does best and ended the match by pin in the third period. That pin would give Menlo a 31-0 lead going into 174 where Connor Cormier would be wrestling for the Oaks. Cormier added a 6-2 lead and held it through all three periods for the decision win. #11 Isaiah Morales (184) and #7 Antonio Dacosta were ready to go home and finished the night with back to back pins to remain undefeated as a team and tally a 52-0 victory over the Redhawks. Of the 13 wrestlers honored, 9 Oaks earned wins to close out their home dual season. It was another victorious night inside Haynes-Prim Pavilion leaving them undefeated at home for the 2023-24 season.
Up Next…
After waking up from this victory, the Oaks will hit the mat one last time inside Haynes-Prim for the Oaks Open. First matches will begin at 9am! Follow along using the stat links at Menloathletics.com.
Dual Score
125: Nicolas Aguiar (Menlo) over Peyton Macdonald (Simpson) (Fall,2:15) 6-0
133: #2 Jovan Garcia (Menlo) over Simpson (Forfeit) 12-0
141: Jesse Gaytan (Menlo) over Elian Murillo (Simpson) (TF, 18-0) 17-0
149: Logan Avina-Barajas (Menlo) over Tomas Jacobo (Simpson) (Dec. 5-2) 20-0
157: #3 Kanaipono Tapia (Menlo) over Joseph Andrade (Simpson) (TF, 18-2) 25-0
165: #7 Rysan Leong (Menlo) over Carlos Martinez (Simpson) (Fall, 4:45) 31-0
174: Connor Cormier (Menlo) over Malachi Dowdell (Simpson) (Dec. 6-2) 34-0
184: #11 Isaiah Morales (Menlo) over Bryant Bartlett (Simpson) (Fall, 4:04) 40-0
197: #13 Hunter James (Menlo) over Simpson (Forfeit) 46-0
HWT: #7 Antonio Dacosta (Menlo) over Samuel Maldonado (Simpson) (Fall, 3:20) 52-0