No. 1 Buchanan Outlasts No. 8 Poway in Down-to-the-Wire California Wrestling Showdown

Buchanan avenged losses from the past two seasons as the national No. 1 team survived Poway’s rally in a heavyweight battle that wasn’t decided until the final bouts.

Without star Rocklin Zinkin Buchanan had tougher time in its dual with Poway but still managed a 32-23 victory. / Rocklin Zinkin Instagram

On Saturday afternoon, No. 8 Poway made the six-hour plus (less if no traffic) journey of almost 350 miles to take on No. 1 Buchanan in Clovis, California. The matinee showdown allowed the top-rated Bears to avenge losses from the last two years to the Titans with a 32-23 final.

A six-hour trip sets the stage for a rivalry renewal

“We have been (doing this dual) for the past five years,” Buchanan coach Troy Tirapelle informed.  “We won the first two. They won the second two. So, after this year it's 3-2 in favor of us. I'm sure they'll be ready to even the score next year at their place. We rotate who is home/away each year. Makes it so you only have to drive six hours every other year. More doable this way.”

Buchanan won the Doc Buchanan Tournament two weeks ago where they also claimed the nation’s number one ranking by outpointing then number one, Faith Christian Academy from Pennsylvania. Poway was fourth in those standings, ending in a tie New Jersey’s Delbarton. St. John Bosco was the third place team.

Early shock: Cordero stuns Silva at 120 pounds

There was one upset on the night and that came in the opening bout at 120 pounds when Poway’s Rene Cordero used a seven-point sequence in the second period to surprise Thiago Silva, who is ranked 12th nationally at 113 pounds, 13-7. The 3-0 lead would be the only one the Titans would know.

Not having No. 2 Rocklin Zinkin at 120 aided Cordero’s upset bid and led to the team score being tighter than expected as the final bouts were called upon. In a lot of our recent dual meet coverage, the winning outcome came with a few weights left to go, this one was going down to the wire after Wyatt Carnrite stepped up for Poway at 106 pounds following the turnaround after heavyweight.

Buchanan had returning California state placer, Jax Vang to throw out there as a heavy favorite versus Carnrite. The freshman was up for the challenge and even held the lead at one point before succumbing to Vang, 7-5. If Vang was the Bears’ starter, he would be nationally ranked.

“We have a lot of good kids in our program that put the time and effort it takes into wrestling to be something special,” Tirapelle said. “It's an expectation we hold. And we remind them all the time that you never know when you will be called upon or when your time will come. If you're not ready it'll pass you by, and you may not get another opportunity. Still, you would love to have the availability of all your horses each time out.  Wrestling is tough though. That's just the nature of the beast.”

Containing Vang to a regular decision meant the winner of the dual had still not been finalized. Like 106, Buchanan was holding the upper hand at 113 pounds with Thales Silva (No. 3 at 106 in the country) facing Julius Mark Villamil. This one went the way it was expected, with Silva clocking a 20-5 tech fall to reach the final count of 32-23.

Bears surge in the middle weights to seize control

After Cordero’s curveball at 120, the next three match sequence would place the Bears out front, where they would stay for the duration of the dual. No. 7 Paul Ruiz added an 18-2 technical fall over Aaron Klein to the scorebook at 126 pounds. No. 2 Ashton Besemer used a “Barb Wire” to put Jack Malinconico away in the middle frame at 132, 3:06.

No. 15 CJ Huerta handled No. 17 Matthew Orbeta 8-3 at Doc B. This encounter would be more of a challenge for Huerta, but he still got it done with a 2-0 decision to increase the Buchanan advantage to eleven, 14-3.

“It was a good place for us to start at 120,” offered Tirapelle. “That's the middle of our line-up, where we are at our strongest.  Always helps those around you when you can get some wins under your belt right away.”

They each traded decisions over the next four matches to end up with the same 11-point gap (20-9) after 165 pounds and Blake Woodward’s 4-0 blanking of Poway’s Bailey Holman. No 20 Ivan Arias was close to a major decision with Diego Valdiviezo but had to settle on a 10-3 win at 150.

Poway’s stars strike back to tighten the dual

The Titan’s victories in that window came from Arseni Kikiniou (144 pounds) and Carlos Valdiviezo (157). Kikiniou is ranked 21st at 150 pounds in our latest national rankings but has dropped to 144 upon his return from injury and beat Troy Ruiz, 9-2. Kikiniou was a double U17 World Team member over the summer and collected a bronze in Greco Roman. Valdiviezo shut out Carlo Contino, 5-0.

Two of Poway’s big guns delivered hope with their escapades as No. 1 Mario Carini locked up a cradle and stuck Diego Montalvo in 1:01 of their 175-pound meeting. No. 22 Dominic Dotson wasn’t able to replicate the pin at 190 pounds but did pick up an 11-1 major decision over Patrick Roberts to bring the Titans within one of the Bears, 20-19.

Late lineup drama pushes the match to the wire

Major decisions were exchanged to keep it a one-point match heading into the final two bouts that switched over to the little guys. Buchanan’s Sammy Seja (No. 25 at 285) beat Lewis Fofanah, 12-2, down at 215 pounds. Poway sent the No. 12 215-pounder up to heavyweight where he downed Andre Sandoval, 16-2.

“It's a dual,” Tirapelle continued. “Unfortunately, nothing ever goes perfectly. We placed our guys where we thought they'd have the best chance to succeed while still making the best lineup we could. I did not think everyone's effort was up to par for what we expect of them. We went over it afterwards. You have jobs associated with each weight when you're in a tough dual. Our strategy and our pride to accomplish these each match out was not consistent. Not our best performance. So, it's something we must address and strive to be better at.”

Buchanan and No. 6 St. John Bosco will not meet in a dual. Their Doc B finishes leave them as the top two teams in California. The final word on that will come at the single-class state tournament at the end of February (26th-28th). California does not crown a state dual meet champion.

“Now it's just all about getting healthy, as we were missing two of our stars in (Joseph) Toscano and Zinkin, and setting the right state of mind as we try to be at our best for a four-week run to the State Championships,” Tirapelle closed with.

Buchanan 32, Poway 23

(match started at 120)

120-Rene Cordero (P) dec Thiago Silva, 13-7

126-Paul Ruiz (B) tech-fall Aaron Klein, 18-2

132-Ashton Besmer (B) pinned Jack Malinconico, 3:06

138-CJ Huerta (B) dec Matthew Orbeta, 2-0

144-Arseni Kikiniou (P) dec Troy Ruiz, 9-2

150-Ivan Arias (B) dec Carlos Valdiviezo, 5-0

157-Carlos Valdiviezo (P) dec Carlo Contino, 5-0

165-Blake Woodward (B) dec Bailey Holman, 4-0

175-Mario Carini (P) pinned Diego Montalvo, 1:01

190-Dominic Dotson (P) maj-dec Patrick Roberts, 11-1

215-Sammy Seja (B) maj-dec Lewis Fofanah, 12-2

285-Daniel Moylan (P) maj-dec Andre Sandoval, 16-2

106-Jax Vang (B) dec Wyatt Carnrite, 7-5

113-Thales Silva (B) tech-fall Julius Mark Villamil, 20-5