Prep Wrestling: Class-by-class look at State Championships

A weight-class-by-weight-class look at the 37th CIF State Wrestling Championships beginning Friday at Bakersfield, featuring the 35 wrestlers from the Stanislaus District who have qualified:

103 — Nashon Garrett of Chico, an example of the improved wrestling scene in the Northern Section over the past decade, is ranked No. 1. He could be challenged, however, by No. 3 Arnulfo Olea of Exeter in the second round. Masters champion Garrett Fortado of Turlock opens with an outbracket match. Though he tacks on the extra match, he can manage this draw. More difficult is the path for Kendal Klette of Los Banos and freshman Johnathon Costa of Escalon.

112 — Selma sophomore Alex Cisneros, the 2009 state champion at 103, is heavily favored. At the bottom of the bracket is No. 2 Matt Correa of Righetti. Masters champion Martin Ramirez of Elk Grove is ranked eighth. Oakdale's Wyatt Casey didn't receive any favors. His first-round foe is the talented Justin Jauregui of Clovis East. Ben Weber of Golden Valley meets San Diego Section champion Josh Miranda of Poway. Turlock's Jose Zuniga, seventh at Stockton, squeezes in against Johnnie Nguyen of Andrew Hill.

119 — Turlock's 4th-ranked Fabian Garcia, the two-time Masters champion who lost in overtime of last year's semifinals, could have fared worse. He could face top-ranked Zach Zimmer of Clovis West in the semifinals. Fascinating matchup — the lanky and leveraging Zimmer vs. the shorter Garcia. Escalon's Christian Franks is assigned No. 3 Sean Silva of Barstow, tops from the Southern Section.

125 — Jesse Delgado of Gilroy, the 112-pound state champion last year, is No. 1 here. In his way in the quarterfinals is No. 3 Vince Rodriguez of Clovis North. Mike Guzman of Buhach Colony opens against No. 3 Chris Martinez, the Central Section champion from Clovis West. Steven Widmer of Central Catholic waits for an outbracket winner, which means he will scout his first-round opponent. Nice pedigree: Curtis Hulstine of Ceres and Central Catholic assitant coach Billy Murphy, a former two-time state champion at Hughson, are half-brothers.

130 — Bobby Morales of Laguna Hills is favored, but No. 5 Shane Tate — Oakdale's two-time Masters champion who placed fifth at state last year — is positioned for a good run. Summerville's Matt Duckworth, fifth last week, collides with No. 2 Nick Pena of Selma. Bret Harte's Devin Nanik is the underdog against San Diego Section champion Billy Reyes of La Costa Canyon.

135 — Bella Vista's Jake Briggs, who allowed only three points at the Masters, has switched to 140 though he's dominated the 135s. The new No. 1 is Joey Davis of Santa Fe. Masters champion David Ferry of Central Catholic opens against an Los Angeles Section champion and a third seed from the San Diego Section — not a terrible draw. He won't see a state-ranked wrestler until the quarterfinals. Andrew Perez of Pitman, who lost to his former teammate (Ferry) last week in the Masters finals, also is positioned away from the favorites.

140 — Briggs is the new No. 1, and Frank Martinez of Northview of Covina moves to No. 2. They're clearly the best of a weight class devoid of Stanislaus District wrestlers.

145 — Tyler Johnson of Vacaville, who dominated the Masters along with Briggs, is the wrestler to watch. Tyler Brown of Calaveras, runner-up to Johnson last week, was given a tough task, but he could face No. 2 Cody Rodebaugh of San Lorenzo Valley in the quarterfinals. Greg Hartman of Los Banos, third last week, meets San Francisco Section champion Sean Kately of Balboa. Carson Gracia of Summerville will scout an outbracket match before he starts. Cameron Ferry of Central Catholic meets North Coast winner Victor Pereira of Newark Memorial.

152 — Merced's Chris Urquizo won the state 152s last year and he won the JC state title at Fresno City last December. Denzel Hawkins of Centennial and Jesse Stafford of Del Oro, ranked Nos. 1 and 2 respectively, both won their Masters titles. Trent Noon of Oakdale is not ranked, but neither is anyone near him on the bracket. Ben Martinez of Central Catholic goes against Cody Linton of Winters in an outbracket opener.

160 — Wild card alert: Bryce Hammond of Bakersfield (ranked No. 3) has not lost on the mat but placed seventh at Central Section due to injury defaults. He's reportedly nursing a hand injury. How healthy is he? No. 1 is Dominic Kastl of Gilroy, followed by Justin Lozano of Selma. Grace Davis' Gabe Gonzalez, the only Modesto Metro Conference qualifier, could meet Chris Sloat of Hesperia. Waterford's Erick Gomez, who placed third last week at Masters, has a chance in first round but then he could match up with No. 6 Nikko Reyes of Clovis West. Kevin Butler of Oakdale, assigned an outbracket opener, could be involved in the Hammond uncertainty. Monti Wilson of Calaveras takes on North Coast champion Brian Engdahl of Granada.

171 — James Cook, a former state runner-up for Clovis West two years ago, is ranked No. 1 and is favored after his transfer to Madera. Oakdale's A.C. Brown, runner-up at Masters, needs two wins to face Cook. Alex Nuanez, the first Sierra state wrestler, tangles with Modoc's Tyler Wood, who may set the record for most traveled state qualifier. Angelo Petriello of Argonaut awaits San Diego runner-up Nick Heene of Carlsbad.

189 — Morgan McIntosh of Calvary Chapel (Santa Ana) won the 171s last year and is picked to win. Pitman's Gustavo Verver hopes to reach the quarterfinals, where he would run into McIntosh. Buhach Colony's Luis Bojorquez, sixth last week despite a painful collarbone injury that forced him to injury-default his final two matches, is day-to-day. Garrett Burns of Summerville is greeted by No. 3-ranked Tommy Burriel of Clovis.

215 — Tank Knowles of Calvary Chapel is No. 1, and it can't hurt that he trains with McIntosh. Charlie Gilstrap of Oakdale, who was beaten in triple overtime in Masters final last week, might bring some extra motivation. In his path, however, is No. 3 Brian Schoene of Bakersfield. Gary Gellerman of Calaveras, seventh last week, begins against Seville Hayes of Mar Vista.

285 — Drew Meulman of St. Francis of Mountain View is ranked No. 1. Nasty draw for Chris Serna of Argonaut, who meets Central Coast runner-up Luis Barragan of Gilroy.

Bee staff writer Ron Agostini can be reached at ragostini@modbee.com or 578-2302.

This story was originally published March 4, 2010 at 12:05 AM with the headline "Prep Wrestling: Class-by-class look at State Championships."