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For the second straight season, Nevada Union's wrestling team toed the line with hopes of putting an end to Del Oro's domination of the Sierra Foothill League.
But, for the second year in a row, the Golden Eagles emerged from the dual-meet duel still holding the inside track to another SFL crown while the Miners were left to wonder about what might have been.
Del Oro, which has won 13 SFL championships since 1995, downed host Nevada Union 48-31 at The Mine Wednesday, moving one step closer to claiming the league championship for a sixth consecutive season.
A year ago, NU lost a 35-33 nail-biter at Del Oro. But this time around might have been even tougher for the Miners to take, considering injuries to a pair of Nevada Union's top wrestlers might have made the difference.
Senior 145-pounder Robin Callas, a two-time state qualifier, and senior Josh Cena, one of the top 140-pound wrestlers in the SFL, were both sidelined due to injury. Callas underwent surgery late last week to repair a torn meniscus in his knee, while Cena had his right hand in a splint after tearing a tendon at last week's Big Valley Classic in Stockton.
Had they been healthy, the two seniors would have been on the mat for the final two matches of the night.
“I was telling Josh if he and I were out there, we would have won the dual … possibly,” Callas said. “And it would have been the first time in my high school career that we would have beaten them.”
Del Oro (2-0 SFL) quickly swept through the first four matches of the night, as Kevin Burrage (152), Dylan Kainrath (160), Foster Fretland (171) and Jake Uhler (189) all won by pin. And with Nevada Union (0-2 SFL) forfeiting the 215-pound match, the Miners were staring at a 30-0 deficit.
“You've got to pin!” NU coach Nick Saldivar shouted to senior Michael Champagne during his heavyweight match, knowing that the Miners would need every single point they could scratch together to make a match of the meet.
Champagne was not able to pull out the pin, but he did get the win, a 6-4 decision to stop the bleeding and put Nevada Union on the scoreboard for the first time all night.
But as the lineup rolled over to the 103-pound match, Saldivar knew it was going to be quite a climb with the scoreboard reading 30-3 with eight bout still to hit the mat.
“We still had a fighting chance,” said Saldivar, in his third year at the helm of the NU program. “We had some really young guys in the lineup, but they went out there and battled.
“Injuries hurt us, but Del Oro is a tough team and we're in a tough league. Losing two good, tough seniors? You can't do it in this league.”
After Champagne broke through in the heavyweight match, the Miners rallied to win the next five matches. Four of those wins came by way of pin.
Sophomore Sawyer Mosel (103 pounds), freshman Will Sumner (112), senior Tyler Szura (119) and sophomore Jonny Callas (125) each pinned their opponents in the less than two minutes of their respective matches and brought the Miners back within striking distance.
And once junior Julian Purdy posted a 14-3 win at 130 pounds, Nevada Union held its first — and only — lead of the night at 31-30.
“I was impressed with our team,” said Cena, after watching his fellow Miners battle all the way back from Del Oro's large lead. “They didn't back down and didn't get too down with two seniors out. They kept fighting and it was a close one. I'm proud of them.”
Del Oro regained the lead after Danny Jacoshank won the 135-pound match by pin, before fellow Golden Eagles Patrick Neu (140) and Austin Branum (145) did the same to close out the match.
“For me, losing to Del Oro, and for it to come down to my match and Robin's match … as seniors, it's just devastating,” Cena said. “The reason I was out here this year was just to help the team. So for us to fall, because I couldn't even participate, it was devastating.”
Although Callas is expected to make a return to the mat in a matter of weeks — Saldivar is hoping he will return in time for the SFL championship tournament — Cena's not sure whether he'll get to wrestle again for the Miners.
Saldivar would no doubt like to have both of his seniors back in the lineup, but NU's coach also said he liked what he saw from his team in the duel with the defending champs.
“We've got a tough group of kids,” Saldivar said. “(Del Oro) is a tough team and you can't take anything away from them.
“Our kids battled back, though. We fought. A lot of times, when a team gets down like we did, they'll hang their heads. But we battled and came back and tried our best to get the win.”
Contact Sports Editor Brian Hamilton via e-mail at bhamilton@theunion.com or by phone at 477-4240.
But, for the second year in a row, the Golden Eagles emerged from the dual-meet duel still holding the inside track to another SFL crown while the Miners were left to wonder about what might have been.
Del Oro, which has won 13 SFL championships since 1995, downed host Nevada Union 48-31 at The Mine Wednesday, moving one step closer to claiming the league championship for a sixth consecutive season.
A year ago, NU lost a 35-33 nail-biter at Del Oro. But this time around might have been even tougher for the Miners to take, considering injuries to a pair of Nevada Union's top wrestlers might have made the difference.
Senior 145-pounder Robin Callas, a two-time state qualifier, and senior Josh Cena, one of the top 140-pound wrestlers in the SFL, were both sidelined due to injury. Callas underwent surgery late last week to repair a torn meniscus in his knee, while Cena had his right hand in a splint after tearing a tendon at last week's Big Valley Classic in Stockton.
Had they been healthy, the two seniors would have been on the mat for the final two matches of the night.
“I was telling Josh if he and I were out there, we would have won the dual … possibly,” Callas said. “And it would have been the first time in my high school career that we would have beaten them.”
Del Oro (2-0 SFL) quickly swept through the first four matches of the night, as Kevin Burrage (152), Dylan Kainrath (160), Foster Fretland (171) and Jake Uhler (189) all won by pin. And with Nevada Union (0-2 SFL) forfeiting the 215-pound match, the Miners were staring at a 30-0 deficit.
“You've got to pin!” NU coach Nick Saldivar shouted to senior Michael Champagne during his heavyweight match, knowing that the Miners would need every single point they could scratch together to make a match of the meet.
Champagne was not able to pull out the pin, but he did get the win, a 6-4 decision to stop the bleeding and put Nevada Union on the scoreboard for the first time all night.
But as the lineup rolled over to the 103-pound match, Saldivar knew it was going to be quite a climb with the scoreboard reading 30-3 with eight bout still to hit the mat.
“We still had a fighting chance,” said Saldivar, in his third year at the helm of the NU program. “We had some really young guys in the lineup, but they went out there and battled.
“Injuries hurt us, but Del Oro is a tough team and we're in a tough league. Losing two good, tough seniors? You can't do it in this league.”
After Champagne broke through in the heavyweight match, the Miners rallied to win the next five matches. Four of those wins came by way of pin.
Sophomore Sawyer Mosel (103 pounds), freshman Will Sumner (112), senior Tyler Szura (119) and sophomore Jonny Callas (125) each pinned their opponents in the less than two minutes of their respective matches and brought the Miners back within striking distance.
And once junior Julian Purdy posted a 14-3 win at 130 pounds, Nevada Union held its first — and only — lead of the night at 31-30.
“I was impressed with our team,” said Cena, after watching his fellow Miners battle all the way back from Del Oro's large lead. “They didn't back down and didn't get too down with two seniors out. They kept fighting and it was a close one. I'm proud of them.”
Del Oro regained the lead after Danny Jacoshank won the 135-pound match by pin, before fellow Golden Eagles Patrick Neu (140) and Austin Branum (145) did the same to close out the match.
“For me, losing to Del Oro, and for it to come down to my match and Robin's match … as seniors, it's just devastating,” Cena said. “The reason I was out here this year was just to help the team. So for us to fall, because I couldn't even participate, it was devastating.”
Although Callas is expected to make a return to the mat in a matter of weeks — Saldivar is hoping he will return in time for the SFL championship tournament — Cena's not sure whether he'll get to wrestle again for the Miners.
Saldivar would no doubt like to have both of his seniors back in the lineup, but NU's coach also said he liked what he saw from his team in the duel with the defending champs.
“We've got a tough group of kids,” Saldivar said. “(Del Oro) is a tough team and you can't take anything away from them.
“Our kids battled back, though. We fought. A lot of times, when a team gets down like we did, they'll hang their heads. But we battled and came back and tried our best to get the win.”
Contact Sports Editor Brian Hamilton via e-mail at bhamilton@theunion.com or by phone at 477-4240.
