Hopes were high for the bulldogs as they entered their one and only Buena, Ventura rivalry match of the year. Quickly the crowd could fill the confidence being drained from the wrestlers. Even with the great matches from the younger wrestlers, the Bulldogs were unable to beat their rivals and the JV duel ended with a score of 15-66 Ventura.
“You know, it can be overwhelming and a lot of these young wrestlers did well,” head coach Eddie Martinez said.
The JV team automatically lost 30 points to forfeits. With Buena’s wrestling program being on the smaller side, all three teams fell victim to not having a full team and losing points due to forfeiting matches or having first-year wrestlers in key matches.
“I anticipated that it’d be a real tough [duel] for us this year… we’re not just reloading from last year, we’re rebuilding,” Martinez said.
Girls Varsity began with two forfeits on Buena’s side which immediately gave Ventura a 12-0 lead. The first head-to-head matchup of the night was senior and captain Lily Bossoletti’s at 115 pounds. After 3 periods, Bossoletti came out on top beating her opponent 11-0. The team score sat at 4-12 with Ventura still on top.
The next match of the night was freshman Sophia Flores at 120 pounds. Flores wrestled hard to beat her opponent 6-3 for her first true league win. The duel score reached 7-12.
“It was good to beat a rival team,” Flores said. “and I’m definitely looking forward to next year.”
After more forfeits from Buena, the score was 7-24 as freshman Celeste Hindley’s match began. Hindley faced a tough opponent losing her match. Following her match were more forfeits giving Ventura a further lead. Junior Reanne Bigos wrestled next, facing one of Ventura’s top wrestlers, their state-qualifying-145-pounder. After a tough match, Bigos was pinned and the duel score was 7-42. Senior Auiza Dortch then wrestled another hard match but got pinned in the first period.
With just 3 more weights left and only 2 head-to-head matches to be wrestled the score was 7-54. As the 190-pounders match began, cheers from junior Millie Slocum’s parents were heard throughout the gym. Slocum wrestled a great match yet got caught and gave up a pin in the second period. After one last forfeit from Buena, the final match of the night began with the 100-pound girls. Senior Sofia Kawano wrestled a quick yet smart match to ensure a pin bringing the final score of the duel to 13-66.
“What’s holding us back on girls is just numbers. The quality of our wrestlers are just as good as theirs,” said Martinez.
With the most anticipated match of the night beginning, the varsity boys lined up to shake hands with their cross-town rivals before wrestling. The first match of the night was junior Kevin Hong at 113 pounds. Hong battled long and hard before losing just 4-0. Ventura proceeded to win the next match at 120 pounds and the gym roared with cheers as Ventura had taken the first two matches.
“In the beginning, the team was confident. But [by now] we were kind of defeated because we only won one [match]” junior Orlando Beltran said.
Tides turned slightly for the Bulldogs as junior and two time league champion Rylan Pedroza pinned his opponent in just a minute and 12 seconds. With the match score being brought to 6-9 tension filled the gym.
“I wasn’t nervous, I was focused,” Pedroza said. His focus paid off as he was the one of just two wins that Buena had all night.
As the duel continued, Ventura ramped up again winning the next seven matches. At this point in Buena’s lineup, many of their younger and inexperienced wrestlers were battling the core of Ventura’s team.
“They were loaded with experienced wrestlers and we’re not at that point…we were just outmatched,” Martinez said.
By the time junior Orlando Beltran stepped on the mat, the score was 6-46. Beltran appeared calm and collected as he stepped on the mat. Within seconds he had the first takedown of the match and pinned his opponent in a minute and 45 seconds.
“I was feeling really nervous. I didn’t know what to expect from my opponent. He looked really strong” said Beltran. “But I was really happy because I won.”
With just three matches left the Cougar crowd knew that they had won the duel. Feeding off the energy, the last three matches went in the way of Ventura as all of the Buena boys were pinned. The duel ended with Buena far behind their rivals, losing 12-64.
“I was disappointed to be at the end of a lopsided loss like that. But I was happy with the effort of everybody” said Martinez
