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Brawley Union High's Abraham Lopez (right) fights to pin Imperial High's Junior De La Torre during an Imperial Valley League duel Wednesday in Brawley. (BRANDY RONEK PHOTO / January 9, 2013) |
BRAWLEY — The memory of Martin Garza was in the minds of many a spectator, coach and competitor alike Wednesday night, as the Brawley Union High wrestling team hosted Imperial High in an Imperial Valley League dual meet.
The Garza family was in attendance as their son’s teammates and some faculty took brief turns commemorating Martin, who was fatally stabbed Sunday. There was a moment of silence and then the meet began. The Wildcats went on to win handily, 75-6.
“This match was dedicated to (Martin),” said Brawley head coach Tony Leon, who worked with Martin’s father and said he watched him grow up. “We were focused on winning big for him and unfortunately for Imperial, they happened to be on the other side.”
“I was wrestling for my brother tonight,” stated Miguel Moreno, 17, referring to Garza, with whom he played on the offensive line of the Wildcats’ football team. Moreno won his matchup by pin, which was in itself a tribute to his friend.
“I did a little football-style takedown for him,” he added with a smile.
It was really one pin after another for the Wildcats, with the Tigers’ only individual victory coming with the score standing at 72-0.
Imperial’s Kenny Caldera, 15, has been wrestling since elementary school and, although he defeated his opponent fairly easily, he believes he still has some maturing to do.
“I think it was my technique that helped me beat him,” he said. “I still feel as if I should condition more and keep going hard in practice.”
It has been a rough season for the Tigers, who were only able to field nine wrestlers on Wednesday and lost five matches on forfeit.
“The numbers are down,” lamented Mark Benedict, who stepped in to take over as head coach only two weeks ago, after his predecessor was called away for personal reasons. “So we’re definitely hurting. It’s been a difficult transition for the wrestlers and myself, but we’re moving forward. I have to give credit to Brawley … they always have a solid team.”
That might be putting it somewhat lightly. In Leon’s 20-odd years at the helm, the Wildcats have won 18 consecutive IVL titles.
Apparently, though, that’s an irrelevant statistic to the man who has engineered this success.
“It’s too early to tell who’ll win league this year,” said Leon. “We just take it one match, one season at a time, prepare for every opponent. I take no one lightly.”
Imperial (0-4 IVL) will host Palo Verde Valley High of Blythe in two weeks, while Brawley (2-0 IVL) will be gearing up to host rival Central Union High on Wednesday.
Last year’s meet came down to the last match, which swayed in Brawley’s favor after then-sophomore Vincent Elizalde pinned his man.
“They’re still a good team,” Elizalde, 17, said of the Spartans, “but we feel confident. I think we have a great chance at winning league.”
Check the SCOREBOARD for the results of each match.
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