Pete Moye’
Sports Button

Moving from third to fourth place as a team, the Cerritos College men’s wrestling team had two wrestlers place third and two place sixth at the Meathead Invitational at Cuesta College on Saturday.

Head Coach Don Garriott explained that because wrestlers Ramon and Alfonso Estrada not competing on Saturday, the team’s amount of wins suffered, causing it to drop from third to fourth place overall.

The two wrestlers to place third were 125-pounder Jake Harrison, and 184-pounder Keith Nieves. At first place in the state for his weight class, Harrison said, “It was disappointing placing third in the tournament.”

“I was ranked first in the state and undefeated at the weight class until this weekend. It’s just going to motivate me to work harder and avenge my loss.”

Harrison won by pin in his first two matches and then was pinned by Andrew Delgado of Mount San Antonio College.

Harrison then came back and won his fourth match against Matt Correa of Cuesta College, 15-6, for third place. With fifth place in the state at his weight class, Nieves said, “The fact that they cut down weight and I just walk around at 184 might have something to do with it.”

Nieves added that, like Harrison, he too was disappointed in placing third in the tournament.

Gerardo Aguirre, who placed sixth in his weight class of 197 pounds, was head butted during his first match where he broke his nose twice. Aguirre said that his broken nose was his main issue with why he didn’t do as well.

Out of six matches, he only won two. Also placing sixth on Saturday was Greg Barrera at 133 pounds.

Barrera wrestled more than one matches and won four-out-of-seven, which included a defeat against teammate Juan Rosales.

Harrison said,“I feel we’ll have a good advantage going into the dual. They’re coming to our house so that’s more of a reason for us to want to win the dual.”

The Falcons will host Palomar College on Wednesday at Excelsior High School at 7 p.m.

This will be Cerritos’ first home tournament this season.