Chiawana pins its way to upset of Moses Lake
MOSES LAKE — Head coach Jaime Garza bounded from his chair onto the mat.
He had seen enough.
Hunter Cruz was whistled for some extra-curricular activities after driving Chiawana’s Tavin Blair out of bounds. There was contact after the whistle and the infraction ignited Cruz as he clapped his hands emphatically.
It was at that moment Garza leaped from his seat and forfeited the match.
Cruz later apologized on Twitter: “I truly am sorry for what I did and I can assure you guys that it will not happen again.”
Moses Lake’s forfeit at 170 pounds cemented the result as Chiawana was able to win 42-29. Had Cruz pinned Blair — which the entirety of the gymnasium knew was the objective — it would have set up a final match between Beau Mauseth and Victor Silva with the Chiefs down by five points.
“We had a great week of practice, we really have,” BJ Mullin said. “This will be motivating. We’ve beat these guys in every tournament, but it will definitely be motivating. So, hopefully we can gel together and realize that we’ve got to get better.”
Moses Lake won four of the first five matches to build a 22-6 lead.
Daiman Vasquez and Payton Castro recorded consecutive pins to start the dual. Jonathan Tanguma posted a major decision against Jason Delamora, 18-7, and Maximus Zamora pinned Camito Cardenas in less than a minute to open up the big lead.
The 120-pound match was emblematic of the stark turn the dual took.
Moses Lake’s Hunter White nursed a 1-0 lead in the third round before he was taken down by Kevin Llamas. White worked himself into a position to score a two-point reversal, but he was unable to free a leg to gain full control and lost 2-1.
From that point, Chiawana rattled off three straight pins to take a 27-22 lead.
“After tonight, definitely we need to improve on being a team and working together,” Vasquez said. “And working hard. Doing what we do in the wrestling room.”
Cruz Vasquez drew the Chiefs within two points, beating Israel Romero 6-2. However, in a match between ranked wrestlers, Riley Cissne went on the offensive to beat Christien Knopp 9-6. Knopp kept things close, but could not score a take-down of his own until the third round. Tyson Stover gave Chiawana its 11-point edge late in the dual, pinning BJ Mullin in the second round.
“I was doing fine,” Mullin said. “He wasn’t going to pin me on top. I got caught, but I just go out there and try and do my best. It’s all I can do. I go 100 percent and that’s all I can do. It shows me where I’m at. I just try and go battle.”
Box score
195: Daiman Vasquez (ML) p. Trent Black, 1:32
220: Payton Castro (ML) p. Colby Blasdale, 3:34
285: Josh Alvarez (C) p. Sebastian Rodriguez, 1:09
106: Jonathan Tanguma (ML) md. Jason Delamora, 18-7
113: Maximus Zamora (ML) p. Camita Cardenas, 0:53
120: Kevin Llamas (C) d. Hunter White, 2-1
126: Robby Vaughn (C) p. Xzavier Villarreal, 1:14
132: Kobe Santoyo (C) p. Karson Voss, 0:48
138: Morgan McFee (C) p. Matthew Humphreys, 0:59
145: Cruz Vasquez (ML) d. Israel Romero, 6-2
152: Riley Cissne (C) d. Christien Knopp, 9-6
160: Tyson Stover (C) p. BJ Mullin, 3:49
170: Moses Lake forfeit
182: Beau Mauseth (ML) d. Victor Silva, 12-1