SACRAMENTO >> Lower Lake High School’s Blake Fredrickson, unseeded in the 108-pound division at the annual Tim Brown Memorial Wrestling Tournament in Sacramento, came away with a fifth-place medal on Saturday after beating Lalo Velsasco of Woodland by 11-1 decision that was every bit as lopsided as the final score indicates.
“I thought his performance was amazing,” Lower Lake coach Ed Fuchs said of his star freshman after his 4-2 showing at one of the top preseason tournaments in Northern California. “He’ll learn from those two losses. You want to keep them hungry and wanting to do better.”
Fredrickson won his first two matches on Friday to reach the quarterfinal round early Saturday. He pinned Styles Schmidt of Lodi to gain the semifinals against Ryan Elgarico of Elk Grove, the eventual 108-pound runner-up. Fredrickson trailed only 3-2 late in the match when his inexperience showed a bit, according to Fuchs.
“He made a simple mistake, got caught underneath the guy and got pinned,” Fuchs said.
A similar mistake cost Fredrickson again in the consolation semifinals as he was pinned by Anthony Kraan of Henley, a loss that dropped him into the fifth-place match against Velasco.
“He was up 4-0 after the first (round), led 4-1 going to the third, then pulled a reversal and two near falls to get up to 11-1. He dominated the guy.”
Fuchs said Fredrickson, now 15-3 on the season, has nothing to be discouraged about despite the back-to-back losses on Saturday.
“He lost to the guys who took second and third, so there’s nothing to be ashamed of, nothing to be upset about,” Fuchs said.
Fredrickson and Upper Lake 120-pounder Junior Fernandez, also a freshman, were the only two Lake County wrestlers to reach the second day of the competition. Fernandez also went 2-0 on Friday, winning twice by technical fall, before falling in the quarterfinals and again in the consolation bracket on Saturday.
“He’s amazing to watch,” Fuchs said of Fernandez.
Lower Lake and Clear Lake visit Upper Lake for a Coastal Mountain Conference match on Friday beginning at 5 p.m.
