VISALIA >> A school looking for its first state medalist in girls wrestling now has two. You can thank Christina Wilson and Adriana Lopez for that.
Wilson, a junior 126-pounder, and Lopez, a sophomore 116-pounder, both came away from the CIF State Girls Wrestling Championships on Saturday at the Visalia Convention Center with medals hanging around their neck and stories they’ll be able to tell for a lifetime.
Wilson, who ended up third, and Lopez, who finished sixth, were part of perhaps the best wrestling weekend ever in Upper Lake history, maybe Lake County history. The Cougars took two wrestlers to girls state and two to the boys sectional tournament (see story on page B2) this past weekend and they all came home with medals.
“Look what our little, small team from Upper Lake has accomplished,” Upper Lake head coach Jose Fernandez said. “It’s incredible.”
Fernandez couldn’t be in two places at one time so he accompanied the boys, including his son Junior Fernandez, to the sectional tourney in Union City while assistant coaches Eddie Peregrina and Jeff Clevenger traveled to girls state with Wilson and Lopez.
Wilson came full circle during her two-day state adventure. On Friday she reached the quarterfinals only to lose 3-2 to Haley Valdez of San Dimas High School out of the Southern Section. That loss knocked Wilson, a three-time state qualifier, out of the running for a state title and into the consolation bracket where third place is the best you can do. Wilson took that challenge to heart, pinning Jenessa Rodriguez in the third round of her first consolation match and beating Anna Maskalenko by first-round pin in the consolation quarterfinals. Needing one more win to reach the third-place match, Wilson came through with yet another win by pin, this time against Alexandra Ceballos in the second period.
With only one match left and a third-place medal hanging in the balance, Wilson found herself facing none other than Valdez, the same wrestler who had beaten her on Friday. The rematch was all Wilson as she dominated 8-3.
“What a strong comeback,” Fernandez said of Wilson’s 4-0 second day. “She is an incredible kid. I started working with her when she was in eighth grade and I knew then she had something special.”
Had Wilson been more on top of her game in her first meeting with Valdez, Fernandez said he believes Wilson might have won the state title instead of the third-place medal.
“She’s right there with the best in the state,” Fernandez said. “Sometimes taking third can be mentally harder on a wrestler than taking first. You have to overcome a loss and some kids can’t do that.”
And Wilson?
“She’s one of the toughest wrestlers you’ll ever meet,” Fernandez said. “Nothing stops her.”
Lopez lost her first match on Friday and spent the rest of the tournament battling back in the consolation bracket, beginning with a win on Friday that kept her in the running. She wrestled five more matches on Saturday, winning the first three by 6-4, 4-2 and 5-4 decisions to reach the consolation semifinals. One more win away from a trip to the third-place match, Lopez lost by third-round pin to Tara Othman.
Facing Jazmine Ruiz in the fifth-place match, Lopez dropped a 6-2 decision to end up with the sixth-place medal.
“She is one of the best offensive wrestlers I’ve ever seen,” Fernandez said. “Her shots are incredible.”
Though Lopez had her struggles and injury problems early in the season, she overcame both at just the right time, according to Fernandez.
“She is highly driven and really came on strong when it counted,” Fernandez said. “She’s a beast … pure heart.”
Fernandez said he expects both wrestlers to not only reach state again next year but place even higher in their respective weight classes.
“They’re both capable of winning the state,” he said. “They’re that good.”
Wilson won the North Coast Section championship two weeks ago in Albany while Lopez finished third.
