LOOMIS >> Four members of the Punishers Wrestling Club of Lower Lake placed high in the 49th annual Nor Cal Tournament of Champions last weekend in Loomis
Austin Fredrickson was the Punishers’ top finisher at third with a 5-1 record in the 70-pound division. His lone loss was a 5-4 decision against Damian Alvarez of Selma in the quarterfinals as Alvarez rallied from a 4-0 deficit to pull out the win. Fredrickson battled back in the consolation bracket, including a pin in overtime against Gabriel Medina of CYC. Fredrickson forced overtime by scoring a two-point reversal with time running out in regulation.
Taking sixth place was Mario Cuellar in the 89-pound division. Cuellar dropped his first match but came back strong with five consecutive victories to put himself into medal contention. In the fifth-place match he dropped a hard-fought decision to JoJo Sorgman. Cuellar went 5-3 in the tournament.
Isaiah Rubio placed seventh in the 76-pound division, a 29-man bracket loaded with talent from throughout the state. He took a loss in the quarterfinals to Justin Wells of Harris Middle School, which dropped him into the consolation bracket. He secured the seventh-place medal with a 15-0 tech fall victory over Kamren Taylor of Team G.
Also earning a seventh-place medal was Bryan Gudino in the 70-pound division with a 3-2 record. He won his final match by tech fall over Kyle Hara of Sutter Folsom.
Jonathan Fredrickson competed in the 76-pound division and fell just short of medal round, going 2-2.
While several Punishers were competing in Loomis, other members of the team headed to Arizona for the Terminator World Challenge. Travis Boyles turned in a strong effort there, going 3-1 in the 53-pound division to finish second. His only loss was a 12-8 decision to Slater Hicks of Peterson Grappling in the finals. Hicks is a multiple-time state and national champion.
Also for the Punishers, Dominick Clark competed in the 12-and-under 62-pound division where he turned out a solid fourth-place finish. Taylor Boyles came in sixth.
The Punishers are headed to two different tournaments this coming weekend. Some will compete in the Rocky Mountain Nationals in Denver while others head to Fresno for the California USA State Championships.
