BAKERSFIELD — February 23 is an iconic day in United States military history and now it’s an iconic day in Lake County sports history as well.
Seventy-four years to the day that a group of six Marines planted a flag atop Mount Suribachi, signifying that the battle for Iwo Jima was on, Adriana Lopez planted Upper Lake’s flag Saturday night at the Rabobank Arena in Bakersfield, signifying that her battle to win a state championship was finally over.
Lopez, a four-time state qualifier, three-time state medalist and two-time North Coast Section champion, beat No. 1 seed Ashley Venegas of Mount Whitney High School 9-5 to become the first Upper Lake, Lake County and Coastal Mountain Conference wrestler to win a state title. In terms of Lake County sports, she is the first athlete to win a state championship in any sanctioned high school sport.
Headed to NAIA powerhouse Campbellsville University on scholarship, Lopez is the new gold standard by which all county athletes, past, present and future, will now be measured.
If you think that’s some pretty heady stuff for an 18-year-old who lost the first three matches she ever wrestled many years ago when just starting out, you would be right. Just a day removed from her history-setting moment, Lopez said she was still trying to comprehend the scope of her accomplishment.
“It kind of hit me right after the match, but it went away. Then it came back and it was unreal,” Lopez said of the moments immediately following her victory over Venegas. “I know it happened, it just still feels unreal.”
Lopez won five straight matches during the state tournament, which took place over a three-day period. She beat No. 2 seed Melanie Mendoza of Selma High School, 10-5 in the semifinals on Saturday morning. She didn’t return to the mat until more than eight hours later when she beat Venegas in the finals, her coach and dad, Jose Fernandez, watching every single moment of his daughter’s historic achievement unfold before his eyes.
“Man, I cannot even put it into words, it was so unreal,” Fernandez said. “I really don’t think it has even set in yet, our family has been chasing this dream for so long and all the hard work and dedication and sacrifice have finally paid off. She did amazing, totally dominated that match (against Venegas), probably the best I have ever seen her wrestle. She had a state title in her grasp and she was not going to let it slip away.”
Lopez said the match against Mendoza in the semifinals was her toughest of the tournament, not the finals against Venegas.
“Melanie beat me at Napa Valley earlier in the season. She never backed down, she fought me the whole way,” Lopez said of Saturday’s rematch. “The difference this time was I was prepared for her. I put myself in a lot of bad positions the first time we wrestled. This time I just had to stay in good position and I did that.”
Against Venegas in the finals, Lopez scored a quick two-point takedown and said she knew from that point the match, and the state title, was hers … at last.
“She broke after the first takedown,” Lopez said of Venegas. “When I stuck that first shot, I knew I had it.”
As the final seconds ticked off the clock, Lopez said she had a rush of emotions, not to mention adrenaline.
“I’ve always been hungry for that (state title),” said Lopez, who came close to winning one a year ago when she lost just once and placed third at 121 pounds. “I think losing at Napa (to Mendoza) was probably the best thing that happened to me.”
Her journey to a state championship began more than five years ago, according to Lopez. She entered the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre in Vacaville, participated in a four-girl, round-robin bracket and lost all three of her matches.
Was she discouraged?
Maybe a little bit, she said, but only until her next tournament when she posted her first win. That’s when the wrestling bug bit full force, according to Lopez.
All the workouts, dieting and personal sacrifice since then have been worth it, Lopez said, noting the life of a wrestler is not an easy one.
“A lot of time I hate it, the exercise, all the hard work you put it in and the sacrifices you make,” Lopez said. “But once you win, it’s worth it. It’s a tough sport, but it’s a rewarding one as well.”
Lopez said she never would have reached the pinnacle of high school sports without the support of her two biggest fans, her dad and coach as well as mom Jamie.
“I couldn’t have done it without either one of them,” she said. “They both put in the same amount of work to get me here. Winning it in front of them was incredible. I wouldn’t be anything without them.”
Clarke
Lopez winning a state championship was only one part of a memorable Feb. 23, a day that saw two other county wrestlers bring home state medals. One of them, Kelseyville High School senior Jasmin Clarke, joined Lopez and former Lower Lake High School great Zeb Beatty (second in 1999) as the only county wrestlers to reach the finals in their respective weight divisions. Unseeded in the 189-pound class, Clarke beat three straight seeded wrestlers before falling to No. 1 Folashade Akinola of Menlo Atherton.
On the boys side of the state bracket, Junior Fernandez, brother of Adriana, claimed a fifth-place medal, the first Upper Lake boy to win a state medal and the first Lake County boy to claim one since Middletown’s Steve Franklin placed fourth in 2006. Only Franklin and Lower Lake’s Beatty have placed higher than Fernandez among Lake County boys.
Clarke’s run through the state tournament was nearly as incredible at that of Lopez. After being upset in the North Coast Section finals a week earlier, Clarke went unseeded in the 189-pound state field even though she placed fourth in 2018. She upset the No. 2 seed in a second-round match on the first day of the tournament and then beat the No. 7 seed in the quarterfinals on Friday. In the semifinals on Saturday morning, Clarke took care of No. 3 seed Joanne Hendricks of Beaumont High School, winning 6-1.
Pitted against an opponent she lost to earlier this season, Akinola, Clarke trailed only 1-0 going to the third period. She was trying to escape from the down position as the period opened when Akinola struck.
“She was able to build up the first time but got mat returned,” Kelseyville assistant coach Orlando Zarate said of Clarke. “The second time she was getting up but Fola locked up that cradle and that was it.”
Akinola’s pin came 38 seconds into the third round.
Up to that point, Clarke had executed her plan against the top-seeded Akinola to perfection.
“We (head coach Adam Garcia and I) knew if Jasmin attacked and pressed the action, she (Akinola) would get tired and it was working,” Zarate said. “Jasmin ended up getting a bloody nose, causing a stoppage, so Fola was getting her breath back and able to recover.”
Zarate said he’ll miss having both Clarke and Kelseyville boys state tournament qualifier Alex Garcia around next season (Garcia was eliminated on Friday).
“Her and Alex worked extremely hard all season and not just in season; they spent their summers and springs competing. It’s a year-around thing for them. I’m proud of both of them so much. They did all the right things to get where they are,” Zarate said. “It’s definitely going to be a big change not having them around next year, but I know they’ll be successful in the next phase of their life as they tackle adulthood.”
Fernandez
Fernandez, the No. 5 seed at 132 pounds, opened Saturday with a semifinal match against No. 1 seed Ryan Parco of De La Salle High School of Concord, an opponent who had already beaten him twice this season, both times by close margins. Parco again prevailed, this time by a 6-2 decision, to knock Fernandez into the consolation semifinals where he dropped a 1-0 heartbreaker to No. 8 seed Giana Petrucelli of Clovis High School. Fernandez bounced back with a 4-2 win over No. 3 seed Marcos Polanco of Bishop Amat High School in the fifth-place match.
“We are so damn proud of him,” Fernandez said of his son, who was entered in one of the more difficult weight classes at the state tournament. “He did outstanding and after a tough loss he got himself together and finished fifth. That is the sign of a true champion.
“We could not have have two better kids, on and off the mat,” Fernandez added of his son’s and daughter’s achievements. “They are true warriors and great people. As a parent, that’s all we can ask for.”
Siblings Adriana and Junior aren’t quite done celebrating just yet, according to Lopez.
“We’re going to eat,” she said. “We’ve already made a list of all the things we’re going to eat.”
At the top of Lopez’s list?
“Milkshakes,” she said.
