Imperial’s Ortiz takes first at Masters, headlines field of eight state qualifiers from Imperial Valley
EL CENTRO — For the second straight year eight local (male) wrestlers will be competing at the CIF State finals at Mechanics Bank Arena in Bakersfield.
Imperial’s Paul Ortiz headlines this select bunch, taking first at 162 pounds at the CIFSDS Masters wrestling finals at Southwest High School on Saturday — the only local wrestler to nab individual gold (and the first since Brawley’s Dane Martinez in 2018.)
Ortiz’s win was a rare ding in the otherwise unchecked Masters hegemony of Poway High.
The section’s premier wrestling program had finalists in 13 out of 14 weight classes (they only missed at 184 pounds), held an insurmountable lead in team points (ultimately finishing way, way up on second-place Rancho Bernardo at 396.5229), and when the individual finals finally got underway the Titans proceeded to win every one of them from 108 pounds on through 147 — usually in emphatic fashion — before hitting a speedbump at 154 in the form of Rancho Bernardo’s Tyler Badgett
Badgett is a semi-familiar face for local wrestling fans, having won at the Holtville Rotary Invitational four years running, but it was another multi-time Holtville tourney champ in Ortiz that gave provided Valley-ites with their biggest thrill of the afternoon.
The Tiger junior was masterful in a 6-1 decision over Poway’s Jacob Vale. There was hardly a moment in which he seemed ill at ease. He was very deliberate in his approach, not moving until he was certain that it was the right thing to do, always dictating the terms of engagement.
In the first period he got an early takedown and then pressed Vale relentlessly into the mat, shutting him down completely. Starting on the bottom in the second he proceeded to escape effortlessly, underscoring the gap between himself and his opponent.
Though he emoted plenty on mat after time expired in the third period to seal his win, Ortiz was at his usual even keel not long afterwards, underscoring the high level of confidence he had as to the outcome.
“I knew if I could get the first takedown, the match was gonna be mine. That was my goal, just to get a takedown and keep on scrappin,’ you know?” Ortiz said.
“Winning feels great,” he went on, “It’s just another stepping for next week’s state tournament. I just wanna go out there, wrestle the same way I did here, and hopefully come back with a state medal.”
Conscious of the extent of Poway’s dominance, he was thrilled to be able to give his county a W in a tournament held here.
“It’s one of those David and Goliath-type things. I’m from a small town and they’re a big powerhouse, so it feels good to represent my city and the Valley overall,” Ortiz said.
Of course, as far as wrestling programs go, Imperial’s is no slouch. The back-to-back CIFSDS Division IV champs finished fourth in team points at 108.5 — and inch ahead of rival Brawley at 107.5.
Tigers Naythan Galbiso and Wolfgang Horner will be joining Ortiz in Bakersfield next week. Galbiso finished second at 108 pounds, while Horner took silver at 287.
Brawley will be sending four to state, with Joey Navarro (run
ner-up at 128), Alan Carrillo (runner-up at 172), Jose Gutierrez (third at 147) and Anthony Maldonado (fourth at 122) all making the cut.
Rounding out the local contingent is Central’s Omar Rosas, who took third at 154 pounds.
Also placing (though not in top-four state qualifying position) were Holtville’s Donovan Johnston (fifth at 108 pounds), Southwest’s Benji Alvarez (fifth at 184), Imperial’s Chris Guizar (sixth at 115), Brawley’s Preston Brewer (sixth at 154) and Vincent Memorial’s Maxemiliano Guilin (sixth at 184).