Lodi’s rally falls short
Three Lodi High wrestlers did their jobs in Wednesday’s Tri-City Athletic League dual meet against Tracy.
There were other Flames who also came through against the Bulldogs. But a late rally fell short for Lodi, as Tracy escaped The Inferno with a narrow 42-36 win.
Tracy held a comfortable 42-18 lead entering the 162-pound match. That’s when Lodi’s Noah McGregor took on Tracy’s Donovan Treolo. McGregor wasted no time in taking care of business on the mat, as he pinned Treolo 52 seconds into the first round that made the score 42-24.
“McGregor has a great motor,” said Lodi coach Keith Mettler of McGregor, who is a senior. “He’s a first-year wrestler. I wish he had been out here (prior seasons). He showed me that he can do stuff like this. I’m looking at him in the post-season, and I don’t know how far he can make it with his limited knowledge, but he has a good motor. You can never count him out on anything. If he works hard, he can put people in trouble in a hurry.”
At 172, Lodi’s Christian Zamora racked up a 4-0 lead on Tracy’s Nicholas Bronson in the first round. Zamora led 7-1 halfway through the second round, when he used a chest-to-chest move that pulled down Bronson. That led to Zamora pinning
Bronson’s shoulders to the mat with 38 seconds left in the round and cutting into the Bulldogs’ lead to 42-30.
The last match of the night was between Lodi’s Bryce Powell and the Bulldogs’ Conner Johnson. Powell also had a quick match, pinning Johnson in less than 30 seconds into the opening round for what led to the final score.
Entering the last three matches on the
night, Mettler admitted that he didn’t know what to expect from Tracy in the upper weight classes.
“I knew they have some tough people,” Mettler said. “We’ve been a little weak in the mid to light weights.”
The match was tied 6-6 after Tracy’s Kyle Silverira pinned Daniel Romo at 195. At 220 Lodi’s Felipe Dearos pinned Angel Martinez in the first round.
Lodi (2-2 in the TCAL, 2-3) broke that tie and held an 18-6 when Sean Carpenter (heavyweight), Juan Rufino-Diaz (108) and Anthony Nunes (115) won their matches by forfeits.
But Tracy (3-1) won four of the next five matches for a 24-18 lead. Lodi’s only win came at 128, when Lance Elliot pinned Thomas Metge in the second round.
The final TCAL dual meet of the season for Lodi will take place at The Inferno
on Tuesday. That is when Tokay (2-2 in the TCAL) and the Flames meet up for their regular season finale. The winner takes third place in league behind Tracy and Lincoln, which is undefeated in its four league dual meets.
“We’re going to be fighting Tokay for third place,” Mettler said. “Somebody is going to end up 3-2 and the other at 2-3.”
The TCAL only sends the top two teams into the Sac-Joaquin Section team duals that will take place at Lincoln High on Saturday, Feb. 1.
Girls: Lodi 48, Tracy 12
Winning their matches for Lodi were Emely Zavada (191) by forfeit, Pamela Decko (108) by pin in the first round, Ezzery Shelly (118) by pin in the second round, Allyson Valdez (128) by pin in the first round and Elizabeth Decko (133), Madison Taylor (128), Kirsten Locke (152) and Elora Porises (172) also by forfeits.