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Tigers varsity boys, girls and junior varsity boys open season on high notes at weekend's Lemoore Duals
Lemoore’s junior varsity team also won its opening tournament in the Lemoore Duals, finishing 3-0, defeating Sierra Pacific in the opener 53-12 before clubbing Kerman 54-24 and then Dinuba 47-30 in the finals.
In girls’ action, the Tigers, with only five wrestlers competing, managed to finish fourth out of 31 teams in the Last Girl Standing Tournament on Friday. Four Lady Tigers missed the girls’ opener due to injuries. Despite the missing ladies, Lemoore still managed to finish well, amassing 97 points. Golden Valley, last year’s CIF valley champions, took Friday’s top spot with 156 points.
Freshman newcomer Halona Martinez finished second in the tourney at 111 pounds while returning state qualifier, sophomore Marissa Perico, took second on Friday. Perico’s sister, freshman Mariah, took third place after losing her first-round matchup.
Finally, Mia Meno, at 126 pounds, went 4-1 on the day to take third, and Destiny Barnes took fourth place.
In the varsity boys’ duals, the Tigers got off to a solid team start, defeating Kerman 50-24 in the opener. Freshman Adrian Hurd picked up a big win for the Tigers while Dylan McDonald, Jesse Gaytan, last year’s state qualifier Wayne Joint, and Robert Brooks scored pins.
The Tigers easily defeated Reedley 51-21 in the second round, led by Jason Soto’s pin and big wins from Sebastian Nova and Cannon Cano.
In round three, David Moore and Will Kloster, fresh off the gridiron, picked up a pair of pins to lead the Tigers past Dinuba 48-36.
The Tigers topped it all off with their shellacking of Madera High School 56-18 to take the tournament title 56-18. Kloster, Joint, and Gayton continued their winning ways, picking up much-needed victories.
“It was a great weekend for our wrestling program. We picked up wins on all levels with our JV going 3-0 and our varsity going 4-0,” said a pleased Tiger coach, Marcio Botelho. “I’m very impressed with the leadership we have and the way they lead by example. I am also extremely happy with our young wrestlers and their progress.
“I know we will continue to improve as a team. Also, our Lady Tigers had a good weekend as well. I look forward to seeing our Lady Tigers continue to improve and compete this season.”
In upcoming matches, the Lemoore junior varsity team travels to Dinuba for the Dinuba Duals Wednesday while the ladies will be at Monache High School for a 9 a.m. Saturday start.
The varsity squad will hit the Road for Madera South Friday and Saturday for the annual Chukchansi Invitational.
