BENICIA HIGH’S wrestling team came back to beat Ponderosa, 34-31, to capture their second straight Sac-Joaquin Section Division II dual championship.

Benicia High’s wrestling team rallied back from a 22-point deficit last Saturday and beat Ponderosa, 34-31, to capture their second straight Sac-Joaquin Section Division II dual championship at Lincoln High School in Stockton.

The Panthers, undefeated in team dual meets this year, got off to a rough start as Ponderosa won the day’s first four matches for a commanding 17-0 lead. Steven Rohrer, wrestling at 197 pounds, got Benicia on the scoreboard with a pin, but Ponderosa answered with a tech fall victory at 222 pounds and a pin at 287 for a seemingly safe 28-6 lead.

“Their wrestlers from 154 pounds and up are really, really good,” Benicia wrestling coach Japheth Aquino said of the Bruins. “I was thinking they were gonna get a jump on us first but that we’d hit them back with our lightweights. We put up enough points to catch up to them.”

Ryley Boutain changed the momentum in Benicia’s favor with an 11-1 major decision at 108 pounds. Christian Ramos (115) followed with a pin to make it 28-16, but Ponderosa answered with a decision at 122 pounds to go up 31-16 with only four matches remaining.

“The crowd was going wild and both benches were going wild,” Aquino said. “We had to get pins and it was the most exciting dual match of the year.”

Alejandro Lanza kept Benicia in it with a decision at 128 pounds and brother Fernando Lanza pinned his 134-pound opponent to make it 31-25. Mason Boutain won by pin at 140 pounds to tie the match, leaving the championship up to Steven Butts at 147 pounds.

“It was dramatic all the way to the end,” Aquino said.

Butts didn’t disappoint, winning a 10-4 decision to earn the championship banner for the Panthers.

“I was pretty happy and satisfied getting back-to-back titles,” Aquino said.

Benicia captured a couple of individual titles Saturday at the Sac-Joaquin/Northern Section Girls Championships held at McNair High School in Stockton. Senior Ricki Liang went undefeated en route to the 121-pound championship while sophomore Shelly Avelino won the 131-pound championship. It was the second straight Section title for Avelino, who also went undefeated on Saturday.

Teammate Tara Othman took fourth place at 116 pounds and joined Liang and Avelino in advancing to the CIF State Championship meet on Feb. 27-28 in Visalia.

Benicia’s varsity wrestlers will host the Solano County Athletic Conference championships this Friday beginning at 9 a.m. and will also host the Sac-Joaquin Section Division II Individual Tournament on Feb. 20-21.

“It’s pretty exciting,” Aquino said of hosting two postseason meets. “We don’t have to travel and we get to sleep in our own beds. That’ll be nice.”

Sharing is caring!