Heavyweights in the spotlight at Class 3A, Region 4 wrestling tournament
The heavyweights took center stage on Friday night.
Krop’s Isaac Joseph, Coral Park’s Charles Williams, Nova’s D’Andre Lake and North Miami’s Clarouly Meca all advanced on Friday at the Class 3A, Region 4 wrestling tournament at Braddock High.
The semifinals and finals are set for Saturday at Braddock. South Dade, which has won six consecutive state titles, leads in the team standings with 98 points, followed by Southwest (81.5) and Cypress Bay (66).
But while there is seemingly little suspense in the team standings, the individual battles are heated.
“It’s been a strange tournament so far for a lot of different teams,” South Dade coach Victor Balmeceda said. “There have been a lot of upsets — at least five or six that didn’t go the way we thought.”
South Dade sent 13 of its 14 wrestlers to the semifinals, and the only exception was heavyweight Jose Paez, who was upset and pinned by Lake in 57 seconds.
“I got a cradle,” said Lake, a 6-0, 283-pound sophomore. “I just locked up his head and arms, and I took him.”
Lake, who plays offensive and defensive tackle in football, is 17-14 in wrestling this season, and he will face Meca next.
On the other side of the bracket, Joseph will face Williams.
Joseph, a 6-2, 280-pound senior who is 30-1 this season, advanced by defeating Miami Beach’s Knikos Richadson 4-3.
Ranked the No. 2 heavyweight in the state, Joseph wasn’t at his best against Richardson.
“I hit my left knee on the match, and it got swollen,” Joseph said. “But I’m going to ice it and adjust. I’m going to win this regional.”
If the final happens to be Meca and Joseph, that will be a rematch from earlier this season. In that match, Joseph prevailed in double overtime.
Like Lake, Joseph also plays football as an offensive and defensive tackle. Joseph said he has scholarship interest from schools such as Tennessee Martin, Louisiana Tech and Florida Atlantic, but he needs to get a qualifying SAT score, which he will try to achieve next month.
Joseph wants to study sports psychology, and he seems to have the right attitude as he approaches his regional semifinal.
“Never underestimate your opponent,” said Joseph, who calls football his passion and wrestling more of a hobby.
“Be mentally ready — by doing your research on your opponent — as well as physically ready.”
It will be interesting to see who will be ready on Saturday as wrestlers make their bids to go to state.
Southwest, a wrestling power that is sometimes lost in South Dade’s giant shadow, qualified eight athletes for the semifinals and has three more than can still reach state through the wrestle-back bracket.
“We hope to qualify 11 — that’s the plan,” Southwest coach Mick Arteaga said. “But there are no easy matches left.”
Standings
1: South Dade 98; 2: Southwest 81.5; 3: Cypress Bay 66; 4: Doral 52.5; 5: Columbus 46; 6: Coral Springs 43; 7: Miami Beach 42; 8: Palmetto 39; 9: Coral Park 38; 10: North Miami 37.
BOYS’ WATER POLO
▪ Ransom Everglades 13, Columbus 10: Alex Freedline 4 goals, 2 steals. Perry Samimy 3 goals, 5 assists, 2 steals. RE: 5-2.
▪ Gulliver Prep 14, Palmetto 4: Bruno Rebessi 5 goals, 1, assist, 5 steals; Jeronimo Dacharry 3 goals, 5 assists, 5 steals; Awwal Kay-Ramos 3 goals, 2 steals; Bailey Quintero 1 goal, 1 assist, 1 steal. GP: 5-0.
GIRLS’ WATER POLO
▪ Gulliver Prep.18, Palmetto 0: Alissa Pascual 2 goals, 1 assist, 8 steals; Gaby Montalvo 4 goals, 3 steals; Milla Busso 3 goals, 1 assist, 2 steals; Kalei Ganser 2 blocks, 3 assists, shutout. GP: 3-2.
BOYS’ VOLLEYBALL
▪ Belen Jesuit d. Greater Miani 3-0: Mario Cobo 7 kills; Gabriel Suarez 6 aces, 5 digs; Diego Feijoo 6 kills, 3 digs, 4 aces. BEL: 2-0.
▪ Mourning d. Scheck Hillel 3-0 (25-15, 25-14, 25-10): Grant Davis 7 kills, 4 aces; Elan Golan 5 aces, 4 blocks; Bruno Giudici 9 service points, 11 assists.
GIRLS’ TRACK AND FIELD
▪ Hialeah Gardens 47.5, Miami Springs 39.5, Ronald Reagan 23, Cutler Bay 1: Top Performers for Hialeah Gardens: Fr. Isabella Perez, 1st in the Long Jump and 4 x 100 Relay; Jr. Daniela Curbelo, 1st in the Shot Put and 4 x 800 Relay. Hialeah Gardens 3-0.
BOYS’ TRACK AND FIELD
▪ Hialeah Gardens 94, Ronald Reagan 34, Miami Springs 28, Cutler Bay 18: Top Performers for Hialeah Gardens: Sr. Anthonly Lee, 1st in the 400meter, 4 x 100 Relay, and the 4 x 400 Relay; Soph. Marcos Fernandez, 1st in the High Jump and the 4 x 100 Relay. Hialeah Gardens 3-0.
BASEBALL
▪ McArthur 6, Flanagan 1: WP: Miguel Martinez 5 IP, 1R, 5H, 1K McA – Jose Hernandez 1-2, 2 RBIs, 2 BBs; FLAN – Alec Ducasse 2-4, R.
SOFTBALL
▪ Colonial Christian 17, Everglades Prep. 1: Morgan Wells, 2IP, 5Ks; Cayla Housh 2B, 3RBI; Juliette DelValle 2B, 3RBI; Destiny Sanchez 1B, RBI; Emily Friman 1B. CC: 3-0.
▪ Carrollton 12, LaSalle 7: WP – Gabi Echegaray. Isa Cobo 3-4, 3R; Josie Williams 3-5, 2RBI; Haley McCarthy-Levy 2-5, 3RBI.
▪ Coral Park 11, Miami Beach 5
