BAKERSFIELD – With a quiet confidence, Servite’s Johnny Beltran hit the mats Friday for the first day of the CIF State Wrestling Championships at Rabobank Arena.
Beltran finished seventh at state last year as a junior. He is set up for a better ending this time.
He went 3-0 in his matches Friday, including a 4-2 victory in the final round of the night, to advance to today’s semifinals. Beltran, ranked fourth in the state, has assured himself a spot in the top eight at 182 pounds.
“Because I was here last year, that helped,” Beltran said. “Instead of walking in and being totally nervous, like I was last year, since I had that experience, it is just another year.
“At certain points, it is not necessarily that I have to win this match, it is that I can’t lose. The fear aspect kicks me to make sure that I don’t (lose). The fact that I want to win on top of that, I feel that is sending me to another level.”
Beltran opened the day with a 4-2 victory over Carlos Montejo of Fremont. He followed that with a 19-second victory by fall in the second round against Waseem Elhamad of Mira Mesa.
SATURDAY
CIF State Wrestling Championships
At Rabobank Arena, Bakersfield
Schedule: Consolation matches begin at 9 a.m.; championship semifinals begin at 9:30 a.m.; championship finals begin at 7:15 p.m.
In the quarterfinals, Beltran scored his two takedowns in the second period for a 4-1 lead. He was able to stay away from danger in the final period to prevail.
“I knew there was an X on my back and that he wanted to take me out,” Beltran said of his opponent in the quarterfinals. “I was calm, relaxed, but ready to blast at any moment, which is what I did when I went for the takedown.”
Beltran will meet Nick Fiegener of Folsom in the semifinals at 9:30 a.m. Fiegener, the top-ranked wrestler in the state, defeated Beltran earlier this year, 18-3. Fiegener broke Beltran’s nose in the match.
“I was completely distracted,” Beltran said of that incident. “I believe it will be a different story (today).”
Beltran was the lone county wrestler to reach the semifinals.
The tournament resumes today at 9 a.m. with the fifth round of consolation. Those wrestlers must win their first match to secure a spot in the top eight.
Capistrano Valley’s Phillip O’Shea (195), Sonora’s Russell Rohlfing (120), El Dorado’s Gino Roman (145), Calvary Chapel’s Aaron Negrette (160) and Fountain Valley’s Andrew Morgan (152) lost their quarterfinals and will start today in the consolation bracket.
Morgan pulled off an early upset by defeating third-ranked Tyler Zimmer of Clovis West, 4-2. O’Shea also had an upset, pinning fourth-ranked Matt Weiss of Clovis.
Calvary Chapel’s Michael Rangel (106) dropped into the consolation bracket after a second-round loss. He went 2-0 in the consolation bracket to avoid elimination.
Contact the writer: dcalhoun@ocregister.com
