ANAHEIM – Angel Cordova had been out of the lineup for a couple of weeks, so Thursday night the Servite wrestler was looking to make a big return.
Despite being a tired late in his match, he was able to pull off a memorable comeback victory.
Cordova scored a late reversal to tie his 164-pound match with Jacob Bueno and force overtime. He then secured the victory with a takedown for a 7-5 victory, giving Servite its first lead in a Trinity League showdown dual against St. John Bosco.
“We have to get him back in the groove, but he stepped up big tonight,” Servite coach Alan Clinton said of Cordova. “He could have collapsed at anytime, but he didn’t.”
Cordova’s victory came during a run of of six in a row that helped the top-ranked Friars rally for a 38-23 victory over the Braves at home.
The win gave Servite control of its bid to regain the Trinity League title, which St. John Bosco claimed last year.
“When I was on bottom, I saw the time and I realized I what I had to do,” Cordova said. “I didn’t want to put that hard work to waste.
“I was tired when the third period started, but when I got to overtime I had so much adrenaline. I had to get the takedown.”
Riley Paterson (172) followed Cordova with a technical fall victory, and Bradley Warren (184) added a victory by fall, to give Servite a 32-20 lead.
To clinch the victory, Servite needed to avoid getting pinned in its last two matches. Parker Saltzman dropped a 6-1 decision to St. John Bosco’s Danny Salas, that was enough to seal the victory.
“We were down, but we have confidence that the team would pull through,” Cordova said.
Cortez Murguia (222) ended the match for the Friars with a fall.
The dual started at heavyweight, and the Braves jumped out strong, winning five of the first six matches to take a 20-4 lead. It should have been 21-4, but a team point was deducted for misconduct.
Servite’s only victory through the first six matches came from Liam Cronin (115) by major decision.
”We made a move and bumped our lineup,” Clinton said. “We slid (Daniel) Magana in (at 122) and bumped Teddy (Okada up a weight). I was playing a guessing game. I thought was going to be to our advantage, but they got the jump on me and we told the kids, we have to come back now.
“The kids rose to the occasion and that’s something they’ve done all year long.”
