NORWALK – Calvary Chapel’s Elijah Palacio and Luciano Arroyo have had a good view of the best in the state recently.
A couple of weeks ago, they both finished second at the Zinkin Classic.
Friday, there they were again, in the finals at their weights at the Tournament of Champions at Cerritos College.
Palacio edged Chance Rich, fifth in the state from Valencia of Valencia, in the 120-pound final.
“I felt pretty confident,” Palacio said. “I felt like no one could beat me.”
Palacio trailed, 2-1, in the second period, but scored the final two points on escapes to take a 3-2 lead. In the third period, Palacio closed things out strong, with a takedown and three-point near fall for an 8-2 victory.
“I’ve been practicing a lot from bottom this week,” he said. “I went out to the match knowing that even though I got taken down, I was going to get back up because that’s just my mindset.”
At 126, Arroyo, ranked seventh in the state, dropped a 4-2 decision to Poway’s Chase Zollman.
“It is a learning experience,” Arroyo said. “It is still early in the season. I have lots of stuff to improve on. It was a close match, flip of coin. I can’t be too hard on myself.”
It shouldn’t come as a surprise that the duo is more than holding their own with the best in the state. They’re workout partners in the wrestling room and their competition against each other is a driving force to their success.
“Even though we’re brothers, that’s the only way we’re going to get better,” Palacio said of Arroyo. “There is no partner on my team right now that can drill like him, that can be on the same level. I feel like we’re basically twins.”
For Palacio, his only loss came in the final of the Zinkin Classic. He said the feeling of failing to medal at last year’s state tournament has been motivating him this season.
“The season has been pretty exciting. I’ve only lost once so far this season and that was to Matt Olguin (Buchanan),” he said. “I feel like I’m just training my butt off in the (wrestling) room so that next time I see him, I can beat him. I have a paper saying on my wall, right when I wake up, I read it, it says: 2017 California State Champ. That brings me back to the time when I was untaping my shoes at state and crying and walking back to the hotel. … I don’t want to feel that again.”
Esperanza’s Aaron Nagao claimed an individual title, finishing first at 106. Nagao had two victories by technical fall and two by fall to get to the final. He defeated Jason Miranda of Poway, 4-2 in the final.
Nagao helped lead the Aztecs to a fourth-place finish, the best among county schools.
Canyon’s Jared Fernandez advanced to the final at 170 pounds, dropping an 8-3 decision to Jean Paul Lebosnoyani of Mira Costa.
Contact the writer: dcalhoun@scng.com
