Live Oak senior wins showdown with Sobrato’s Brewer, upsets No.
5 seed to earn first invite
SAN JOSE — You knew it would come to this.
Because all great competitors are destined to face each other, you knew that Steven Fernandez and Ryan Brewer, two of the section’s best 152-pounders who happen to be from the same city, would not make it to state together.
They had the same dream since the end of last season. They put everything they had into achieving it as seniors.
Their teammates admired them. Their families were proud of them.
It was “Steven’s year.”
It was “Ryan’s year.”
For three months, the Morgan Hill powers danced around and toward each other, manifesting their potential in duals and tournaments as they marched to this past weekend’s Central Coast Section Championships.
Brewer, a team co-captain for Sobrato, was ranked No. 14 in the CCS heading into the double-elimination event. Fernandez, the chief-like face of Live Oak wrestling going on three years, became the sixth seed in their weight class fresh off winning his first Blossom Valley Athletic League crown.
They were two wins from qualifying for the March 5-6 state meet, and nothing was going to stop them.
Nothing, except each other.
That was engraved in both wrestlers’ minds Friday as they left the bustling gym at Independence High with four wins and one loss behind them. Fernandez (31-4) and Brewer (44-9) were set to square off for the first and last time in a de facto city championship staged in the consolation quarterfinal’s Saturday morning.
“Who else?” Fernandez’s father and coach, Robert, quipped Friday night.
Both wrestlers were confident going in, but Fernandez held the upper hand being more experienced — and slightly hungrier after bowing out in the consolation semifinals a year ago.
“I wasn’t nervous at all,” he said. “I was ready to wrestle.”
They went after each other right away. Fernandez, the smaller and quicker of the two, shot in for a pair of clean takedowns to build a 4-1 lead in the first period. He went ahead 8-1 in the second, adding a third takedown and a two-point nearfall.
Brewer countered with a reversal, then scored a three-point nearfall using the same tilt he squeezed to upset No. 4-seeded Sean McVannel of Salinas in the second round of consols. Leading 8-6, Fernandez wriggled out of bounds to force a reset with 32 seconds remaining.
“I was going to try and tilt him again,” Brewer said. “I figured, go with what I do best.”
Fernandez was ready. Off the whistle, he exploded from the down position, kicking his legs out to create space for a reversal that made it 10-6 with 23 seconds left. Brewer scored a late desperation reversal to pull within two, 10-8.
His prep wrestling career ended three seconds later.
“If I had another period, I think I could have beaten him; maybe in overtime,” Brewer said. “After the match, I realized how much of a good journey this has been. It’s a journey that’s come to a close.”
Brewer’s father, Shawn, was content nonetheless.
“Steven’s a great wrestler. He’s been doing this his whole life. Ryan picked up wrestling four years ago, and it’s been a great four years,” Shawn Brewer said. “I’m not disappointed at all. I’m proud of him.”
Fernandez’s day had just begun. He advanced to face No. 5 Sam Hopkins, a St. Francis sophomore who edged him for a better seed during a coaches vote before the tournament.
Keeping a cool head once again, Fernandez overcame a 5-4 deficit in the third period, scoring a reversal from underneath and taking Hopkins straight to his back. The referee slapped the mat with roughly half a minute left, and Fernadez’s career goal was complete.
“It was an incredible feeling,” he said. “I finally did it; I finally made state.
“Sometimes, it’s irritating when you’ve done so well, and someone else gets a better seed than you. Sometimes, it works out.”
Fernandez raised both arms afterward and was met with cheers by the Gilroy Mustangs, who shared in the victory. Gilroy outscored St. Francis 258-193 to claim an impressive eighth straight CCS team title.
“I was more excited than anyone in there,” Robert Fernandez said. “Seeing Steven pin that guy was a moment I won’t ever forget.”
With an invite to the State Championships in hand, Fernandez received a going-away prize in the consolation final: a rematch against Gurmukh Singh. The No. 3 seed on Friday beat Fernandez 16-6 in the championship quarterfinals — two matches after reaping a scoring blunder to defeat Brewer 11-10 in the first round.
Fernandez held up better this time against the lanky junior from Cupertino but was pinned late in the third period. Earlier in the match, Fernandez had Singh stuck on his back out of bounds.
“I was pretty close to winning, so I was happy with that,” Fernandez said. “If I wrestle him a third time at state, I think I can beat him.”
That can be considered one of the few goals Fernandez will have when he visits Rabobank Arena in Bakersfield next month.
“I’m looking forward to finally being a part of state,” he said. “I just want to go out and wrestle as hard as I can.”
Five other locals did just that Saturday. Drew Johnson (130 pounds) and Gustavo Ramirez (285) joined Brewer as state-close calls for Sobrato, falling to No. 6 seeds in the consolation quarterfinals. Ramirez, a junior, lost by pin to Palma’s Brandon Pulealii, and Johnson fell 3-2 to Jack Sakai of Palo Alto in a rematch from January’s Mid-Cal Classic.
Sakai won their previous meeting by fall.
“My goal this time was to just keep the score low and wait for an opportunity to score,” said Johnson, a senior. “I was running out of time, so I had to make something happen at the end.”
Johnson tried his “miracle move,” a tuck and roll designed to put the top wrestler to his back. But Sakai maintained control on top to seal the win. He advanced to state later with an 8-2 triumph over San Benito’s Zack Rodriguez.
“(Sakai) is one of the best wrestlers I’ve faced, so I’m not too disappointed,” Johnson said. “It’s a good way for me to go out.”
The Bulldogs scored 37 points to finish 28th out of 80 teams.
Across the gym Saturday, Sobrato junior Keri Hanamoto and Live Oak sophomore Amy Fearnside performed well in the CCS Girls Wrestling Invitational Tournament.
Hanamoto finished two matches shy of placing at 118 pounds, while Fearnside took second at 103, losing in the championship bout to former Sobrato student Sabreena Shelton — now of Santa Teresa.
