A year ago, Javier Torres needed to be humbled.
“I’m not taking anything for granted this year,” said Torres, a Live Oak High junior. “I screwed up last year with being too cocky, but this year is mine.”
Torres had a monumental breakthrough when he won the 108–pound division in the Blossom Valley League Wrestling Championships last Saturday at Sobrato High. In the championship match, Torres recorded a pin with 51 seconds remaining to seal his first tournament victory of his career.
“It means the world to me,” said Torres, who finished third in the league tournament and sixth in the CCS Championships last season. “It’s emotional. This was the goal, and now the next one is for the CCS championship.”
The two-day section tournament starts on Friday at Independence High. Torres will be joined by teammate Andres Rocha, who took sixth place in the 120-pound division. As expected, Sobrato High’s Harrison Zhang reached the finals in the 138-pound division; however, he decided to forfeit the match upon talking things over with Bulldogs coach Robert Rael, who said even if Zhang had beaten Leigh’s Grant Kaiser in the title match, he would not have been seeded over him for CCS.
Rael said Zhang had been battling the flu all week, and wanted his standout wrestler to get added rest. Zhang earned the No. 6 seed in the CCS Championships, and he’ll be joined by teammates Riley Hedden (197) and Ivan Dominguez, who took third at 222 pounds. Torres earned the No. 3 seed in the CCS Championships behind No. 1 Jayden Gomez of Gilroy and No. 2 Zachary Thompson of Palma.
Torres hasn’t faced Gomez but has wrestled Thompson, dropping a decisive 11-2 decision in the Overfelt Classic. Despite the loss, Torres is confident things will be different should the two meet again.
“I’m not going to let it happen again,” he said. “I’m going to take him out and take out the No. 1 seed as well.”
In the BVAL Championships, Torres faced a tough opponent and methodically scored points throughout, eventually building up a 12-4 lead before recording a pin after unleashing a single leg takedown to a double and finally a cradle. Torres has taken his level up a notch from last season, putting in long training hours and focusing his mind.
“This year the difference is my desire,” Torres said. “I’ve never been hungrier in my career. I want it and I have to get it.”
Torres’ improved technical skills show during matches, as he maneuvers around the mat and sizes up his opponent.
“Last year I would stick to one move and not be 100 percent sure where or what I was going to do next,” he said. “This year I can use all my combos and be comfortable knowing what to do.”
Torres thanked coaches Josh Acosta, Chris Vo and training partner Felipe Duenas for taking his performance to another level. Dominguez was involved in a nail-biting third-place match, producing an escape to win in sudden death. The match was tied at 2-2 after regulation and two overtime periods.
In the sudden death period, Dominguez chose the bottom. An escape would mean a win and a failed attempt at an escape would mean a loss. Since neither wrestler could hold the top position very well, it was only fitting that the match ended with an escape.
“I kept choosing the bottom so I could come back up and get some points,” Dominguez said. “I feel I’m stronger on the bottom than the top. … I was tired but happy to win the match. I got fifth last year, so my goal was to improve on that.”
Dominguez was in a literal grudge match, as he and his opponent couldn’t move each other with much success.
“His height was a big factor for me,” Dominguez said. “I wasn’t able to grab him or grab a leg (for potential takedowns).”
Dominguez has made tremendous progress in a short time. It wouldn’t be a stretch to say that Dominguez will be one of the least experienced wrestlers in the CCS Championships. After all, he only started wrestling in his junior season, figuring the conditioning aspect of the sport would prepare him for his favorite sport of football.
Not only did wrestling do that, but he’s gained a sense of pride and satisfaction in knowing he’s come a long way in a short period.
