Wrestlers anxiously pace back and forth before they take the mat. Teammates and parents scream from the stands. Wrestling moms wince at the sight of their child’s nosebleed. And the condensation drips off the windows as the collective body heat dampens the air.
It’s unlike any sport.
Any time I have a chance to cover the Northern Section Masters Championships, I take it. The last time was in February 2020 at the Redding Civic Auditorium, just a few weeks before the world shut down from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Since then, the tournament has moved to rotating host schools. This year, it was at Red Bluff High. Despite the new venue, the tournament features all the same emotions, passion and heart that always arise when a trip to the state championships is on the line.
Here are some of the best moments I witnessed Saturday night at the Northern Section Masters Championships.
Overcoming odds
Live Oak’s Aaliyah Jurado trailed 10-0 against Corning senior Haylee Noyes. Despite being down, Jurado stayed alive. She saw an opening in the second period, put Noyes on her back and pinned the defending Masters champion in 2 minutes, 54 seconds.
Jurado had less experience than Noyes, but that didn’t matter. She didn’t give up.
Live Oak head coach Mike Fredericks went crazy. And the crowd ignited inside the jam-packed gym as Jurado held her hands out, looked up to the ceiling and soaked it all in. It’ll be a moment she’ll remember for the rest of her life.
Earlier in the day, Fredericks was named the Northern Section girls Coach of the Year for his endless work in advocating for girls wrestling in the north state.
I’m sure sharing that moment with Jurado was special.
Heart of a Viking
In the 122-pound consolation semifinal, Pleasant Valley’s Louis Wagner looked to be down and out. Facing off against Orland’s Yahir Morales, Wagner was picked up and slammed hard twice on the mat before calling for injury time.
His coaches were checking his eyes to make sure he was OK to continue. The match resumed and Wagner was picked up yet again and slammed hard on the mat.
But that didn’t phase him.
Between periods and through the daze, Wagner found clarity. Using his strength, Wagner turned Morales on his back, pinning him in 3 minutes, 21 second.
The win pushed Wagner to the third place match where he won by pin yet again, this time over Las Plumas’ Brayden Martin in 3:52.
Back-to-back pins ended a solid day for Wagner – an example of a heart of a Viking.
Father-daughter bond
Durham head coach Tony Cardoza helped guide his team to a historic feat as the Trojans won the team title for the first time since 1960.
Cardoza called his team an extension of his family. And one of them literally is his family.
Cardoza’s daughter, Lilah, is a freshman on the Durham wrestling team.
Lilah Cardoza finished third in her first Northern Section Masters Tournament. Lilah Cardoza avenged her first-round loss to Pleasant Valley senior Cypriani Chiem.
On day one of the tournament, Chiem pinned Lilah Cardoza in 2:50. The pair would square off again for third place. However, this time, Lilah Cardoza pinned Chiem in 59 seconds.
After every match, Tony Cardoza hugs his daughter. I’m sure they will have many more special memories throughout the rest of her high school career.
“I’ve been doing this for 19 years and this is the first time I’ve had a kid on the high school team,” Cardoza said. “I’m pretty excited about that.”