The Tri-Titans O3T program is dedicated to acknowledging those student-athletes that are having success not only on the mats but in the classroom as well. Our motto is “Body, Mind, and Spirit.” Body in the sense that these athletes compete and win in the highest level known in the wrestling community. Mind – our athlete's academics are bar none. They have a 3.5 GPA or higher with excellent citizenship in all that they do. Spirit – their character is what makes our athletes different from all other wrestlers. Their moral character means that an individual will maintain and has maintained the expectations of a law-abiding member of society.
Canon Acklin (Collinsville Cardinals)
Competing in the 15 & Under division at 75-pounds, Acklin was triumphant in advancing to the medal round by earning a 17-0 and a fall in 3:11 to go to the semifinal round. The semifinal round wasn’t too kind to Acklin as he lost a tough 3-2 decision to Jack Nelson (Pinnacle). Nevertheless, Acklin followed the loss by earning two additional wins to place third at Tulsa.
D'mitri Alarcon (Bear Cave Wrestling Club)
Alarcon became the second O3T student-athlete to claim a second Tulsa Nationals title. Competing in the 12 & Under division at 110-pounds, Alarcon got to the final round by outscoring the competition 18-1 in his first four matches. In the finals, Alarcon met up with Beau Hickman (Standfast Wrestling), an active wrestler, especially in the neutral position. Both wrestlers went scoreless into the third period when Alarcon got the reversal over Hickman seconds into the third period and then rode him out for the win. Alarcon did all of this despite still suffering from his injury that occurred at Bible camp.
Leonard Ashley (Red Wave Wrestling)
Ashley traveled to nearby Coalinga High to compete at the 7th Annual Roughneck Invitational. Competing in the 6th-8th division at 83-pounds, Ashley was successful in winning the gold medal by dominating the competition with ease. He recorded four falls in the event with the fastest coming in 36 seconds over Nathan Bedwell (Granite Ridge). In the championship final, he pinned Damian Alvarez (Team Selma) in 57 seconds.
Gigi Bragg (Pinnacle)
After mesmerizing the audience with her beautiful rendition of the national anthem at Tulsa Nationals. Bragg put on her competitor's face and went on to work on putting the hammer down and winning the 65-pound bracket in the 12 & Under division. Bragg ended the competition with a 3-0 record and defeated Zurri Zamora (Maverick Elite Wrestling) 6-2 in the finals. Bragg outscored the competition 24-3 without allowing a takedown to be scored on her during the competition.
Gabe Cortez (Northview High)
Senior Gabe Cortez ranked No. 4 in the golden state, helped the Northview Vikings to a fourth-place finished as a team at the Bob Belloit Invitational in Montclair, California. Competing in the 145-weight class, Cortez advanced to the championship finals by earning the 9-2 decision over Adrian Rios of Bishop Amat. In the finals, Cortez earned the fall over Jayden Rookhyuzen of Liberty (Nevada) in 3:54 to secure the first tournament title of the season. Cortez will now begin to prepare for the postseason competition which starts next week.
Wyatt Fry (Grindhouse Wrestling)
Fry was one of many O3T student-athletes that competed and placed at Tulsa Nationals. Competing in the 10 & Under division at 70-pounds, Fry was successful in advancing to the semifinal round of his bracket before losing 4-0 to Caley Graber (Summit Wrestling Academy). Fry lost 3-2 against Michael Lopez (Mile High wrestling club) but defeated Mac Crosson (Sebolt Wrestling Academy) 9-2 to place fifth in the tournament. The only loses to Fry were to the runner-up and third place finisher in his respective weight class.
Caesar Garza (Oakdale)
Garza is still finding success in the high school level, and he proved that this weekend as he finished in second place at the CIT Morro Bay tournament. Competing at 126-pounds, Garza recorded two falls, a 6-1 decision, and a 15-0 technical fall to advance to the final round. In the finals, Garza was outworked by state qualifier Wayne Joint of Lemoore 7-2 and settled for second place. Nevertheless, Garza’s hustle and attitude on the mat helped Oakdale High to finish fourth in the team standings. Garza will be one of the favorites at the Sac-Joaquin section in February to secure a spot to the state tournament.
Aireaana Gavere (Summit Wrestling Academy)
Gavere entered the tournament with high expectations, and she didn’t disappoint as she was able to secure second-place by going 2-1 on the day. After winning her first bout via a 14-2 major decision, Gavere lost a tough 2-0 match to Janessa George (Chatfield Jr Wrestling) in overtime. Gavere won two additional matches in the consolation bracket. Including pinning Valerie Glenn (Daniel Cormier AKA Wrestling) in the true second-place match.
Seth Mendoza (Region Wrestling Academy)
Mendoza looked flawless on his way to a Tulsa Nationals title. Competing in the 12 & Under division at 80-pounds, Mendoza won the championship title by defeating Riley Graber (Summit Wrestling Academy) 12-3. Mendoza recorded a takedown in each of the periods to earn the major decision. None of Mendoza’s matches was won by regular decision as he earned bonus points in all five matches.
Noah Mirelez (Patterson High)
O3T standout Noah Mirelez of Patterson High had the tournament of his life as he was able to acquire the 75th Annual CIT Morro Bay tournament by earning the fall over the top-rated wrestler in California in Henry Porter of Oakdale High. As the No. 2 seed at 132, Mirelez first defeated two-time San Diego section place winner Chaz Hallmark of Scripps Ranch 16-10 in the semifinal round to punch his ticket to the finals. In the finals, Mirelez used an array of wrestling moves to earn the fall in the second period to shock those in attendance. The win will inevitably bump him up in the rankings and make him a contender to win a state title in February.
Domenic Munaretto (Crystal Lake Wizards)
Munaretto claimed his second Tulsa National title by defeating Aydan Stone Thomas (Mission Arlington) 4-3 in the finals. The match was not easy as Munaretto was down 2-1 throughout the entire match until he put Thomas on his back with a double chicken wing move to earned near fall points towards the end of the match to go up 4-2. Thomas escaped with four seconds left on the match to make the final score 4-3, but it was too late as time expired. Munaretto completed the tournament with a 5-0 record on the day.
Libertie Nigh (Ohio Girls National Team)
Nigh was on fire over the weekend as she dominated all foes, she faced at Tulsa Nationals. Prior to meeting up with Fern Jewett (Hammer Time) Nigh defeated all other opponents via the pin method with her fastest fall coming in 51 seconds. In the finals, Nigh dominated Jewett and only allowed her to take her down once, the only wrestler to do so in the tournament, to win 10-3.
Carson Prim (Grace Davis High)
After contemplating the decision of whether continuing to compete at 126, Carson decided to drop to 120 to better increase his chances of advancing to the CIF state tournament in February. With the guidance of his father (Lim) Carson was able to pin his first two opponents in less than a minute to advance to the semifinal round of the 55th Annual Overfelt Classic in San Jose, California. In the semifinal round, Carson felt behind in his bout and lost a 3-2 match to Sean Pamintuan of James Logan to get sent to the consolation bracket. In his third-place bout, Carson earned a 9-0 major decision to win the bronze and improve to 28-10 on the season.
Matthew Rodriguez (Righetti High)
Rodriguez made all those in attendance at Morro Bay High know that he was going to be a wrestler to watch for at the central section masters meet tournament. Only a freshman, Rodriguez won the 75th Annual CIT tournament by defeating Daniel Magana of Servite, 3-1. An escape and a takedown in the third period gave the edge to Rodriguez as he became the lone winner of his school to claim a title in the rugged event.
Michael Romero (Titan Mercury)
Not only does Michael dominates the local competition here in California, but throughout the country as well. Competing in the 67-weight class of the 10 & under division, Michael went 5-0 with four falls. In the championship round, Michael defeated Joshua Piparo (Bitetto Trained) 2-1 with a late reversal in the second period. Due to his outstanding performance, Michael received the Outstanding Wrestler award as he got the most pins in the fastest time in his age group.