On senior night, the Diamond Bar wrestling team defeated its district rival, the Walnut Mustangs on Jan. 15. The Brahmas dominated the mat winning 9 of the 14 matches and bringing their overall record to 10-4. “It has been a really great season for us,” Coach Scott Usher said.
The Mustangs got on the scoreboard first by winning the 113-pound weight class. However, the Brahmas responded back by winning the 120-pound division. Junior Jeremy Foo got the first pin of the night in the first period, giving DB an early 6-3 lead. “It felt pretty amazing pinning him in the first period,” Foo commented.
Following Foo’s match, senior Jungsoo Chang won his match 6-3 in the 126-pound bracket, giving the Brahmas a 9-3 lead. However, the Mustangs would make a comeback by winning the 132, 138, and 145 pound division, increasing the score 9-13. Mustangs senior Michael Sill, the fifth best wrestler in the state, led the comeback by beating DB’s captain Brian Chao.
Juniors Alex Jimenez and Aaron Oh both won their matches in the 152-pound and 160-pound weight class respectively giving the Brahmas a 15-13 lead. Oh, with the crowd cheering his name, was able to hold on winning 3-2. However, the Mustangs answered back by pinning senior Uli Wong in the 170-pound weight class, giving the Mustangs the lead heading into the 182-pound bracket. “The key moment was how tough our lower weight wrestlers wrestled and by the time the heavy weights came it, we went away with it.” Usher said.
Senior co-captain Nathan Rodriguez contributed six free points for the Brahmas by default, as there was no wrestler in his division from Walnut. After the forfeit, the Brahmas were up 21-19.
With the Brahmas only winning by two points, senior co-captain Matt Carrillo knew he had to increase the lead and pinned his opponent in the 195-pound weight class match. “I did okay, [but] I could have done better,” Carrillo stated. The night would soon get out of control for the Mustangs.
Juniors Keandre Johnson and Carlos Delgado both pinned their opponents in 26 and 24 seconds respectively. DB would end it with junior Joseph Rodriguez pinning his opponent in the 106-weight class. The Brahmas won the match 45-19. “I am really proud of them. They wrestled their hearts out,” Usher commented.
Prior to the season, the team had a lot of expectations. Last year, 12 wrestlers competed in CIF with graduate Nathan Pike advancing to the State tournament. “We are doing really well in the year and our wrestlers are doing great,” Usher expressed.
Even though the Brahmas dominated the night, they still have room for improvement. “I got a lot of work to do like making my grip tighter,” Johnson commented. With the season coming to an end, the Brahmas would be focusing on the Hacienda League finals. “We still have to wrestle with intensity and now prepare for the league finals,” Usher said.