CCS Championships

Maurice "Waffles" Alexander was the only Leland Wrestler to enter the Central Coast Section Championship Tournament and he was outstanding placing 6th overall. This means that he is in the top ranks of the entire bay area at 160 lbs.

BVAL Varsity Finals

Only five Varsity Chargers entered the Blossom Valley Athletic League Finals after a rough season peppered with serious injuries. Unfortunately, Tommy Hamamjy did not make his weight and Jeremy Lee felt ill during his first match and withdrew from the tournament. That left three. Benny Lemus was wrestling up 25 pounds at 191 and defeated his first two tough opponents before hurting his rib and being forced to Injury Default his last two matches. Benny still placed 6th overall, which makes him an alternate for CCS. Nick Lee and Maurice Alexander both only lost to the #1 seeds in the tournament. Nick took 5th relying on his very effective modified head-and-arm throw to put away his opponents. Waffles placed 3rd drawing 'oohs' and 'awws' from the crowd with his exciting wrestling style. Impressive finish to a difficult season. Fantastic job team!

BVAL JV Finals

Eleven Junior Varsity Chargers entered the Blossom Valley Athletic League JV Finals on Friday and 6 placed! On top of that they also place 4th overall as a team! Tom Boisvert went 2-2, Lewis Van Diggelen went 1-2, Eddie Baumel went 0-2, and Darren Hsu got robbed by the ref twice to also go 0-2. Placers included Trent Geronimo at 5th, Christian Soto, Jack Loumena, and Devin Ridgway at 3rd, and Clarke Jackson bringing home the gold taking 1st. It was a great day of wrestling and congratulations to all who competed.

Dual vs Live Oak

The Chargers valiantly fought the Live Oak Acorns in their last home match and put on a great show but ultimately came up short by the score of 27-51. The three forfeits in the lower weights really hurt the teams chances of a winning season, finishing with a record of 3-4. Jeremy Lee 'went the distance' to win by points while Christian Soto, Chris Nijemh, Nick Lee and Marcus Lara pinned their opponents in grand fashion. Benny Lemus fought bravely but lost as did Darren Hsu, Mario Srouji, Trent Geronimo, Tom Boisvert, and Jake Pauer. The JV Team completed their season with a perfect 7-0 record for the second year in a row! Kevin Wu, Brent Easton, Lewis Van Diggelen, Eddie Baumel, Ian Sun, Jack Loumena, Clarke Jackson, Devin Ridgway, and Chris Ezaz all won as no opposing team dared to challenge them.
Go Chargers!

Dual vs Leigh

The Varsity Chargers fought bravely but were overcome by the experience of the Leigh Longhorns. As most of the Varsity team were sidelined with injuries the remainder of the squad stepped up to fill the open weight classes. In the end it was the difference in experience, not desire, that decided the outcome of the match. The Varsity score was a humbling 66-18. Jeremy Lee and Chris Nijmeh pinned their opponents to earn the Chargers only victories while Marcus Lara collected a forfeit. Darren Hsu, Brent Easton, Tommy Hamamjy, Christian Soto, Aaron Fletcher, Clarke Jackson, Devin Ridgway all were defeated in their bouts.
However, the JV team continued their division dominance and are one win away from an undefeated season for the second year in a row! Laura Rocha and Jack Loumena wrestled great and defeated their opponents. Hans Singh, Eddie Baumel and Ian Sun performed admirably but lost. Tom Boisvert, Matt Faris, Chandra Basu, and Chris Ezaz collected forfeits. The final score was 36-21 proving the old adage that there is strength in numbers.
Go Chargers!

Girls CCS 2011

Miss Laura Rocha (the only female member of this year's squad) entered into the second ever Girls CCS Wrestling Tournament, which qualifies for the first ever California Interscholastic Federation's Girls Wrestling Championships. The top 4 girls in each weight category (different from boys) move on to the state tournament. Held at Oak Grove High school in San Jose, there where over 150 participants, and 21 competitors Laura's 108 pound class. Overall she went 2-2 wrestling very well but failing to place top four. More importantly, Laura had fun making several improvements to her wrestling game and testing them out on her opponents. She pinned her first opponent from Lowell easily, but hit the #4 seed in her second match from Salinas and lost. Bouncing back, she pinned her third opponent from Mission SF with a far-wrist running arm-bar, a move she learned only the day before. The last match was very tough, Laura lost by minor decision. She walked away exhausted and a swelling black eye, but with a smile on her face. Congratulations to her for a great performance.

Dual vs Branham

The Varsity Team's season record has taken a beating just like the wrestlers have themselves this year. Now 3-2, the second loss of the season was to an incomplete Branham Bruins team. Our opponents were few yet tough and maneuvered their wrestlers' weight classes well to bring a final score of 30-47. The Chargers again gave up 12 points due to forfeits in the 105 and 114 weight divisions. Kevin Wu, Tom Boisvert, Clarke Jackson, and Marcus Lara fell to their opponents by fall while Jeremy Lee, Christen Soto, and Kevin Choi fought bravely but were behind in points when the time expired. Congratulations to Darren Hsu and Tommy Hamamjy on their pins and to Maurice Alexander, Chris Nijmeh, and Devin Ridgway for the team points. The Junior Varsity dominated again winning 54-6 to advance to 5-0 and moved one step closer to a league title. Great job to Lewis Van Diggelen and Aaron Fletcher for outstanding matches. Two more duals to go, let's finish the season strong.
Go Chargers!