[ Golden Gater Online - February 4, 1997 ]
Edison Young
Staff writer
The SF State wrestling team geared up for a run at the national title as it hosted the 21st Annual California Collegiate Invitational at the Main Gym on Saturday.
"We're hosting the mythical state championship," said Gator coach Lars Jensen.
The Gators finished in fourth place behind team title winner Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Fresno State University and Stanford, but finished ahead of California State University Fullerton, University of California at Davis and California State University Bakersfield. SF State is the only Division II school among the seven wrestling schools in the state.
The Fresno State Bulldogs claimed a tournament-high four individual titles, while Cal Poly had three champions come out of the 10 individual weight class championship matches.
The Gators lost four matches by one point in the semifinals.
"We could have been higher, but we lost a lot in the semis, so that was unfortunate," said 142-pound senior Steve Hilas, who is ranked second in the nation.
SF State did have five third-place finishers with Hilas, second-ranked Francis Aquino at 126 pounds, sixth-ranked Greg Jackson at 158 pounds, fourth-ranked Lee Lofton at 190 pounds and heavyweight Jeff Ware. Damon Broadbent at 118 pounds also delivered a fourth-place finish.
"Our performance wasn't there," Lofton said. "We have yet to uncap what we can do as a team."
SF State is currently ranked fifth in the nation, but according to coach Jensen, because of the team's performance during the past two weeks there is a good chance the Gators could move up one or two spots in the rankings.
"Our goal for the next four weeks is to prepare for regionals and get some guys qualified for nationals," Jensen said. "It was a pretty good performance, but I think the guys weren't satisfied. We didn't really get the breaks, but hopefully in the next four weeks it'll all fall in place."
Wrestlers in the NCAA West Regionals will be fighting for the top three spots in each of the 10 weight classes. Those wrestlers automatically qualify for the NCAA National Championship Meet. The regionals will be held on March 1 in Chadron, Neb., and the nationals will be held on March 14-15 in Fargo, N.D.
SF State and Cal Poly also had a dual meet on Friday in which the Mustangs defeated the Gators 25-13.
The Gators dug themselves into an early hole, falling behind 12-0 by getting pinned in the first two matches. SF State got its victories from Aquino, Hilas, Jackson and one from Ware in a sudden death double overtime match.
On Jan. 24 and 25, the Gators were in Edmond, Okla. for the NCAA Division II Dual Meets that featured 16 of the top 20 teams.
"We turned a lot of heads," Jensen said. "We got a lot of attention for that weekend."
SF State opened with a 26-13 victory over 20th-ranked Nebraska-Kearney. Broadbent and Lofton each pinned down their opponents in the match, while Hilas scored a technical fall.
The Gators next faced 18th-ranked Fort Hays State and won 20-13, with Aquino winning on a major decision.
However, SF State fell victim to third-ranked Nebraska-Omaha 15-18.
"They (Nebraska-Omaha) are a perennial power in Division II," Jensen said.
The loss forced the Gators into the consolation brackets where they defeated 10th-ranked Northern Colorado 33-9 in the semifinals. 126-pounder Travis Phippen and 150-pounder Mario Moreno each got pins, while Aquino won on a technical fall and Jackson scored a major decision.
SF State finished in third place after being awarded the victory in the consolation final against seventh-ranked Western State on a tie-breaker with the score knotted up 16-16. The Gators won for having the most near falls. Lofton scored a major decision in the match.
"It was a good test for our team overall," Hilas said. "It gave a good estimation of where (each team member) had to be."
[ Golden Gater - February 4, 1997 ]