HIGH SCHOOL WRESTLING ROUNDUP : Channel Islands Pins Down Another Title

The Channel Islands High wrestling team capped the school’s three-day assault on Marmonte League championships in dominating fashion Saturday, clinching its second consecutive league title even before the championship finals were staged.

Channel Islands, which finished the regular season with a 23-1 record in dual meets and ranked third in the Southern Section 4-A Division, was such a heavy favorite that Coach Rob Vieira had the school’s name engraved on the championship trophy--two weeks ago. At the time the Raiders still had three league dual meets and Saturday’s championships remaining.

“I was already at the trophy place and didn’t want to have to make another trip,” Vieira said with a grin.

His intuition proved accurate after the host Raiders walked away with five individual championships and their fourth league title in the past five years. Channel Islands finished with 179 points, Agoura was second with 121 and Thousand Oaks was third with 115.

And the Raiders’ performance was a fitting way to end a week at Channel Islands in which the Raiders added three championship banners in three consecutive days. The girls’ basketball team finished in a three-way tie for first place Thursday and the boys’ basketball team earned a co-championship Friday.

The only thing Channel Islands shared Saturday, however, were numerous pointers on the art of wrestling. The Raiders’ talent and depth made the meet appear to be more of a team workout in which a handful of athletes from other schools were invited to participate.

Of the 13 championship finals, eight involved Channel Islands wrestlers.

Channel Islands’ champions included Valo Barajas (112 pounds), T. R. Merickel (119), Art Balayan (125), Heda Kuwata (145) and Adrian Balderrama (160). Barajas is 44-2, Merickel 41-2, and Kuwata 41-4-2.

The Raiders’ Chet Dossin (130), Martin Vargas (135), and Charles Ritter (171) finished second.

The top three finishers qualified for the 4-A Division championships next weekend at Rio Hondo College in Whittier.