El Camino Real Strikes a Blow for Tradition, Beats Canoga Park : High school wrestling: In virtual repeat of last year’s City final, Conquistadores take down Hunters to clinch share of league title.

Save for a few unfamiliar, contorted faces and a few unexpected results, it looked a lot like last season’s City Section wrestling finals.

Especially the outcome.

El Camino Real, which outpointed rival Canoga Park to claim last year’s City championship, defeated the visiting Hunters, 37-27, in a Valley League dual meet Tuesday to clinch at least a tie for the league title.

El Camino Real (11-12-2, 3-0 in league competition) will finish the regular season Thursday against Birmingham. Canoga Park (10-6 overall), second in the City last season, closed its league schedule with a 3-1 record.

“We’re majoring in being runner-up,” Canoga Park Coach Rudy Lugo said.

Canoga Park lost to the Conquistadores, 36-35, in the Chaminade tournament in December. And the Hunters’ chances in the rematch looked slim from the start.

Top wrestlers Phil Duffield (189 pounds) and Keith Jardine (heavyweight)--both 24-0--were sidelined because of injuries.

Duffield, a defending City champion, has not wrestled since suffering a concussion two weeks ago. Jardine, second in the City last season, has a sprained right knee.

However, in a meet sprinkled with upsets, the Conquistadores had clinched victory before the 189-pound match began.

The match was decided on a pair of 5-3 victories by El Camino Real’s Joe Maiden (152) and Hugo Jordan (160), and a pin by Bryan Waldron (171) of Kristjan Petrus in 5:27. Waldron entered the match with a record of only 4-8.

Senior David Druan (125), a two-time City champion, recorded a pin of Adrian Abarca in 1 minute 48 seconds that staked El Camino Real to a 15-6 lead. Duran improved to 18-6 with his 11th pin.

Darren Good (130) followed with a pin of Canoga Park’s Terry Harsha in 3:45, and Eduardo Nochez (135), third in the City last season, added a 10-1 decision over Edward Zavala.

By that time, El Camino Real, City champion in five of the past seven years, appeared to have a strong hold on matters.

“Like last year, our team is getting better as the season goes on,” El Camino Real Coach Terry Fischer said. “This is a tough league. Has been for years.”

Canoga Park rallied. Rafael Palacios (145), last season’s City champion at 135 pounds, pinned Ricky Ullman in 1:33, the quickest pin of the meet. The pin, coupled with a forfeit victory, moved Canoga Park to within 25-18, but the efforts of Maiden, Jordan and Waldron enabled El Camino Real to pull away.