No. 1 Calvary Chapel Rolls Past El Modena : Wrestling: Eagles get four pins in first five matches to score 45-12 victory over second-ranked Vanguards.

From the well-known to the unknowns, Calvary Chapel’s wrestlers find a way to become winners.

In the battle for county superiority, Friday night’s dual match between top-ranked and nationally recognized Calvary Chapel and second-ranked and state respected El Modena, the Eagles were heavily favored.

But few figured this heavy.

In front of a standing-room-only crowd, defending State champion Calvary Chapel walked off with a 45-12 victory, and left a dazed El Modena wondering if the gap between the county’s first and second-ranked teams is really that great.

“I thought we’d do better than 12 points,” said Juan Alvarez, the Vanguards’ 135-pound wrestler who was undefeated before his 4-3 loss to Mauricio Mora.

But Calvary Chapel (10-0) got pins from Burt Pierson, Joe Calavitta, Dane Valdez and Eli Coon in four of the first five classes--it won on a technical fall by Shane Valdez in the other--and El Modena (18-1) couldn’t stop the Big Church Boyz Machine.

“A couple of classes we figured we’d win and they got pins,” El Modena Coach Alan Clinton said. “You get that snowball effect and it’s hard to come back from that.”

Clinton has heard all about the Valdez brothers, freshman sensation Calavitta, Mora and others. But it was the unknown Eagles whom he applauded.

“I was impressed by John’s kids who never get the press,” he said.

Kids such as Coon, who was losing by as many eight points at 130, before he scored on a reverse and turned it into a pin against Daniel Amaya at 5 minutes 30 seconds, to give Calvary Chapel a 29-0 lead.

“I’m usually not as solid as the rest of the team, but I’m working on it,” Coon said. “Coach told us never to give up. Once he started getting tired and I felt (the pin), I wasn’t going to let it go.”

After Mora’s narrow victory in one of the featured matches, El Modena won its first points when David Wells pinned Joe Pierson at 34 seconds in their 140-pound match. At 145, Chris Jaime was an 8-5 winner against Danny Robinson to pull the Vanguards to 32-9.

But after the 12-8 decision by the Eagles’ Josh Holiday over Aaron Santana in a key matchup at 152, El Modena trailed 35-9, and were technically eliminated.

“I figured we’d beat them, and I thought it would be closer,” Calvary Chapel Coach John Azevedo said. “But we’re nationally ranked and El Modena isn’t at that level.”