Camarillo’s Tag-Team Brother Show Now a Solo Act

Twins Rick and Ron Peterson provide the Camarillo High wrestling team with a potent one-two punch. But for the second consecutive season, that combination has been reduced to a single blow.

Rick Peterson, wearing street clothes and nursing a torn ligament in his right knee, watched with frustration this week as his brother wrestled his way to victory in a Marmonte League dual meet at Agoura. Two weeks ago, Rick was injured during a bout in the Fountain Valley tournament and has not competed since.

“I’m really mad I’m not out there,” Rick said, turning from the mat with a grimace.

Ron Peterson, mopping away sweat with a towel, shook his head knowingly when asked what his brother was going through.

“He gets mad sometimes, but he has a lot of faith,” Ron said. “He knows it will take time to heal. Last year at this time, I learned a lot.”

The Petersons, league champions as sophomores two years ago and among the Southern Section’s best lightweights, are experiencing a reversal of sorts.

A year ago--almost to the day--Ron suffered a bruised sternum and fractured collarbone that left him sidelined for three weeks and threatened to end his season.

Ron returned in time for the league finals but his sharpness and endurance had suffered. He finished a disappointing second at 119 pounds while Rick placed first at 125. Camarillo tied Thousand Oaks for the league title.

Wrestling at the same weights this season, Ron (27-5) appears to be peaking while Rick (27-4) is on the mend. Rick, who has continued to practice with the team, insists he will return in time for Saturday’s league finals at Channel Islands.

But it is questionable whether he will return to top form.

“I don’t want to sound cocky. . . . but there’s more than enough time,” Rick said. “I just have to be careful. I have to change my style now. But I have much more [determination] than I did last year.”

As juniors, Rick and Ron placed fourth and fifth in the Division I finals. Neither advanced to the State meet at Stockton, but both expected to improve this season and considered a trip to the state finals their only goal.

“They’re similar in some ways, but their styles are different,” Camarillo Coach Ron Wilson said. “Ron wrestles more wide open. He’s more willing to take risks to get points. Rick is more conservative, more of a technician.”

The Petersons have fared well during an arduous schedule this season. Ron placed first at the Camarillo tournament and third at Fountain Valley. Rick placed first at the El Toro tournament and third at the Reno tournament, which included 75 teams from six states.

The pair hope to continue wrestling at the college level, preferably in Colorado, where their family plans to relocate next summer. But right now, there is more wrestling--and healing--to be done.

“This is the time of year we really have the urge to wrestle,” Ron said. “We’re both looking forward to it and working really hard.”

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Troy Garner on Monday said he was headed to South Bend, Ind., later in the week for a recruiting visit to Notre Dame.

On Tuesday, Garner, a Times All-Valley defensive back from Notre Dame High, announced he had committed to USC.

Garner’s decision came as a surprise--even to Kevin Rooney, his coach at Notre Dame.

What happened?

“I found what I was looking for at USC,” Garner said.

Of course, he also had a look around.

Garner, who caught 44 passes for 830 yards last season and will play wide receiver in college, made recruiting visits to Northwestern and Arizona and considered visiting several other schools. He stopped short of visiting Notre Dame, in part because he already had visited the school last summer for a sports camp.

Ultimately Garner, who grew up in Los Angeles, said he wanted to remain close to home.

“They’ve been there the whole time,” he said of USC. “I really liked the coaches and I really liked the players. I didn’t feel I could leave home.”