Biggest Loss

From the time wrestlers start the sport, they learn to fight. They learn the value of strength and resilience in trying situations.

Those skills come in handy on the mat. And nearly six weeks after the murder of their teammate, the wrestlers at Orange El Modena High are using them in a way nobody could have imagined.

Diego Gonzalez, 17, was shot twice in the head in the early morning hours of Nov. 10. His body was burned before it was discovered a few hours later near a home construction site in Orange Park Acres.

Several arrests have been made and charges filed in the killing, which police say was a result of a dispute over a young woman.

Gonzalez’s death sent shivers through a community, and nowhere did it resonate more than the wrestling team room at El Modena. Gonzalez was the team’s top returning wrestler and captain. In the gym, he helped his teammates with techniques and exemplified the meaning of hard work. Outside, he was well-liked for his gregarious nature and good-spirited demeanor.

As the Vanguards prepare for the Mann Holiday Classic -- a 60-team tournament put on this weekend by El Modena and Brea Olinda highs -- team members are still struggling to make sense of the tragedy.

“I feel like I should start doing something with my life,” said Eric Chavez, El Modena’s 119-pound wrestler. “Make it more useful and not waste it.”

The team dedicated this season to Gonzalez and started strong, sweeping a four-way dual meet against Los Alamitos, Santa Ana Foothill and Anaheim Loara. Last week, in their first big tournament, the Vanguards finished eighth out of 29 teams at the Bakersfield Coyote Classic.

Coach Alan Clinton is pleased with the results, but said winning has dropped a few notches on the priority list of his athletes.

“You’re dealing with a situation that most kids this age haven’t had to deal with,” he said. “My biggest concern is that everyone is mentally OK.”

Gonzalez’s former teammates cope in different ways. Chavez, tries to channel his emotions into wrestling. When he feels angry, he retreats to the practice room and works out his aggression.

“I just said pretty much this season is for Diego,” Chavez said. “When I’m out there before a match, I do think about it. During the match, I have to clear my mind, I don’t think about anything but wrestling, but he’s there.”

Scott Phibbs, a 215-pound junior, tries not to think about it too much because the feelings overwhelm him.

“I think it’s something we’re trying to put behind us,” he said. “It’s hard to explain all the different feelings. It’s very weird. I’ve never known anyone who was murdered before. I was angry. I thought it wasn’t fair.”

But as he does during matches, Phibbs keeps his emotions in check to prevent them from getting the best of him.

“You have to control your anger,” he said. “You can’t just go after guys.”

Tributes to Gonzalez are apparent. Many wrestlers wear T-shirts that read “4 Diego” on the back; Clinton has ordered beanies with the same inscription for team members to wear under their headgear.

At the season-ending team banquet, Clinton will present the first Diego Gonzalez memorial scholarship, a $300 award presented to the El Modena wrestler who best embodies the leadership and sportsmanship traits exemplified by Gonzalez.

Before a Century League match Jan. 14 against El Dorado, the team will present a letterman’s jacket to Gonzalez’s parents.

“He was saving up for a letterman’s jacket,” Clinton said. “We wanted to make sure he got it so we bought it for him. We’ll put all the patches on there and we’ll give it to his parents.”

The team has also reserved space on the walls of its practice room for a shrine dedicated to Gonzalez. The rest of the space on the walls is adorned with photos and lists of past champions at El Modena. Only the best of the best make it on those walls. Gonzalez, 215-pound runner-up in the Eastern Division last year, is among them.

“He was our No. 1 guy coming into this year,” Clinton said. “It was a huge shock when we found out. You hear about these kinds of things happening somewhere but you never think it’s going to happen to you.”

There are more than 80 wrestlers on El Modena’s team, but just five seniors -- only two who are in the No. 1 lineup. Clinton will not name a replacement captain.

A two-time defending Southern Section Eastern Division champion, El Modena has won four Southern Section titles.

The team entered the season with goals similar to any team with that kind of history, and though the death of Gonzalez may have slowed them, the goals are still the same.

“Nothing has changed wrestling-wise,” Phibbs said. “It hurts our chances, but the goals didn’t change.”

The drive to reach them may have, however. Five days after the murder, the team practiced for the first time. Clinton recalls a lot of emotion in the room that day.

“It was the most intense first day of wrestling I’ve ever seen,” Clinton said.

The explanation for that is simple, Chavez said.

“Wrestling became everyone’s first priority,” he said. “They wanted to win really bad for Diego.”