Los Altos wrestling is riding high thanks to a strong start to the season (5-1) as it prepares for a high-stakes league matchup with Monta Vista Thursday, Jan. 29.
Thanks to a larger roster and another year of continuity under second-year coach Tyler Calderon, the season has included some dominant performances against Homestead and King’s Academy, along with a couple of close victories against Santa Clara and Cupertino coming down to less than six points.
Standouts like Marcos Gatica-Hernandez, who wrestles at 215 pounds, recently took second place at the Jim Root Memorial tournament as he looks to return to the Central Coast Section Masters playoffs. Linnea Amren has also had a successful year after she took first place at the Lady Comet Classic and fifth at the Kusumoto Classic, with the team finishing fifth overall at the Lady Comet Classic. Freshman standout Leonidas Marinopoulos took second at the Nick Buzolich Classic and fourth at the Jim Root Memorial tournament. Marinopoulos was a dominant middle school wrestler and has come in ready to work and improve, Calderon said. Senior Jason Seller is wrestling at 138 pounds and took second at the Nick Buzolich Classic as he looks to make CCS playoffs after missing out last year.
“He’s improved tremendously from last year to this year,” Calderon said of Seller.
The team went 4-3 last season and finished third in the SCVAL El Camino Division, but has made strides this year thanks to a rededicated focus within the program on attendance and consistency, and the increased number of wrestlers across more weight classes allows the team to avoid forfeiting points.
“We’re definitely having a better season in terms of record,” Calderon said. “The focus this year in the room has been really good compared to last. We had a great incoming freshman class who are hungry and ready to work. There are a lot of improvements.”
Thursday’s meet against Monta Vista is at Los Altos at 5:30 p.m., and a win against Monta Vista would keep Los Altos in the hunt for a SCVAL El Camino league title. If Los Altos won, it would be in a three-way tie for first going into the league finals, with Los Altos needing to have a strong performance in the league final to earn enough team points for a title.
