Senior Staff Writer
The ‘Runner wrestling team took on the Stanford Cardinal in the Icardo Center for their last home meet of the season on Sunday, Feb. 10. The ”Runners wrestled hard, and took the victory by a score of 24-13. With the win, the ‘Runners’ record improves to 8-5 with a record of 2-3 within PAC-12 competitions.
“I’m proud of the way these guys wrestled,” head coach Mike Mendoza said. “They wrestled hard and we won matches that were toss up matches. The guys fought hard and wrestled well.”
The ‘Runners got off to an uneasy start, suffering a loss by redshirt junior heavyweight Sammy Cervantes, who only lost his match by one point and moved his personal record to 7-15.
“This is a fairly tough team and I think we went out and performed for the most part,” said redshirt 141-pound freshman Timmy Box. Box won his match with a score of 13-3 by recording five takedowns against Stanford’s Josh Lauderdale.
Redshirt freshman Bryce Hammond took his match with ease, shutting out his opponent Thomas Kimbrell and recording two takedowns in his 16-0 victory. Hammond scored nine points from near falls alone and was awarded a point for just over three minutes of riding time.
“It was the score I expected,” Hammond said. “It’s good to score those bonus points and seal the deal. It’s good to dominate like that. We’ve made huge improvements and we’re ready to make a run at the PAC-12 and I think we’re gonna have a good end of the year.”
Among the contributors to the win was senior Tyler Iwamura, who won his matchup against Evan Silver in the 125-pound weight class. Iwamura scored on two takedowns and two escapes during his match, and won it by a score of 6-3.
“I loved that it was in the Icardo Center,” Iwamura said about his final home meet. “This feels like home. I’ve wrestled here for four years, so to have my last dual meet back where I started is really nice.”
During the meet, supporters of the wrestling program called out any former CSUB wrestlers for a photo and recognition of the 40-year anniversary of the ‘Runner wrestling program.
“I feel proud of the program,” Mendoza said after the meet. “I’ve learned so much about the history of the program. I wrestled here and I’m definitely proud of this program and the guys who are on the team right now.”
“It’s an honor to be a part of it,” Iwamura said. “To be able to come in here and put in five hard years, it’s wonderful.”
In the 40-year history of CSUB’s wrestling program there have been 44 Division I All-Americans, nine national champions, and 10 Olympians.
With the win on Sunday, the ‘Runners further their lead in the all-time series against the Cardinal, pushing them to 26-8. Next for the ‘Runners is their meet against Central Michigan at Cal Poly before the PAC-12 Championships on March 2, and the NCAA Championships in Des Moines from March 21 to 23.
