Viking rugby: Practice with 18 boys

Head coach Ethan Willis (bottom) demonstrates

the lay-out position, with the offsides line

under his feet, during practice

Wed., Dec. 7. (Photo by Ed Piper)

By Ed Piper

Head coach Ethan Willis and Ian Denham practiced and ran modified scrimmaging without tackling with 18 boys in their Wed., 12/7 late afternoon rugby workout on the La Jolla High softball field.

"We'll have 10 more players by the time we have a game," said Willis, as he ran the returners and hopefuls through their paces on the turf.

Willis said that four teams will come to Edwards Stadium in games from 3 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Sat., Dec. 17. He also coaches the Falcon rugby players at Torrey Pines High, so presumably that team would take part in the four-way competition in a week and a half.

One familiar face on the rugby team was Wyn Smoole, a defensive back for the La Jolla High football team.

There was a lot of twirling of the odd-shaped rugby ball with two hands as players lateralled the ball to teammates running alongside them to make forward progress. A ball-carrier then lays out, stretching his arms above his head in an exaggerated reach on the ground. The offsides line lies below his lower foot.

LJ wrestling 46, Cathedral Catholic 31

Abraham Sierra (top), a junior 126-pounder, out-lasted

and out-pointed Tyler Campbell, his Don opponent, 12-3,

in a grueling match that went the three periods.

(Photos by Ed Piper)

By Ed Piper

It's a good time to be a wrestler at La Jolla High, with up to 25 varsity and junior varsity grapplers traveling to Rancho Bernardo High two weeks ago for the RB Takedown Tourney, and with the Vikings' varsity 46-31 victory over Cathedral Catholic at home Wednesday night, Dec. 7.

"And we've got athletes," said head JV coach Kraig Feldman early in the preseason build-up, putting emphasis on the word "athletes" as in student competitors who bring natural skills and who are willing to put in the hard work necessary to excel in "the sport without shortcuts".

Which isn't to say that the Vikings are just going to sail through their dual meets and tournament entries this winter. But the upside is becoming apparent, in the aftermath of the COVID pandemic, as boys and girls are both interested in trying the sport out and there--at least at present--are fewer barriers to in-person participation and practice.

On the girls' side, Maddie Quach took part in a JV match Wednesday, as Ella Roman, Tora Tranheim, and Matisse Pickett sat in the bleacher row closest to the "Vikings"-logo mat laid out in the center of the Main Gym on campus.

Veteran returners Abraham and Nick Sierra, both juniors (they're twins), and senior Caden Kestler, among others, led Coach Kellen Delaney's squad into their dual meet season. It was a big win for the program. The stands were fairly full, and the noise level--even with absent Coach Ryan Lindenblatt on leave, he of the dramatic PA-announcing style--was palpable. Question: Do wrestlers in the middle of a match really listen to all those instructions being yelled out from the sidelines?

Senior Caden Kestler, in the 145-pound bout, pinned

Alejandro Alpinieri in 1:27 to close out the

Vikings' 46-31 victory.

Results:

160 - Charles Long (LJ) - win by forfeit

170 - Gustav Rinaldi (LJ) - win by fall (pin) vs. Christopher Lara (CC), 1:06

182 - Hayden Worst (LJ) - win by fall vs. Nick Mojica (CC), 1:38

195 - Emilio Valencia (LJ) - loss by fall vs. Sean Magtoto (CC)

220 - Matt Turecek (LJ) - win by forfeit

Hvywt. - Mike Williams (LJ) - win by forfeit

106 - Noah Pace (LJ) - win by fall vs. Lucas Michelsen (CC), :13

113 - Liam Kressin (LJ) - loss by decision vs. Ava Ebrahimi (CC), 4-1

120 - Nerva Mugisha (LJ) - loss by fall vs. Makai Labayen (CC), 1:32

126 - Abraham Sierra (LJ) - win by decision vs. Tyler Campbell (CC), 12-3

132 - Nicolas Sierra (LJ) - loss by decision vs. Tanner Smith (CC)

138 - Jax Espinosa (LJ) - loss by fall vs. James Johnson (CC), 5:07

145 - Caden Kestler (LJ) - win by fall vs. Alejandro Alpinieri (CC), 1:27

LJ wrestling: Still more photos from RB Takedown Tourney 11/19

Photos by Ed Piper

Several of the 25 or so Viking wrestlers at the RB

Takedown Tourney are visible in this crowd shot

at 9:28 a.m., half an hour after the tourney

kicked off Sat., Nov. 19.

Patrick Fitz Maurice (138) is the first one to record

5 takedowns to win this match.

Patrick Fitz Maurice (R)

Dylan Haugum (145) (left) wins his bout.

Dylan Haugum

Asher Sternburg (145)

Omar Valeriano (170) (right)

Freshman Omar Valeriano (center)

Sophomore Daniel Valencia (145) (right)

Valencia confers with coaches Harry Wilson (center)

and Vinny Iudici (left).

Freshman Ari Kastenellenbogen (170) takes

his man down.

Kastenellenbogen with coach Walter Fairley (R)

post-match. His last name means "the strength

of the bows (like bows and arrows) defending

the castle" in Rhineland, Germany.

LJ wrestling: Pace and Roman take 3rd, Long and Quach 4th, Tranheim 5th in opening tournaments

Senior Charles Long, at 152 pounds, rolls poor James

Barragan of Southwest in the first two seconds

(see clock on scorer's table) toward a pin

in seven seconds in their first match of the day.

Long pinned two more opponents on the way to

taking fourth in his weight class at the

Mar Vista Battle by the Beach Dec. 3.

(Photos by Ed Piper)

By Ed Piper

Freshman Noah Pace (106 pounds) placed third, and Charles Long (152) took fourth in the early-season Battle by the Beach Tournament at Mar Vista High in Imperial Beach Sat., Dec. 3.

Traveling the short way the other direction, to the University City Girls Tournament, Ella Roman (150 pounds) placed third, Maddie Quach (101) fourth, and Tora Tranheim (131) fifth in the JV portion of the tourney.

La Jolla wrestlers, 10 boys who made the trip to Imperial Beach and three girls who competed in the University City High girls tournament, began the grueling 2022-2023 wrestling tourney season by getting up close to 5 a.m. Saturday morning (in the boys' case), then meeting team members and coaches at a similar ungodly hour later in the morning to either travel to the competition or meet there.

Viking Gustavo Rinaldi (left), 160 pounds, after

his pin of first-round opponent Pedro Lopez

of Hilltop in 2 minutes, 46 seconds. Rinaldi

gained four team points but did not place.

Noah Pace, 106-pounder (right, with his dad, middle),

waits for his first bout after a first-round bye

at the Mar Vista Battle by the Beach Dec. 3.

Pace placed third in his weight class,

the best of 10 Vikings at the meet.

LJ b soccer: Pilar back off the mat

Viking head coach Pilar Flores (red cap)

and assistant coach Jonathan Cohen

(camouflage) preside over La Jolla's

4-1 thrashing of Imperial Fri.,

Dec. 2. (Photo by Ed Piper)

By Ed Piper

New assistant and goalkeeper coach Jonathan Cohen handled La Jolla's coaching duties Thurs., Dec. 1, as the Vikings played Country Day to a 1-1 draw in the pool stage of the Parker Soccer Tournament. The game was played on Country Day's home field.

Then, Fri., Dec. 2, new head coach Pilar Flores was back off the mat after having gone down with the flu as the Vikings demolished Imperial, 4-1, in another pool stage game. "This is the first time I've done anything after three days being sick," said Flores, a La Jolla alum, looking in fine fettle in his red Viking cap, red shirt, and long locks hanging down out the back of the cap.

His charges responded well to his comeback appearance. More likely, the poor Imperialites were overmatched after the grueling two-hour drive from the east. The first goal was scored only two and half minutes into the game, played under tournament rules with brief 30-minutes halves.

The second goal followed soon after.

Flores said the Vikings will learn their fate by Tues., Dec. 6, as more games are played out in the group stage and those teams advancing will be more clear. It's the first tournament of the young season.

LJ b soccer: More photos 12/2

Photos by Ed Piper

LJ b soccer 4, Imperial 1 - Parker Tourney - Group stage - Photos 12/2

Photos by Ed Piper