2020 Garlic City Rumble

The 2020 Garlic City Rumble: California vs The Nation's Best

The 2020 Garlic City Rumble: California vs The Nation's Best

The 2020 Garlic City Rumble is loaded with top wrestlers and teams from the west. Here's everything you need to know.

Dec 27, 2019 by Pablo Di Maria
The 2020 Garlic City Rumble: California vs The Nation's Best
Wrestling duals come to Gilroy, California, as Daniel Cormier and staff welcomes some of the best teams throughout the country to the second annual Garlic City Rumble — aka California vs the nation's best on Tuesday, December 31. Teams in attendance include California teams such as Buchanan, Clovis, Clovis North, host Gilroy, and nationally ranked teams like Montini Catholic (Illinois), Lake Highland Prep (Florida), Delbarton (New Jersey), and Crescent Valley (Oregon).

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Wrestling duals come to Gilroy, California, as Daniel Cormier and staff welcomes some of the best teams throughout the country to the second annual Garlic City Rumble — aka California vs the nation's best on Tuesday, December 31. Teams in attendance include California teams such as Buchanan, Clovis, Clovis North, host Gilroy, and nationally ranked teams like Montini Catholic (Illinois), Lake Highland Prep (Florida), Delbarton (New Jersey), and Crescent Valley (Oregon).

Watch the 2020 Garlic City Rumble LIVE on FloWrestling

Dec. 31 at 5 PM ET

Each team in attendance is scheduled to compete in two duals; no California teams will face each other. Weigh-ins are set for 12 PM with the first dual starting at 2 PM and the second at 4 PM (PT). Even though the event takes on a dual meet format, there are many excellent individuals across the eight teams competing at the Garlic City Rumble.

Individuals Ranked by Flo

  • 106: No. 13 Tyler Vasquez (Delbarton, N.J.), No. 18 Eli Rivera (Lake Highland Prep, FL)
  • 113: No. 2 Joey Cruz (Clovis North, CA)
  • 126: No. 8 Dylan Ragusin (Montini Catholic, ILL), No. 13 Nico Nardone (Delbarton, N.J.), No. 19 Chance Lamer (Crescent Valley, Ore), No. 20 Carlos Negrete Jr. (Buchanan, CA)
  • 132: No. 9 Anthony Clark (Delbarton, N.J.), No. 20 Chris Rivera (Lake Highland Prep, FL)
  • 138: No. 7 Justin Rivera (Lake Highland Prep, FL)
  • 145: No. 7 Fidel Mayora (Montini Catholic, IL)
  • 152: No. 2 Chase Saldate (Gilroy, CA), No. 6 Noah Castillo (Lake Highland Prep, FL)
  • 182: No. 20 (160) Joseph Martin (Buchanan, CA)
  • 195: No. 9 Santos Cantu (Crescent Valley, OR)
  • 285: No. 14 Nicholas Villarreal (Gilroy, CA)

Dual-Meet Setup

  • Montini Catholic (ILL) vs. Buchanan (CA)
  • Gilroy (CA) vs. Lake Highland Prep (FL)
  • Montini Catholic (ILL) vs. Gilroy (CA)
  • Buchanan (CA) vs. Lake Highland Prep (FL)
  • Clovis (CA) vs. Delbarton (N.J.)
  • Delbarton (N.J.) vs. Clovis North (CA)
  • Clovis (CA) vs. Crescent Valley (OR)

Teams

  • Buchanan (California)
  • Coach: Troy Tirapelle
  • State Ranking: 1st (One Class)

The Bears of Buchanan High have been on fire as of late by winning the Mann and Zinkin Classic by outdistancing themselves from the rest of the field. They are on a quest to become the first team in the Golden State to win the CIF state tournament for a fifth consecutive time. All 14 varsity wrestlers are ranked top 20 in the latest Flo California rankings as they have a well-balanced team across the lineup. 

The Bears are led by two-time state champion Maximo Renteria (126), state runner-up’s Jack Gioffre (113), and Carlos Negrete Jr. (120) and state place winners Hunter Leake (132), Rocco Contino (170), Joseph Martin (182), and Jadon Martin (195). With such a solid lineup from the 106 to 285, the Bears should give any nationally ranked team a run for their money.

Montini Catholic (Illinois)

Coach: Israel Martinez

State Ranking: 1st (AAA)

The kings of the Land of Lincoln are poised to once again win another Class 3A state championship and win it for the 16th time. They are coming off from placing fifth at the always tough Walsh Jesuit Ironman tournament where Nick Gonzalez (113), Dylan Ragusin (126), and Fidel Mayora (145) were all place winners in their respective weight classes. The Broncos are currently 10-0 with their most lopsided victory being a 61-2 win over Marist High (Illinois) and their closest match being a 33-26 win over the No. 2-ranked team in Illinois Mt. Carmel High.

Lake Highland Prep (Florida)

Coach: Mike Palazzo

State Ranking: 1st (A)

In spite of being a small school in Florida, Lake Highland Prep is a major player in wrestling despite the range of size. According to the Orlando Sentinel, the Highlanders are ranked No. 1 in the state in Class 1A with five of their wrestlers ranked No. 1 while five others are ranked No. 2. The Highlanders were triumphant in placing sixth at the Walsh Jesuit Ironman and Beast of the East tournament. They are led by Eligh Rivera (106) sixth at Walsh Jesuit Ironman, Danny Nini (113), eighth at Beast of the East, Chris Rivera (132) fifth at Walsh Jesuit Ironman, Justin Rivera (138) fourth at Walsh Jesuit Ironman, Noah Castillo (152) fourth at Walsh Jesuit Ironman, Bailey Flanagan (170) seventh at Walsh Jesuit Ironman, and Matt Kaplan (220) fifth at Beast of the East. 

Delbarton (New Jersey)

Coach: Bryan Stoll

State Ranking: 2nd (One Class)

The Green Wave made huge strides this year at Beast of the East as they placed ninth in the team standings. They had three place winners in Tyler Vazquez (106), Dante Stefanelli (170), and Luke Chakonis (195). Super fab freshman Tyler Vasquez made waves at the Beast of the East tournament as he defeated the No. 1 wrestler in the country Marc-Anthony McGowan (Blair Academy) 1-0 to advance to the championship bout. Team leader for the Green Wave is senior Anthony Clark, a two-time state champion and three-time finalist in the lower weights, who made a verbal commitment to continue his wrestling career at Princeton University and join four other former Delbarton wrestlers -- Pat Glory, Ty Agaisse, A.J. Lonski, and Travis Tavoso.

Crescent Valley (Oregon)

Coach: Chad Lamer

State Ranking: 1st (5A)

The Raiders are poised to make another run in Class 5A as they were successful in winning the team state title over Crook County last year. Junior Chance Lamer (126) and sophomores James Rowley (160) and Gabe Whisenhunt (113) return as defending state champions. Three transfers have made the Raiders even stronger. The most decorated of three transfers to the team is senior Santos Cantu (195), a University of Indiana signee who won three state titles at Salem’s Sprague High School. Senior Tyson Resko comes from Wilsonville, where he placed third at 5A 152 last year. Junior Jackson Rosado was a state semifinalist for 6A Aloha in 2018. The Raiders recently placed third at the prestigious Reno Tournament of Champions, led by Chance Lamer’s win at 126 and third-place finishes from freshman David “DJ” Gillett (106), Rowley (160) and Cantu (195).

Clovis (California)

Coach: Gabe Schaefer

State Ranking: 7th (One Class)

Clovis High has had a rich wrestling tradition of developing great individuals not just in the high school level but in college as well. The Cougars are a young squad that finished fourth behind nationally-ranked teams Buchanan, Allen (Texas), and Clovis North at the Zinkin Classic. The had 10 place winners at Zinkin with Giano Petrucelli claiming an individual title at 170-pounds. State place winner Petrucelli, Tyler Gianakopulos (195) and Justin Mouritsen (126) anchor the squad; while Dario Lemus (113), George Rosas (120), Austin Rhoads (138), and Logan Avina – Barajas (145) are the other core pieces.

Gilroy (California)

Coach: Daniel Cormier

State Ranking: 5th (One Class)

The CIF state runner-ups to Buchanan High are looking to win their 18th consecutive Central Coast Section championship this season. While the team graduated four of seven state place-winners from last year, the Mustangs have high hopes in their “star” Chase Saldate (152) who is currently ranked No. 2 in the nation. He is coming off from winning a Reno Tournament of Champions title by defeating Campbell recruit Arron Gandara (Poway) 10-2. With just 10 wrestlers competing at Reno, the Mustangs were triumphant in placing sixth and leading six grapplers to the podium. Reno place winners included Jayden Gomez (126), Nathan Aguilar (132), Henry Porter (138), Victor Jacinto (145), and Nicholas Villareal (285).

Clovis North (California)

Coach: Ben Holscher

State Ranking: 4th (One Class)

The Broncos are well-trained by one of the best coaches in California in Ben Holscher. They finished in third place at the Zinkin Classic and had 11 place winners with two champions in Joey Cruz (113) and Ryan Watts (126). The squad is anchored by two-time state finalist Ryan Franco (132) who has placed third and second at Reno and Zinkin. Fab freshmen Justin Wells (120) and Sergio Montoya (138) are the future of the program. This team has the potential to challenge the field in a dual meet as they are deep in every weight class. Don’t be surprised to see the Broncos with at least 10 or more state qualifiers in February.