Stephanie Romero wanted to try something new this year.
Though it was hard to give up basketball, a group of wrestlers, including her sister Natalie, convinced her to join for her junior “I like the people there, it’s fun to practice,” Romero said. “It’s an individual sport, it’s good to win for myself.”
The Elks had strong performances at their home Pojoaque Valley Invite, hosting teams from around the state and from Arizona with eight competitive mats set up for two days from Jan. 26-27. They also hosted a youth tournament on Sunday.
Two years ago, Pojoaque’s wrestling team consisted of just one girl in Izabela Lujan. Not too far back, they were limited for boys, as well. Now, they have a full team of both boys and girls competing together. They are up to eight girls now competing regularly.
“Our girls team is almost the same size as our boys team this year,” said Pojoaque coach Johnny Tapia. “Those girls come every day to work hard.”
Tapia said he along with football coach Zeke Villegas work to recruit students. Also, this year Richard Padilla is the head girls coach.
Javier Tapia, a four-time state champion, is also working with the team daily.
Natalie Romero stole the show for the Elkettes with a perfect weekend. She faced 10 opponents at 132 pounds over two days, and defeated all of them by pin. That included West Las Vegas’ Solis Medrano, who entered with a 20-6 record; Romero pinned her three times.
Alexis Archuleta won third place for the girls at 126 pounds, going 5-3 in the tournament. Stephanie Romero finished third in the first day and fourth in the second day, with teammate Alaiyah Vigil defeating her in the second opportunity in the 145/152 weight class.
Izabela Lujan is now competing in 165 pounds after being in the 235-pound class for the last two years. She finished fifth the first day and fourth the next day.
Ben Duran was the top performer for Pojoaque on the boys side, placing third in 133 pounds. He lost in the semifinal in an 8-3 decision to Moriarty’s Jonathan Valdez, but won two more matches to take third place.
Ethyn Boyd placed fifth in 285 pounds. He had some good wins over the weekend, finishing 5-3 over eight matches, and won the fifth-place match in a medical forfeit.
New Sundevil Coach Leading Small Team
Shortly before the season, Española wrestling still did not have a coach.
In November, Gilbert Sandoval, a coach in the youth program and an assistant with the Sundevils the year before, decided to step in to make sure their season could happen. It took him a month to go through online courses to get a coaching license, but he was ready just in time for the year.
The Sundevils are going through the season with just a few competitors, making it hard to compete in team duals, but they are still finding success.
“We’ve got a small team,” Sandoval said. “But the kids I’ve got in the room are good young men, young ladies, and they’re working hard. And we’re doing the best we can.”
Española senior Cruz Sandoval won first place in 139 pounds, winning all six of his matches with pins in a combined less than seven minutes, and he won another match with a forfeit.
“We’ve gone to some pretty tough tournaments this year, so I have a couple losses,” Cruz Sandoval said. “But so far, on my way I’ve been doing pretty good.”
Sandoval said he has lost to some 5A competitors, but has only lost once in 4A this year, a loss he hopes to avenge at state.
Noah Maez placed fourth in 160 pounds. He won all of his matches in pool play. But in the semifinal, against a top wrestler from Kirtland Central, Maez battled but lost a 4-0 decision. After a good consolation pin, in the third-place match Maez was paired with Los Alamos’ Jackson Blair, and he lost 5-1 after failing to score late in the match.
Juanito Mondragon placed seventh in 107 pounds, losing to three different Los Lunas wrestlers and pinning one from Los Alamos.
On the girls side, Española’s Allysandra Sanchez finished second in the 126B category. And Kianna Moreland was second in the heavyweight category, going 3-1 on both days.
“I expect big things out of (Sanchez), and Kianna’s an awesome wrestler,” Sandoval said. “They’re both tough, they bring a lot to the plate.”
Next week, the Sundevils will try to compete at West Las Vegas for the district duals.
“It’s been fun to see the progress with the kids,” Gilbert Sandoval said. “It’s always a joy when they win, and you stick by them in the losses.”