Sports

Ermolov, Figueroa Head to State Championships

Terra Linda High's wrestling standouts lose to top seeds from De La Salle in the NCS finals to place second, which is good enough to earn a trip to Bakersfield next week.

A great consolation prize already in hand, two wrestlers lost in the finals of the North Coast Section Championships on Saturday night to settle for second place.

Second-seeded and sixth-seeded bowed to powerful De La Salle opponents in the finals after having already secured bids to next week’s California State Championships in Bakersfield.

In all, five Marin County Athletic League (MCAL) wrestlers head to the State Championships, the most ever from the league. They include NCS champ Christian Lizarraga of San Marin (103 pounds), the first NCS champ from Marin County since 2002, as well as third-place finishers Michael Sitzman of Marin Catholic (135) and Dylan Morris of Redwood (160).

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For the first time ever, Terra Linda will have two representatives in Bakersfield.

Ermolov, a senior, got an early takedown on Luke Sheridan in a highly anticipated showdown in the 189-pound finals -- a rematch of an NCS final last year -- but the De La Salle standout, now 46-1, then took care of business, eventually winning 7-2.

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"I'm not disappoined at all," noted Terra Linda coach Danny Dardon. "Sheridan is one of the best wrestlers in the state and with good reason. Roman wrestled him tough. I couldn't have asked for much more."

The Trojans star, now 37-5, had disposed of James Logan’s Chumkaur Dhaliwal easily in the semifinals, 10-0, earlier Saturday.

Figueroa, meanwhile, finally had his impressive run stopped in the 140-pound finals by De La Salle’s Alex Abono, losing 8-0.

The Terra Linda senior (40-9) earned his trip to the State Championships with a big upset in the semifinals, stalling second-seeded Nolen Kajiwara of James Logan’s title bid in a 3-1 thriller.

"I always thought he could be in this position," Dardon assured. "He took out the second and third seeds. I'm extremely proud of him."

Ermolov, who was seeded second entering the event, was one of the most impressive wrestlers in Friday’s preliminary rounds without ever recording a pin. He blew through his first three opponents, including seventh-seeded Jason Price of Hoopa in the quarterfinals, by a total score of 44-2.

Figueroa also advanced to the semifinals with three wins Friday, the last of which was the toughest and most impressive. That’s when he outlasted third-seeded Joe Baynes of Antioch 7-5.

Terra Linda sent 10 wrestlers to the event in all, seven of whom won at least one match. The Trojans finished in 18th place in the team standings.

(112) and (130) and (215) recorded two wins apiece, with Conrad Caindec and Figueroa getting a pair of pins apiece.

"We're a very young team on the bottom end," Dardon observed. "To get that experience is very important for years to come."

San Rafael’s lone competitor at the event, 103-pounder Christopher Mosque, a freshman, lost both his matches.


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