Wrestlers look to reach new heights
By Hector Trujillo
Scripps Ranch High School (SRHS) male wrestlers kicked off the 2022-2023 season with a good showing at the Carlsbad Wrestling Invitational Tournament held at Carlsbad High School on Dec. 3.
The Falcons finished in the top half (10th place overall) of the 21 competing schools. Brawley High School earned the top spot overall.
The Scripps Ranch team was made up of 13 male athletes that included junior varsity and first-year wrestlers coming out with one first-place finish and two third-place finishes.
“It was real positive and I was actually very impressed with what we did do,” said head coach John Kreitzer.
In the varsity 145 pound weight class, Jack Hamilton won a 7-5 decision over Johnathan Kaiser of Steele Canyon. Hamilton won first-place despite being a sophomore competing against varsity competition.
In the 138 pound weight class, Garrett Elliot beat out Julian Lorello of San Marcos High School in a nail-biting 6-5 match to earn third place. Grant Hancock won by no contest over Christian Maldonado of San Marcos in the varsity 132 pound weight class to earn his third place spot.
Scripps Ranch will take part in five dual meets this season along with several tournaments which include six tournaments for the SRHS female team. This will be the second year that Scripps Ranch has a women wrestling team competing.
“Girls wrestling in San Diego is really booming,” Kreitzer said. “Last year there was a total of three tournaments we could go to in this area, and this year we’re going to six of the seven that are available.”
Among the returners from last season are Masters qualifier junior Kayla Lincoln who captured fifth place in the varsity 145 pound San Diego Section Girls Wrestling Division 1 Championships held in early February.
On the mens side, Jack Hamilton will be joined by senior Garrett Elliott and junior Noah Harris as the returning Masters qualifiers from last year.
“We lost five seniors from last year, so that’s a huge loss to any high school program,” Kreitzer said. “What I expect from this year’s team is to continue to improve and continue to work hard to fill in the gaps for the ones that left.”
