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Mountain Vista wrestling team at the San Manuel Junior High Wrestling Invitational Meet were from left, Charles Croci, Geneve Poskey, Gilbert Rodriguez, Jonathon Baker, Ethen Cooped, Tony Smith.
Margaret Schofield | SMHS
The 14th annual invitational. Margaret Schofield | SMHS
More than 300 junior high wrestlers ascended on San Manuel to wrestle in the 14th annual invitational.
Margaret Schofield | SMHS
San Manuel Junior High wrestling team. Pacey Smith Garcia | SMHS
San Manuel Miner
San Manuel High School hosted 20 schools and wrestling clubs from around state, including 323 wrestlers, on Dec. 5.
Olympus Wrestling Club finished with the top team score, followed by Safford and then Thatcher. San Manuel finished 17th.
Defending State Champion Gilbert Rodriguez from Mt. Vista won the 83-lb. division. Charles Croci, a Mt. Vista fifth-grader, won the 73-lb. division.
Outstanding Wrestler Awards were presented to Diego Chavez (111) of Olympus Wrestling Club, Jessie Ybarra (98) from Sunnyside, and Ote Allsup (125) from Wilcox.
Wilcox earned the Team Sportsmanship Award at the invitational.
Andrew Luberda began writing for Copper Area News Publishers (CANP) in February 2013 after working 15 years in Healthcare Financial Management. Andy covers sports for 11 high schools. His stories are published in Copper Basin News, San Manuel Miner and Superior Sun, in addition to the San Tan Valley Daily PRSS and CopperArea websites. Additionally, he has written human interest stories and business profiles. In May 2012, he earned an AAS in Sports Management at Central Arizona College before graduating with a BS in Communication from Arizona State University in 2014. He and his wife, Kelli, have three sons – AJ, Kyle, and Kade.
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