Delta defeats rival Palisade at triangle dual, wins 4 of 5 at Rifle dual competition

Photo by Tamie Meck Delta senior 182-pounder Alfredo Rosales grapples with Palisade’s Shane Sarnac last Thursday night at Palisade. Rosales pinned Sarnac in triple overtime, and Delta claimed the remaining matches for the win. It was Delta’s first dual win over the Bulldogs in at least a decade.Delta rumbled to wins in six out of seven duals last week, starting with a triangle dual Thursday night against Summit and Palisade. The host Palisade Bulldogs and Delta dualed after Delta opened with a 69-10 win over Summit, and Palisade throttled Summit, 74-3.

Delta claimed all but one win in the upper weights to defeat Palisade, 49-25.

"We haven't beat them in over 10 years," said Delta coach Clayton Curtis. Regardless of the sport they're competing in, there's quite a history between the two schools, said Curtis. It's always fun to dual Palisade, "But it's a lot more fun when you come out on top."

Palisade opened with a 7-3 win by Randen Espinoza over Jayden Chynoweth at 106 pounds. Panther David Brown tied the score up with a 6-1 win at 113 pounds over Kyauna Martinez.

Hayes McCracken (120) was pinned in 42 seconds by Bulldog Quinton Day.

Palisade took the lead when 126-pounder Shane Anderson lost by major decision to No. 2-ranked Dalton Hannigan. They've been going back and forth for a long time, said Curtis. Anderson wrestled well, but made a few early mistakes that set the tone for the match. "Hannigan's a tough kid," said Curtis. At regionals, "It's going to come down to who makes the least mistakes."

Tylon Cordova (132) scored Delta's first pin, putting Tristen Holmes away in 1:35. Palisade's Justin Ray answered with a second-round pin over Kodie Komives to win the 138 match. Derek Horn followed with a pin in 3:19 over Caleb Clarkson at 145.

Delta claimed the next two matches. Hunter Brasfield (152) won by a 12-4 decision, and Cordell Stroud pinned D.J. Garner in 1:30 for the win at 160.

Delta trailed 22-25 after Kory Mills (170) was pinned by Palisade's Zane Stewart. The 182 match between Delta's Alfredo Rosales and Shane Sarnac went into overtime after ending in a 2-2 tie. Rosales was up 2-1 in the final seconds and was charged with stalling, sending the match into overtime. Rosales said he focused on not giving up. "My team depended on me," said Rosales. "My coaches told me this was a big match. I knew it would set the tone for the rest of the night, and for the weekend."

In triple overtime, Rosales pinned Sarnac with 12 seconds remaining on the clock.

"That was a big momentum swing right there," said Curtis.

Panther Kyle Collins stepped confidently on the mat and pinned Cade Porter in 23 seconds to win the 195 match.

The pressure was then on senior 195-pounder, Lino Ortiz, who was leading 8-5 in the third round when he pulled a reversal on Armando Cabriales, getting the pin with 12 seconds to spare. The win clinched the dual for Delta.

Ortiz said he was feeding on the momentum from Collins' and Rosales' wins. "It's a great feeling," said Ortiz. "We beat them in football and now we beat them in wrestling.

"No regrets tonight," added Ortiz. "We beat one of our biggest rivals."

Heavyweight Marcus Garcia finished with a pin in 1:22 over Anselmo Quezada.

Delta placed second at Saturday's Rumble in the Rockies dual tournament at Rifle. The Panthers defeated Coal Ridge, 72-12, Basalt, 76-6, Grand Valley, 54-21, and Gunnison 78-6. Their sole loss of the day was in the championship dual. Rifle avenged an early-season loss to defeat Delta, 41-36. Rifle is currently ranked ninth in state 4A team standings.

Curtis said this is the big momentum shift the team needs heading into the final weeks before regional competition. "We'll just keep the ball rolling. It's good to start seeing success," said Curtis. The team has put a lot of time into training and worked hard during the off-season, "And it's starting to pay off."

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