The wrestling team got its revenge on the team that gave it its first loss of the season, Mt. San Antonio College, on Wednesday, Oct. 22.
The team suffered its first loss against Mt. SAC on Saturday, Oct. 18, in a tournament with a two-point deficit; but that Wednesday, the team would go on to win with a final score of 26-13.
Feelings were strong after receiving that first loss for the meet, and the Falcons were ready for some payback.
Coach Don Garriott said, “I was excited to get another chance to wrestle (Mt. SAC) again after last weekend, losing to (it). The lineup was a little different than last time and our lineup was a little different, as well, so you really can’t compare the two matches, but we did come out ahead on this one so I’m happy.”
But in order to win this match, the team needed a different approach.
Dustin Kirk said, “What we did better is that we focused and we got everyone to make weight, we had a good hard practice in this week, we focused on the things that we were messing up on and mainly kept our mindset straight; as long as we do that, we can win state.”
This match let the Falcons’ competition know that even though they suffered their first loss, they can rebound and become a better team.
Keanu Tom said, “It felt great to get revenge on this team. It felt like this should have happened on Saturday. We made a statement today. I’m happy that we won, and we showed everyone that we are No. 1. We should be beating these kind of guys.”
Mt. SAC had shown numerous amounts of competition, but team captain Kirk feels different about that.
“Honestly, no, it’s not a battle to the end. Of course, (it’s) a tough team, but if all our guys are healthy and they all have their mindsets right and keep doing what we are doing, everything will be alright. We have the capability to win every match we put ourselves into,” he said.
But there is always room for improvements.
“The conditioning is definitely one thing that we have to improve on, but that comes with them taking responsibility for themselves,” Coach Garriott stated.
