December 11, 2004
Keene, Melendez Capture Individual Titles;
Lead Santa Ana To State Runner-up Finish

SAN MARCOS, CA - Santa Ana College's Jonathan Keene and Danny Melendez each captured individual state wrestling titles while the Dons finished second as a team behind Bakersfield College who won its second consecutive team title, Saturday. The Renegades posted a winning team total of 163 points to capture the 2004 Citi California Community Colleges Commission on Athletics Wrestling Championships followed by Santa Ana (114) and Fresno City (95).

Five of the eight Santa Ana wrestlers who qualified for the state wrestling championships advanced the finals in their respective weight bracket.

Keene won the first of two individual titles for the Dons by recording a 20-0 technical fall decision over Santa Rosa Junior College's Hector Sandoval in the first round and a 6-3 decision over West Valley College's Ken Bertron in the quarterfinals on Friday. On Saturday, he upset Cerritos College's Ronnie Hopkins, who was seeded first in Southern California, 4-3, before downing Bakersfield's Ryan Corn in overtime, 5-3, to capture the 157 title.

Meanwhile Keene's teammate in Melendez won three matches of his own, including two by fall, to capture the 197 weight bracket. After receiving a bye in the first round, Melendez needed just 44 seconds to pin Chabot College's
Ben Faanunu in the quarterfinals. His toughest match came in the semifinals where he edged Eduardo Mercado from Fresno City College, 4-3, before pinning top-ranked Jordan Polly from Sierra College in 4:23 to win the title.

The Dons had a trio of second-place finishers in Art Aguilar at 141, Brian Judd at 174 and Jesse Ruiz at 184. Aguilar dropped a 12-8 decision to Bakersfield's Mat Maldonado in his championship match while Judd lost a
7-5 overtime decisioni to Jason Points, also from Bakersfield. Ruiz, who was top-ranked coming into the state championships, suffered his first loss of the season when he was upset by Fresno City's Yasser Pazzat, 8-3.

Santa Ana had a strong showing with seven of the eight wrestlers who qualified for the state championships finish in the top eight. Ernie Aguilar at 149 and Jose Hernandez at 125 rounded out the scoring for the Dons with fifth- and seventh-place finishes, respectively.

December 4, 2004
Santa Ana Finishes Second At SoCal Regionals

BAKERSFIELD, CA - Santa Ana College qualified eight wrestlers for the 2004 Citi California Community Colleges Commission on Athletics Wrestling Championships that will be held at Palomar College, December 10-11, following the Dons' second-place finish at the Southern California Regionals, Saturday.

Santa Ana, who scored 148 points in the meet, trailed only host Bakersfield College (175) in the team standings and edged out South Coast Conference-rival Cerritos College (146) for regional runner-up honors.

The Dons had six wrestlers finish either first or second at their respective weight bracket including three champions in Art Aguilar at 141, Jesse Ruiz at 184 and Danny Melendez at 197.

Aguilar beat Victor Valley's Caleb Mullinax, 12-3, in the quarterfinals and received a default win from Chris Beal from Moorpark College before claiming the 141 title with a 7-2 win over Bakersfield College's Mat Maldonado. Ruiz meanwhile claimed his 184 -pound weight class with a pair of wins over Bakersfield's Andrew Guzman, 14-8, and Golden West College's Michael Ullerich, 12-4. At 197, Santa Ana's Danny Melendez cruised to his regional title with easy wins over Jesse Velasquez from Bakersfield, 12-3, and Dan Almanza from Palomar College, 22-8.

Those claiming second-place finishes for the Dons included Jose Hernandez (125), Rodolfo Justo (133) and Brian Judd (174). Hernandez was edged, 5-4, by Cerritos College's Eugene Yasutomi while Justo fell to Moorpark's J.J. Holt, 10-4. Judd meanwhile dropped an 18-9 decision to Jason Points from Bakersfield.

Jonathan Keene, who placed third at 157, and Ernie Aguilar, who claimed a fourth-place finish at 149 also advance to the wrestling championships.

2004 Southern California Results (PDF)

Next: 2004 Citi California Community Colleges Commission on Athletics Wrestling Championships at Palomar College, Friday December 10 and Saturday, December 11. For more information on the wrestling championships click here.

November 19, 2004
Santa Ana Captures Share Of SCC Title

FULLERTON, CA - Santa Ana College claimed a share of its first South Coast Conference (SCC) title in eight years with its 35-4 win over visiting Palomar College in a match wrestled at California State University, Fullerton. The Dons tied Cerritos for the conference title as both teams finished with
5-0-1 SCC records.

Santa Ana's Jonathan Keene recorded the meet's only pin when he stuck the Comets' Stuart Cole at 157. The Dons received major decision from Artu Aguilar (149), Brian Judd (174) and Jesse Ruiz (184) to easily outdistance Palomar.

Bazen Gabrakirstos needed overtime to decision A.J. Hagen, 9-7 at 165.

The Comets' Tyler McKay prevented a sweep by the Dons with his major decison win (11-3) over Josh Schultz at heavyweight.

MEET RESULTS
Santa Ana 35, Palomar 4
125 #2 Jose Hernandez (SAC) won by default
133 #3 Rudy Justo (SAC) won by default
141 No contest
149 #8 Art Aguilar (SAC) maj. dec. Andrew Lowen (P), 18-7
157 #2 Jonathan Keene (SAC) pinned Stuart Cole (P), 1:50
165 Bazen Gabrakirstos (SAC) dec. A.J. Hagen (P), 9-7 (OT)
174 #4 Brian Judd (SAC) maj. dec. Ricci Newsom (P), 21-8
184 #1 Jesse Ruiz (SAC) maj. dec. Dave Corson (P), 10-2
197 #4 Danny Melendez (SAC) dec. Dan Agular (P), 8-5
Hwt. Tyler McKay (P) maj. dec. Jos Schultz (SAC), 11-3

Next: Santa Ana will have over two weeks off before participating in the Southern California Regional Wrestling Championships that will be held at Bakersfield College on Saturday, December 4.

November 11, 2004
Santa Ana Rolls Over Golden West, 46-3

HUNTINGTON BEACH , CA - Santa Ana College won 9 of the 10 matches its wrestled as the Dons whipped Golden West College, 46-3, in South Coast Conference (SCC) wrestling action, Thursday. The win improves the Dons to 7-0-1 overall and 4-0-1 in the SCC.

Santa Ana used three falls and two forfeits to easily handle the Rustlers. Jose Hernandez (125), Brian Judd (174) and Danny Melendez (197) each won by fall while Jesse Ruiz (184) and Robert Elias each received forfeits.

The Dons also received techical falls from Art Aguilar at 149 and Jonathan Keene at 157 in the lopsided win. Aguilar outscored Michael Wright, 21-3, in his match while Keene rolled to a 26-11 win over Bobby Goddard.

MEET RESULTS
Santa Ana 46, Golden West 3
125 #2 Jose Hernandez (SAC) pinned Edwin Rodriguez (GW), 6:34
133 #3 Rudy Justo (SAC) dec. Ruben Vera (GW), 10-4
141 #2 Ernie Aguilar (SAC) dec. Daniel Brito (GW), 7-6
149 #8 Art Aguilar (SAC) tech. fall Michael Wright, 21-3
157 #2 Jonathan Keene (SAC) tech. fall Bobby Goddard (GW), 26-11
165 Joe Foss (GW) dec. Luis Baltzar (SAC), 8-6
174 #4 Brian Judd (SAC) pinned William Ayon (GW), 1:23
184 #1 Jesse Ruiz (SAC) won by forfeit
197 #4 Danny Melendez (SAC) pinned Samuel Liera (GW), 5:10
Hwt. Robert Elias won by forfeit

Next: Santa Ana round out the SCC portion of its schedule on Friday, November 19 when it host Palomar College at 2:30 p.m. in a match that will be held at California State University, Fullerton.

November 6, 2004
Santa Ana Finishes Second at Cuesta Invitational

CUESTA, CA - Santa Ana College crowned four champions as the Dons finished second behind Bakersfield College at the Cuesta College Invitational, Saturday. Bakersfield scored 94.5 points to capture the team title 10 points ahead of Santa Ana who finished with 84.5. Fresno City College finished third with 62 points followed by fourth-place Cuesta College (48) and fifth-place Moorpark College (42).

Top-ranked Jesse Ruiz led the Dons with a pin over Cuesta College's Angel Gonzalez at 184 while Jose Hernandez decisioned Chaffey College's David Jogado, 6-2, at 125. Jonathan Keene captured the 157 title with a 3-1 decision over Bakersfield's Ryan and Danny Melendez nipped Eduardo Fresno City College's Mercado, 6-4, at 197.

Rudy Justo and Art Aguilar claimed runner-up honors at 125 and 149, respectively.

Next: Santa Ana will resume South Coast Conference wrestling action on Thursday, November 11 when the Dons travel to Huntington Beach to take on Golden West College at 7 p.m.

October 27, 2004
Santa Ana and Cerritos Grapple To 18-18 Tie

SANTA ANA, CA - Second-ranked Santa Ana College and sixth-ranked Cerritos College battled to an 18-18 tie in South Coast Conference wrestling action, Wednesday. The Dons, who trailed 18-11 heading into the final two matches, received a 15-13 win from Art Aguilar at 149 and a technical fall decision at 157 by Jonathan Keene to tie the Falcons. The tie left both teams leading the South Coast Conference standings with 3-0-1 records. The Dons are 6-0-1 overall while the Falcons are 3-0-1 overall.

Keene 's technical fall at 157, normally a five-point decision, was a four-point decision because according the rule book he failed to score any near fall points. The sophomore from Mission Viejo used 10 takedowns in his 23-8 win over Cerritos' Mike Gabrielson. Meanwhile, Aguilar edged J. J. Lewis in overtime, 15-13, despite falling behind early in the second period, 10-3. The Dons also received a technical fall from Brian Judd at 174 who beat Brandon Davis, 15-0.

The Falcons were led by Ryan Garcia who upset second -ranked Ernie Aguilar, 6-2, after dropping down from his normal wrestling weight of 149. Garcia used an escape, a pair of two-point near falls and riding time to hand Aguilar his second loss of the season. Ronnie Hopkins got Cerritos off to a flying start when he pinned Santa Ana's Randy Vasquez 58 seconds into the first period of his 165-pound match.

MEET RESULTS
Santa Ana 18, Cerritos 18
125 #1 Eugene Yasutomi (CER) def. #2 Jose Hernandez (SAC), 3-2
133 #5 Carlos Alaniz (CER) def. #4 Rudy Justo (SAC), 3-1
141 Ryan Garcia (CER) def. #2 Ernie Aguilar (SAC), 6-2
149 #7 Art Aguilar (SAC) def. #4 J. J. Lewis (CERO), 15-13 OT
157 #7 Jonathan Keene (SAC) def. Mike Gabrielson (CER), 23-8
165 #4 Ronnie Hopkins (CER) pinned Randy Vasquez (SAC), :58
174 #3 Brian Judd (SAC) tech. fall Brandon Davis (CER), 15-0
184 #1 Jesse Ruiz (SAC) def. Brandon Davis (CER), 6-2
197 #5 Danny Melendez (SAC) def. Emanuel Newton, 8-3
Hwt. #4 Pedro Garcia (CER) def. Josh Schultz (SAC), 4-2 OT

# - Denotes state ranking at weight bracket

Next: Santa Ana will take part in the Cuesta Tournament on Saturday, November 6 before returning to SCC action on Wednesday, November 10 when the Dons travel to Huntington Beach to face Golden West College at
7 p.m.

October 22, 2004
Santa Ana Blanks Victor Valley, 58-0

SANTA ANA, CA - Santa Ana College received seven forfeits and won the only three matches it wrestled to defeat visiting Victor Valley, 58-0, in South Coast Conference wrestling, Friday. The win improved the Dons to 6-0 overall and 3-0 in the South Coast Conference and sets up a first-place showdown with Cerritos College when the two teams meet next Wednesday (October 26) at Santa Ana.

On Friday, the second-ranked Dons completed the shut out as 141-pounder Ernie Aguilar downed Caleb Mullinax, 12-4 and received pins from Randy Vasquez and Brian Judd at 165 and 184, respectively.

It was Vasquez's first action in nearly three weeks after suffered a cut to his head during the Santa Ana College Tournament. The freshman avenged an earlier season, overtime loss to the Ram's Scott Hent at the Golden West Tournament back in September.

Judd, who was leading 12-4 in the second, pinned Sam Sitcher in 5:36.

Next: Santa Ana will host Cerritos College (3-0, 3-0 SCC) at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, October 27 in SCC wrestling action.

October 13, 2004
Top-Ranked Santa Ana Remains Atop SCC;
Downs East Los Angeles, 31-14

SANTA ANA, CA - Daniel Melendez's technical fall over Ivan Carvajal at 197 clinched Santa Ana College 's 31-14 win over visiting East Los Angeles College in South Coast Conference (SCC) wrestling, Wednesday evening. Melendez's reversal to begin the third period gave him a 16-0 win over Carvajal and helped the Dons improve to 5-0 overall and 2-0 in the SCC. The loss drops the Huskies to 3-4 overall and 0-1 in the SCC.

The Dons used two East Los Angeles forfeits and wins by Jose Hernandez (125), Jonathan Keene (157), Luis Baltazar (165), Melendez (197) and Robert Elias (HWT) to remain undefeated.

At 157, Jonathan Keene used 12 takedowns and an escape to roll up a 25-10 technical fall win over Saul Lopez while Jose Hernandez recorded two takedowns, a technical foul, an escape and riding time to win, 7-3, to start the match.

Top-ranked Santa Ana was without two of its top wrestlers in Ernie Aguilar (141) and Jesse Ruiz (184) as both were nursing injuries. Aguilar, who is 12-0, is ranked first in the state at 141 while Ruiz (7-0) is top ranked at 184.

Next: On Saturday, October 16, Santa Ana will be seeking its fourth tournament victory of the season when it takes part in the West Valley Tournament. The Dons will return home on Wednesday, October 20 to face Victor Valley in SCC action at 7 p.m.

October 9, 2004
Aguilar Leads Dons To SAC Tournament Title

SANTA ANA, CA - Ernie Aguilar (Santa Ana HS) improved to 12-0 on the year and in the process led Santa Ana to its third tournament title of the year, Saturday. The Dons scored 120 points and outdistanced second-place Bakersfield College, who finished with 109, to claim the 2004 Santa Ana College Tournament title. Sacramento City College finished third with 91 points followed by fourth-place Cuesta College and fifth-place Moorpark who finished with 86 and 61 points, respectively.

The host Dons crowned three individual champions and claimed two runner-up finishes in capturing the team title. Ernie Aguilar downed Bakersfield 's Matt Maldonado, 7-3, at 141 to remain unbeaten. Jose Hernandez defeated Sacramento City's Qualie Walter, 13-4, at 125 while Danny Melendez (Santiago HS) downed Palomar's Daniel Almanza, 9-4, to also claim individual titles for the Dons. Santa Ana 's Roldofo Justo (Santa Ana HS) and Brian Judd (Santa Ana HS) each finished second at 133 and 184 respectively, while Art Aguilar (Mater Dei HS) placed third at 149.

For complete results click here.

Next: Santa Ana will host East Los Angeles College in South Coast Conference wrestling action on Wednesday, October 13 at 7 p.m.

September 18, 2004
Santa Ana Claims Mt. SAC College Dual Title

WALNUT, CA - Santa Ana College, behind the three-win performances of Art Aguilar (Mater Dei HS), Ernie Aguilar (Santa Ana HS), Jose Hernandez (Santa Ana HS) and Randy Vasquez (Scripps Ranch HS), won the 2004 Mt. San Antonio College Dual Meet title with three straight wins over Rio Hondo College (40-6), Golden West College (30-18) and Moorpark College (39-9), Saturday.

At 125, the Dons' Hernandez picked up three wins as he defeated Rio Hondo's S. Prentice, 8-4, and Moorpark's Chris Beal, 5-4, before receiving a forfeit against Golden West. Ernie Aguilar, Santa Ana's 141-pounder, won two of his three matches by fall in picking up his three wins. Aguilar pinned Rio Hondo's S. Alvarez and Moorpark's Edward Randolph and won by forfeit against Golden West.

At 149, Art Aguilar began the tournament with a forfeit win against Rio Hondo before recording decision wins over Golden West's Daniel Brito, 3-1, and Moorpark's Andy Dermemjian, 5-1. Vasquez, who wrestled at 165, rounded out the dual meet's three-time winners as he won by fall over Rio Hondo's M. Salazar and Moorpark's Nick Dabbit and shut out Golden West's Michael Wright, 6-0.

At 197, Jessie Ruiz (Santa Ana Valley HS) picked up a pair of wins, both by falls, against Rio Hondo's N. Lociacno and Golden West's William Ayon. Danny Melendez (Santiago HS) took over for Ruiz in the Dons' match against Moorpark to notch his only win of the meet, a 7-1 decision over Kody Nielsen.

Next: Santa Ana will travel to Huntington Beach on Saturday, October 2 to take part in the Golden West Tournament before beginning conference action at Mt. San Antonio College on Wednesday, October 6 at 7 p.m.

Quarter Finals
SANTA ANA 40
Rio Hondo 6

Wt Winner(Team) By Loser(Team) Score
125 Jose Hernandez (SantaAnaCC) DEC S. Prentice (RioHondo) 8-4
133 M. Noriega (RioHondo) DEC Rudy Justo (SantaAnaCC) 8-7
141 Ernie Aguilar (SantaAnaCC) FALL S. Alvarez (RioHondo)
149 Art Aguilar (SantaAnaCC) FRFT
157 D. Willette (RioHondo) DEC Luis Baltzar (SantaAnaCC) 4-2
165 Randy Vasquez (SantaAnaCC) FALL M. Salazar (RioHondo)
174 Bazen Gabrakirstos (SantaAnaCC) FRFT
184 Brian Judd (SantaAnaCC) DEC J. Rios (RioHondo) 12-6
197 Jesse Ruiz (SantaAnaCC) FALL N. Lociacno (RioHondo)
285 Robert Elias (SantaAnaCC) DEC F. Ojeda (RioHondo) 3-0

Semi Finals
SANTA ANA 30
Golden West 18

Wt Winner(Team) By Loser(Team) Score
125 Jose Hernandez (SantaAnaCC) FRFT
133 Rudy Justo (SantaAnaCC) FALL Edwin Rodriguez (GoldenWest)
141 Ernie Aguilar (SantaAnaCC) FRFT
149 Art Aguilar (SantaAnaCC) DEC Daniel Brito (GoldenWest) 3-1
157 Jimmy Carr (GoldenWest) DEC Luis Baltzar (SantaAnaCC) 11-10
165 Randy Vasquez (SantaAnaCC) DEC Michael Wright (GoldenWest) 6-0
174 Brian Murrey (GoldenWest) FALL Bazen Gabrakirstos (SantaAnaCC)
184 Mike Ullerich (GoldenWest) DEC Brian Judd (SantaAnaCC) 10-8
197 Jesse Ruiz (SantaAnaCC) FALL William Ayon (GoldenWest)
285 Samuel Liera (GoldenWest) FALL Robert Elias (SantaAnaCC)

Finals
SANTA ANA 39
Moorpark 9

Wt Winner(Team) By Loser(Team) Score
125 Jose Hernandez (SantaAnaCC) DEC Chris Beal (Moorpark) 5-4
133 JJ Holt (Moorpark) DEC Rudy Justo (SantaAnaCC) 12-
141 Ernie Aguilar (SantaAnaCC) FALL Edward Randolph (Moorpark)
149 Art Aguilar (SantaAnaCC) DEC Andy Dermemj ian (Moorpark) 5-1
157 Luis Baltzar (SantaAnaCC) FALL Alex Zuniga (Moorpark)
165 Randy Vasquez (SantaAnaCC) FALL Nick Dabbit (Moorpark)
174 Bazen Gabrakirstos (SantaAnaCC) FALL Walter Mendez (Moorpark)
184 Brian Judd (SantaAnaCC) FALL Steve Bouley (Moorpark)
197 Danny Melendez (SantaAnaCC) DEC Kody Nielsen (Moorpark) 7-1
285 Tyrell Blanche (Moorpark) FALL Robert Elias (SantaAnaCC)