172 lb. sophomore Justin Micallef
By Anne Guynn —
OAKHURST — Yosemite High School (YHS) sophomore Justin Micallef qualified for the California Interscholastic Federation State Wrestling Tournament, placing ninth in the 172 lb., 32 man bracket of the Central Section Boys Grand Masters Wrestling Championship Tournament at Lemoore High School Feb. 14-15.
Micallef, 5 and 2 in this elite competition, is the first YHS wrestler to go to State since now-Assistant Coach Kyle Lincoln in 2012. Micallef will represent Yosemite at State in Bakersfield on Thursday, Feb. 21.
“It is great to see our wrestlers really compete with top caliber athletes in the Central Section,” expresses Head Coach Kent Lincoln, who represented YHS at State in 1987 and 1988.
“Masters is an event every sports enthusiast should watch at least once in their lifetime. There is no other venue where you will witness the elite levels of applied physical strength, mental acuity, and finesse developed through hard, hard work. You won’t see this much high school talent anywhere else.”
154 lb. Sophomore Nicolas Guynn finished his high school season at the championship tournament with 2 wins and 2 losses, his first loss being to the #5 nationally ranked Jace Luchau of Selma.
154 lb. sophomore Nicolas Guynn
Guynn ended the season 36 – 6 and has been invited to the Olympic Developmental Camp in Colorado next month.
184 lb. Senior Oguzhan Jumayer went 1-2 at Grand Masters, finishing his season 23-18. Jumayer, a foreign exchange student from Turkmenistan, says wrestling in this country has taught him self confidence.
“I now know that I am capable of doing great things when I work hard.”
According to Wrestling Insider Magazine, the Clovis Fresno area is the third most difficult region in the U.S., behind Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania and Twin Cities, Minnesota.
Each weight class at Grand Masters boasted ten or more state ranked wrestlers, with the 152s having more than half the bracket listed in state rankings.
“For three of our wrestlers to have won matches at this tournament should make Yosemite proud!” notes Asst. Coach Jeff Guynn.
Anne Guynn is a YHS Badger Wrestling Booster
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