Submitted photo – The Corsairs placed second at the Chabot College tournament over the weekend.

College wrestling has returned to the North Coast with a bang this fall and the best may be yet to come.

This past weekend, the College of the Redwoods men’s team placed second out of 10 teams at the Three Coaches P.S.T. Invitational at Chabot College in Hayward.

Five of the CR grapplers placed in the top four in their weight classes, including Dakota Sanders and Kymani Capri, who each placed first at 125 pounds and 141, respectively.

“I thought we went out there and battled, we left it all on the mats” CR head coach Brandon Benvenuti said. “And we stayed healthy, and we gained and built momentum that will take us into the postseason.”

Benvenuti has overseen a successful return for the program, which had not fielded a team in four decades but is making an immediate impact this fall.

In addition to the two individual wins at Chabot, both Gerard Marshall (heavyweight) and Anthony Smith (165) each placed second, while Jeffrey Skyrud placed fourth at 174.

In their first season back on the mats, the Corsairs have not finished out of the top eight at any of the tournaments they have traveled to and they also placed fourth at the North Duals meet.

“Not bad for a first year,” the coach said.

Sanders and Capri, in particular, are enjoying outstanding seasons with the team.

Sanders, an Arcata High graduate, is ranked No. 7 in the state right now, but could see that ranking improve after victories over five of the top-10 wrestlers.

“He’s having an amazing season,” the coach said.

So too is Capri, who is No. 5 in his weight class and has now won two tournaments.

“He’s really tough and a really hard worker,” Benvenuti said of the Ukiah native. “He’s a really great wrestler.”

According to the coach, the team has worked hard to improve and continues to grow.

“It’s been a great year,” he said. “The guys have really bonded together and come together as a team. They’re fighting for every match.”

The Corsairs will now turn their attention to next week’s North Regional tournament in Modesto, where Benvenuti hopes to have between five and eight of his wrestlers qualify for the state championships.

The top eight in each weight division will move on.

“We’re trying to be our best at the end of the season and see how many wrestlers can qualify,” he said. “We don’t talk about winning and losing, we talk about how good we can be and how we can be the best versions of ourselves.”