By Ray Hamill — The College of the Redwoods men’s wrestling team will host its second annual Redwood Duals this Sunday as head coach Brandon Benvenuti and his wrestlers head towards the business end of the season.
The tournament, which gets under way at 10 a.m., will also include Cal Poly Humboldt, Southwest Oregon Community College and Sierra College.
The Jacks will be making their season debut and each of the four teams will compete in three dual matches throughout the day.
“We’re just excited for the opportunity,” Benvenuti said. “It’s awesome to build that relationship with Humboldt and to get some competition we don’t often see, and to be able to test ourselves.”
It’s been a good season so far for the local community college team, which began competition in September.
The CR men, who feature a roster of 25 wrestlers, are 2-2 in the Big 8 Conference and 4-4 in dual meets.
Among the season highlights so far, former Arcata Tiger Isaiah Bell is enjoying an impressive sophomore season, as is teammate Jacob Torres.
Bell, who competes at 149 pounds, has lost just twice all season and recently placed first at the Modesto Invitational, earning the Most Outstanding Wrestler award at the tournament.
Torres, who competes at 157, has placed at every tournament he has competed at, including finishing third at the Modesto Invitational and fourth at the Sac City tournament.
Just as importantly, the experienced duo has been providing some key leadership on a roster made up mostly of freshmen.
“It’s been good to have some sophomore leadership,” Benvenuti said. “That’s been good for us, and those guys have just been really locked in. They put in some work over the summertime and it’s really been paying off for them.”
Freshman Kris Mittelstadt also has impressed for the team this fall, including an outstanding day at the recent North Duals in Modesto, where he was a perfect 3-0 on the day at 184 pounds and helped lead the team to a seventh place finish.
“He’s kind of stepped into a little bit of a leadership role,” Benvenuti said of Mittelstadt, who was a state qualifier at Amador High School. “He’s a hard worker.”
The CR men are gearing up for a busy few weeks.
After Sunday’s home tournament, they will host Santa Rosa JC in a dual meet on Wednesday, before traveling for the Menlo Open tournament next weekend.
The North Regionals will take place at Sierra on Dec. 5, followed by the state championships on Dec. 11.
Benvenuti is happy with what he’s seen from the team so far and is hoping for a strong finish to the season.
“I really just kind of like the team culture,” he said. “And just how these guys are bonding together. They’re going out there and battling for each other. I like their willingness to be team players.
“The camaraderie they’re building, and their work ethic has been really paying off.”
