Local report: Hammond shines in CSUB's Blue-Gold wrestling meet
By THE BAKERSFIELD CALIFORNIAN
Bryce Hammond said last season was the longest in his wrestling career.
That's because he sat out the season as a redshirt after entering Cal State Bakersfield following two state championships at Bakersfield High School.
"It was awful," Hammond said after recording a 20-6 majority decision over Oren Dramen in CSUB's Blue-Gold intrasquad match Tuesday night that officially opened the wrestling season.
Hammond, who has four years of eligibility remaining, said the hours spent in the wrestling room helped prepare him for the rigors of collegiate wrestling.
"I worked on being more of a well-rounded wrestler," he said. "Not just rely on my scrambling."
The scrimmage helped coach Mike Mendoza and his staff finalize the pecking order of the starting lineup, although many weight classes remain close, Mendoza said.
Tuesday's results "will be weighed heavily" in determining the lineup for the Nov. 8 official openers against Drexel and Cal Poly, he said. "But nothing is set in stone."
Joining Hammond as the most dominant performers Tuesday were 125-pound senior Tyler Iwamura (pinned Miguel Comparan in 2:27), freshman 141-pound Timmy Box (16-5 major decision over Juan Salas), sophomore 157-pounder Adam Fierro (8-1 win over Jesus Ambriz), and heavyweight Sam Cervantes (pin in 4:55 over Steven Wood).
The close matches were Jose Mendoza's 5-0 win over Ian Nickell at 133, Jake Briggs' 4-2 win over Dalton Kelley at 149, David Meza's 4-2 win over Andrew Balch at 165, Reuben Franklin's 10-7 win over Sean Pollack at 184 and Frankie Hurtado's 8-5 win over Alex Encarnacion at 197.
Cervantes' pin gave the Blue squad a 21-17 team win.
4 ex-Jam players reach NBA
Four former Bakersfield Jam players have made the opening-day rosters of NBA teams: Eric Bledsoe (Los Angeles Clippers), Devin Ebanks (Los Angeles Lakers), Travis Leslie (Los Angeles Clippers), and Luke Zeller (Phoenix Suns).
The Jam opens its season on the road against the Rio Grande Valley Vipers Nov. 23. The Jam home opener is Nov. 29 agains the Idaho Stampede.
JC women's soccer
GLENDORA -- Jasmine Williams scored in the 61st minute to lift Citrus College's women's soccer team to a 1-0 victory over Bakersfield College.
The Owls imroved to 14-1-2 with the Western State Conference win.
Renegade goalie Erin Griepsma had saves on the other two shots on goal by Citrus. Bakersfield (8-9) will host Santa Monica at 4 p.m. Friday.
Most CommentedMost Popular
A forceful Kern County Sheriff Donny Youngblood announced at a tense press conference Thursday that David Sal Silva, whose death earlier this month raised questions about use of force by deputies, died as a result of hypertensive heart disease and was not only intoxicated but had methamphetamine...
The death of a man in custody following a prolonged struggle with Kern County Sheriff's deputies and CHP officers and the subsequent fracas over confiscated witness cellphones have gained international attention and raised concerns here that the incidents could tarnish the county's emerging...
The Kern County Sheriff's Office is out of control. That's one conclusion many people will draw based on the events of the past two weeks and in the context of recent years.
Sheriff’s investigators served a search warrant on Kern Medical Center and the Mary K. Shell Mental Health Center seeking medical records to find possible reasons for David Sal Silva’s behavior prior to and during his encounter with law enforcement, The Californian learned Friday.
Blood stains are still visible on the sidewalk at the corner of Flower Street and Palm Drive, where a Bakersfield man struggled with as many as nine officers and later died this week.
Classes were canceled at Bakersfield High School Monday after three small bottle bomb explosions struck campus, authorities said.
David Sal Silva’s screams seem like they will never stop.
A forceful Kern County Sheriff Donny Youngblood announced at a tense press conference Thursday that David Sal Silva, whose death earlier this month raised questions about use of force by deputies, died as a result of hypertensive heart disease and was not only intoxicated but had methamphetamine and other drugs in his system at the time of his death.