Justin Mejia – Clovis HS
The Fresno Bee
Clovis High made yet another national statement, delivering 11 medalists — featuring golds from freshman Justin Mejia and senior Nick Nevills — to win the 43-team Top Gun Wrestling Tournament Saturday in Alliance, Ohio.
It was a two-day, national-caliber event, just as was the Doc Buchanan Invitational — a five-state, 96-team tournament — that the Cougars crushed by 88 1/2 points two weeks ago on their own mat.
This time, Clovis — ranked No. 3 nationally by Amateur Wrestling News after finishing No. 1 a year ago — traveled 2,500 miles to a wrestling hotbed in the upper Midwest and scored 302 points. Massilon Perry, a perennial public-school power from Ohio, placed second for the fifth-straight year with 287 points.
The Cougars, 11-time state champions, began the finals with a 7-6 decision at 106 pounds by nationally fifth-ranked Mejia and closed them with a 12-3 major decision by Nevills, a two-time state gold medalist unbeaten for two seasons.
Clovis also received seconds from Khristian Olivas (132) and Isaiah Hokit (138), thirds from Tristan Gilliland (113), Josh Hokit (160), A.J. Nevills (182) and Matt Weiss (220) and fourths from Julian Gaytan (120) and Dominic Kincaid (152).
The Cougars failed to medal (top six) in just three of the 14 weight classes.
Clovis will be favored to win a record fourth straight CIF State championship March 7-8 at Bakersfield’s Rabobank Arena. The Cougars have twice won three consecutive state titles.
Read more here: http://www.fresnobee.com/2014/01/18/3721536/prep-wrestling-clovis-earns-title.html#storylink=cpy
