Vacaville wrestling nears win #1,000

Here's a press release sent to be by Vacaville wrestling coach Adam Wight. Congrats to the Bulldogs and their continuity over the years!

Vacaville wrestling nears win #1,000
With half the season behind us, the Vacaville High School (CA) Wrestling team begins to focus on the remaining regular season dual matches, and preparing for the post season run. However, perhaps of even more impressive note, the Vacaville Wrestling program is preparing to accomplish an amazing milestone – their 1,000th dual meet victory as a program, in its 49 years of existence.

No other Bulldog head coach owns more wins in any sport than Sac Joaquin Section Hall of Famer Larry Nelson, who helped found the program with athletic director Tom Zunino, in 1961. Nelson captained the program for 32 seasons and retired in 1993 with 553 dual meet wins. His son Dave took over the program, and in his seven year tenure amassed an impressive 161 wins, with just 21 losses. Following Dave’s untimely passing in 2000 from Lou Gehrig’s disease, Rich Penaluna continued the strong tradition, winning 127 duals in 5 years, with just 12 losses. Penaluna owns the best winning percentage of any head coach in the program’s history, winning 88.8% of all contests entered – his 2002 team finished their dual season 24-0, which included winning the prestigious Clovis West Shootout.

If you are keeping track, between three head coaches, the program amassed 841 wins, prior to current head coaches Adam Wight and Clint Birch taking over for the 2005-2006 season. Since then, Wight and Birch have solidified Vacaville as one of the top dual programs in the state and country, with a 157-38 record (21-3 this season). Think the schedule has gotten easier? Wight and Birch have continued where Penaluna left off, attending the Clovis West Shootout on a yearly basis; they also wrestled a home and away series with reigning state champions Bakersfield High School in 2008-2009, and have competed at more of a national stage than their predecessors with six consecutive trips to The Clash, National Duals, in Rochester, Minnesota, where this year the team finished in 10th place, with a 4-2 record.

The total as it stands right now is:

L. Nelson 553
D. Nelson + 161
Penaluna + 127
Wight/Birch + 157
998

The Bulldogs will most certainly get # 999 vs. Fairfield High on Wednesday January 19th, at home. The Falcons have forfeited 12 of 14 weights to two league opponents thus far this season, and will most likely do the same versus the Bulldogs. Prior to the high school match, Willis Jepson will host a league dual of their own, facing CA Jacobs of Dixon at 5:30 PM. The wrestling program at Willis Jepson has been coached over the years by Dave Nelson, Clint Birch most currently Chris Marino and Armando Orzco, and is key factor to the success of the high school program.

The Bulldogs will then have an opportunity to capture the 1,000 win mark when the De La Salle Spartans visit Vacaville on Saturday January 22, 2011 – start time is set for 6 PM. The Spartans carry in a # 7 state rank to Vacaville’s # 12, and are the current defending North Coast Section Champions. The Bulldogs, the defending Sac Joaquin Section Champions, narrowly defeated De La Salle last season, with the dual meet ending in a tie, and Vacaville winning on criteria. The two teams have faced each other in a smaller capacity this season, when senior Hudson Buck pinned Lucas Sheridan of De La Salle in 33 seconds – Sheridan is the current USA Wrestling Greco Roman national champion, and has been ranked as high as #4 nationally at 189 lbs. this season. The dual will be the last home dual meet for the 2011 senior class, who will be honored that night – a Buck/ Sheridan rematch may be the highlight of the night’s wrestling, which is sure to be a barn burner. Should the ‘Dogs prove unsuccessful then, they will likely accomplish the feat at one of two remaining league duals this season; at Napa on January 26 and at Will C. Wood on Feb. 2.

The team focus in an individual sport has always been a major contributor to the success of the wrestling team at Vacaville. The credit for this accomplishment cannot be narrowed to a single individual – but rather it is a testament to the work ethic of the Vacaville coaches, assistant coaches, wrestlers and parents of the past 49 years. The Bulldogs are showing no signs of slowing down yet, having won the 11 of the past 13 Sac Joaquin section dual championships, and 7 of the last 9 Sac Joaquin Section Masters Championships. The team is currently ranked #12 in the state by thecaliforniawrestler.com, the official newsletter of California wrestling – however ironically, the newsletter does not take “dual strength” into account. Surely if they did, the ‘Dogs would be closer to the head of the pack.