Six Clovis wrestlers competed in the championship rounds of the Doc Buchanan Invitational at Clovis High School on Saturday, Jan 6. Three came out as champions.
Two of the champions represented Buchanan High School: Anthony Montalvo (182 pounds) and Trevor Ervin (220).
Montalvo secured a last second takedown and near fall for a 7-3 win against Bergen Catholic’s Jacob Cardenas, clinching his second straight Doc Buchanan title. It was clear from the beginning that the senior was fired up for the match as he came out urging the crowd to get behind him.
“That’s just the way I come out. I come out to take somebody’s head off. That’s what I try to do every match. It’s no different than the finals,” Montalvo said.
With two Doc Buchanan cowboy hats under his belt now, Montalvo was full of confidence going into this year’s tournament.
“In your mind, you gotta be the best guy out there,” he said. “If that’s not in your mind, you have already lost half the match.”
And he has plenty of grit to go along with his confidence.
“I don’t think anybody wants it more,” Montalvo said. “You have to rip my arm to stop me from wrestling.”
Montalvo’s teammate Trevor Ervin showed the same time of determination with a grueling overtime win in the 220-pound championship round against Joey Daniel of Santa Ana. Ervin found himself in trouble a few times against Daniel, but was able to escape and come out on top in the end.
“He got under my legs a couple of times. That’s always an ‘oh crap moment,’” Ervin said. “Just wrestle through all the positions and continue wrestling no matter what. If you get taken down, come back and get an escape and a reversal. You get moments in a match where you get anxious, but you have to keep wrestling. You can’t stop and think about it.”
Particularly in overtime, Ervin had to dig for every ounce of energy left in himself.
“When it gets to overtime, it’s all about heart,” Ervin said. “At Buchanan, our practices have been especially hard the last couple of weeks to prepare us for tournaments like this. I was in good shape going into it and I wanted to get the hat.”
The cowboy hat is the reward that’s given to every champion at the Doc Buchanan Invitational.
“I was just trying to stay as calm as I can,” Ervin said. “The biggest thing is to stay calm, so you don’t come out there and get exhausted quickly.”
For Clovis High’s Giano Petrucelli, it took double overtime to defeat Selma’s Tristan Lujan in the 113-pound division. With the home crowd urging him on, Petrucelli took the win 2-1.
“Having the home crowd was a boost and it helped me a lot,” he said.
Although he is used to getting off to fast starts, Petrucelli didn’t get the start he wanted in the championship round.
“I always try to get ahead in the beginning. I feel like if I get ahead, I have a good chance,” Petrucelli said. “I knew he was going to be tough on top. He likes dropping down on the legs, so I had to get out quick and not get tilted. It wasn’t the best, but I got it done.”
In the most anticipated match of the night, Ponderosa’s Cohlton Schultz defeated Clovis High’s Seth Nevills 3-2 in the 285-pound division. Nevills, who is a three-time state champion and a three-time Doc B champion, was ranked No. 2 behind the two-time Doc B champion Schultz.
The other two wrestlers from Clovis who finished in second-place were Clovis West’s Ryan Reyes and Ethan Leake of Buchanan. Reyes lost to Colbey Harlan (Oakdale) in the 195-pound division, while Leake came up short against Cleveland Belton (St. John Bosco) in the 126-pound division.
Bergen Catholic from New Jersey finished first in the team standings (253.5), Buchanan finished second (199.5), Selma took third (148), Gilroy was fourth (132.5), Clovis came in fifth (113) and Clovis North in sixth (88).
Formerly known as The Clovis Invitational, the Doc Buchanan Invitational was renamed in January of 1991. Former Clovis High principal Rene Errotabere renamed the tournament after Dr. Floyd Buchanan, the first superintendent of Clovis Unified School District.
“I’m just trying to soak it all in. This is my last rodeo at Doc B,” Montalvo said. “I love this tournament and representing Doc B, who was a great man. I take pride in that.”