This past weekend was the Freshman/Sophomore State Tournament in Fresno, CA. Tim Ditrich finished with a 3rd place and Alex Greybill finished with a 7th place at the 103 lb. weight class. Also placing was Allen Emmons with a 5th at 152 lbs. It was a long weekend but the Pondo wrestlers got a lot of matches and gained a lot of experience at the statewide level.


It was a tough weekend for the Bruins down in Bakersfield this past weekend. The four Bruins were out of the tournament on the first day of competition. All four had very tough draws right out of the gate but still fought hard to advance. Junior's Aaron Demay and Paul Buchanan both won two matches to finish 2-2 on the day and both Colby Haley and Jesse Routsong finished at 0-2. The Bruins will look to make a big rebound at next year's State Meet as three of their four State qualifiers will be back. Ponderosa will also be looking to compete for the Section title in 2009-10.


Four Bruins will make the trip to the State Meet next weekend after placing in the top seven in each of their respective weight classes. Placing 5th were Jesse Routsong and Paul Buchanan while Colby Haley and Aaron DeMay finished with a 6th. All four fell into the consolation bracket after the first day of wrestling and were forced to fight their way back the hard way. Three Bruins, Tim Ditrich, Kyle Meniketti and Bret Blubaugh, fell one match shy of placing in the top 8 for a chance at the State Meet. The State tournament will begin at 9am on Friday morning at the Rabobank Arena.


Ten Bruins will be moving on to next week's Masters Tournament at the University of Pacific in Stockton held on Thursday and Friday. Tim Ditrich in the finals won by fall and Kyle Meniketti won one point shy of a major decision. Also reaching the finals but falling short were Colby Haley, Bret Blubaugh and Paul Buchanan. Coming in third place were Jesse Routsong and Aaron DeMay. Allen Emmons finished with fourth place and taking 5th were Gaaret Marinelli and Kenny Steers. Taking 6th place and falling one place short of qualifying for next week was Sean Melton. The top seven wresters in each weight class at the Masters will qualify for the State Meet in Bakersfield.


All 14 varsity wrestlers placed in the top four to advance to the divisional touranament next Friday and Saturday at Del Oro High School. Four Bruins, Tim Ditrich, Kyle Meniketti, Lyndell Scarr and Paul Buchanan all won SVC championships Friday evening at Ponderosa. Reaching the finals but taking second place were Colby Haley, Jesee Routsong, Aarond DeMay and Bret Blubaugh. Taking third was Sean Melton, Brycen Carlson, Allen Emmons and Riley Nooner. Taking 4th place were Gaaret Marinelli and Kenny Steers. Wrestlers who place in the top five next week at divisionals will advace to the Masters meet at the University of Pacific.


On Saturday the Bruins captured another Team Section Championship giving them their 19th banner. After receiving a bye the first round Ponderosa shut out Woodcreek 67-0. Ponderosa then took on Del Oro in the championship match and won eight of the fourteen matches and finished with a 37-26 dual score. It was a total team effort as the Bruins rallied to win six of the first eight matches. Two of the biggest matches came right out of the gate as Aaron DeMay won his match and Kenny Steers followed with a fall.

Next up for the Bruins is the SVC meet at Ponderosa High School on Friday. This is the first post-season qualifier on the road to the state meet in Bakersfield.


On Wednesday night the Bruins took down the Vista del Lago Eagles by a score of 75-0. The senior's and thier parents were honored after the four years of being in the Bruin wrestling program. This year's seniors include (Left to Right) Kyle Thomas, Evan Pugner, Colby Haley, Clay Rains and Bret Blubaugh.

Next up for the Bruins will be the Division II Team Sections at Rosemont on Saturday. Pondo will look to take their 19th Team Section Championship.


This past Saturday the Bruins finished 4-1 on the day at the Varsity Placer Duals. Pondo's toughest dual of the day was against Chico who they had to wrestle right out of the gate. After falling to Chico, the Bruins rallied and won their next four duals in a row against Bear River, Damonte Ranch, Placer and then Woodcreek to capture 5th place. Going undated on the day and receiving All-Tournament status was Aaron DeMay, Allen Emmons and Clay Rains.

This weekend's varsity tournament, the Tim Brown Memorial, will take place Friday and Saturday in downtown Sacramento at the Memorial Auditorium. The Bruins will look to finish near the top amongst the 60 plus teams attending.


The Bruins snuck past the Union Mine Diamondback on Wednesday night as the dual ended with a score of 43-24. There were a couple close matches that didn't go the Bruins' way but still managed to win eight of the fourteen matches on the night. Coming up with big falls were Erik Greybill, Kyle Meniketti and Sean Melton. Also capturing wins were Aaron DeMay, Evan Pugner, Bret Blubaugh, Kenny Steers and Clay Rains.

This weekend's varsity tournament, the Tim Brown Memorial, will take place Friday and Saturday in downtown Sacramento at the Memorial Auditorium. The Bruins will look to finish near the top amongst the 60 plus teams attending.


Saturday night in Lincoln Paul Buchanan and Kyle Meniketti came home with championship wins. Reaching the finals but falling a bit short were Tim Ditrich, Jesse Routsong, Aaron DeMay and Lyndell Scarr. Ponderosa had 12 total placers on the day as the team finished in first place in front of Chico and Willows. Also placing were Walker Ditrich 7th, Brycen Carlson 5th, Gaarat Marinelli 5th, Allen Emmons 3rd, Bret Blubaugh 3rd and Kenny Steers 4th.

Next up for the Bruins will be the Union Mine Diamondbacks on Wednesday at 6pm at Union Mine High School.


On Wednesday night the Bruins travelled down to Galt High School to take on the Warriors. The Bruins came out on fire as they won 13 of 14 matches and finished with a dual score of 66-3. Getting pins on the night were Sean Melton, Tanner Bell, Brycen Carlson, Jordan Harter, Aaron Demay, Bryce Neff and Jarrett McAdams.

Next up for the Bruins will be the Mark Fuller Invitational at Lincoln High School for the varsity team and the Frosh/Soph Tournament at Foothill High School.


The Doc Buchanan Invitational, arguably the second toughest tournament in California, was held this past Friday and Saturday. Ponderosa finished the tournament in 7th place and brought home five placers. Lyndell Scarr took home the championship at 189 lbs. with a 5-3 victory over Clovis' #3 Tommy Burriel. Placing 3rd was Paul Buchanan, Tim Ditrich and Jesse Routsong finished 6th and Bret Blubaugh 8th. With Scarr's win, he takes home one of the famous cowboy hats that are given to the Doc B champions.

Next up for the Bruins will be a league dual on Wednesday at Galt at 6pm.


Just like last season the Oak Ridge versus Ponderosa dual was an exciting one. Pondo was down 16-0 after the first three matches but rallied to win the next six in a row. Tim Ditrich and Kyle Meniketti got big pins during that stretch and swung the score back in the Bruins favor. Also recording pins in the last two matches were Jesse Routsong and Gaaret Marinelli and ended the dual with a Bruin victory, 47-23. The Bruins ended up winning nine of the fourteen matches but everyone played a huge role in the win on Wednesday night.


During winter break the Bruins traveled to San Diego where they competed in the El Cajon Invitational. Tim Ditrich captured the title at 103 as he finished the two days of competition at 5-0 and has now moved his record to 15-0. Also placing in the tournament were Lyndell Scarr at 3rd place, Colby Haley 6th, Garret Marinelli 6th and Clay Rains 6th. Several other Bruins came a little short of placing but all contributed to the team's 5th place finish. The two California teams placing ahead of the Bruins were Poway and Sultana.


The Ponderosa Bruins kicked off the year last weekend at the Newark Ironman Duals. Ponderosa finished in 3rd place by going 5-1. The Bruins defeated Mission San Jose, Marin Catholic, Los Gatos, Beyer and Will C. Wood. Their only lost came to St. Francis from the Bay Area, 39-22. Up this week will be their first league dual against Christian Brothers at home. Following that will be the Ponderosa Duals on Friday (varsity) and Saturday (junior varsity).


The Ponderosa Bruins kicked off the year last weekend at the Newark Ironman Duals. Ponderosa finished in 3rd place by going 5-1. The Bruins defeated Mission San Jose, Marin Catholic, Los Gatos, Beyer and Will C. Wood. Their only lost came to St. Francis from the Bay Area, 39-22. Up this week will be their first league dual against Christian Brothers at home. Following that will be the Ponderosa Duals on Friday (varsity) and Saturday (junior varsity).


It was a great weekend for the Bruins as they finished first place in both the varsity and junior varsity tournaments. The varsity on Friday finished the day at 5-0, defeating Del Campo, Damonte Ranch, Lincoln, Bella Vista and Will C. Wood in the championship. The Second team finished 4-1 on the day. Coming away with All-Tourney mugs were Erik Greybill, Kyle Meniketti, Colby Haley, Brycen Carlson, Lyndell Scarr and Paul Buchanan.

On Saturday the JV Bruins finished 5-0 on the day defeating Del Oro in the championship dual. Pondo's second team finished 4-1 and ended up in a 3-way tie for first in their pool. Next up for the Bruins will be at Cordova on Wednesday night.


The Ponderosa Bruins kicked off the year last weekend at the Newark Ironman Duals. Ponderosa finished in 3rd place by going 5-1. The Bruins defeated Mission San Jose, Marin Catholic, Los Gatos, Beyer and Will C. Wood. Their only lost came to St. Francis from the Bay Area, 39-22. Up this week will be their first league dual against Christian Brothers at home. Following that will be the Ponderosa Duals on Friday (varsity) and Saturday (junior varsity).