Cuesta Wrestling took last week off but is back in action with a big week at home. The Grapplers host the 2022 Meathead Mover Invitational this Saturday, while also completing their SouthEast Conference (SEC) Dual schedule on Friday against Moorpark (5 PM) and Victor Valley (6 PM). The Meathead Mover Invitational is the premier California Community College Athletic Association (CCCAA) event for Wrestling. The best teams from both the North and South converge on San Luis Obispo for the deepest and most talent-laden event short of the CCCAA State Championship. The event is sponsored by SLO's own Meathead Moving Company, which is owned by former Cuesta Wrestlers Aaron and Evan Steed. Aaron Steed was an All-WSC First Team selection and led the Cougars to a conference title and 6th place at the 1998 State Championships.
This season, Cuesta Wrestling is 1-1 in its SEC duals and ranked 12th in the State overall, so Friday's duals against the unranked Raiders and #7 Rams are crucial to their conference standings. The Cougars depth and talent should shine this weekend. Sophomore Quinn Patrick is ranked #7 at 174 and is also the only Cuesta Grappler currently ranked in the Top 8 for the State. However, the Cougars, who have yet to wrestle in front of a home crowd, have several wrestlers on the cusp of the rankings. 2021 CCCAA State Place Winner Sami Barakat is 7-2 at 165, but is currently unranked, despite a tournament title. Sophomore Henry Catalan and Freshman Jasun Bautista have both piled up the wins but have jumped around the divisions. Catalan has split his time between 157 and 165, while collecting a team-high ten wins, while Bautista has eight wins split evenly between 149 and 157. Freshman Reily Lowry has battled Patrick at 174 also jumped to 184 to compete with Leon Tippett. Lowry and Tippitt are 7-5 and 5-6 on the season, respectively. In the lower divisions Gabriel Rivera (125), Danny Gonzalez (133) and Cael Cooper (141) should all be back in action this week, along with Heavyweight Sherman Barney.
