Coach Jeff Welsing hasn’t had a dream like last year about the state wrestling meet.

“I’ve been wanting to,” he said. “Trust me.”

It sounds farfetched, but Welsing said he envisioned his Yuma High wrestling team being down by five points heading into the final match of the Division III state meet, needing a pin by his heavyweight to clinch the crown last year.

Welsing’s dream was off just a tad. His team was actually down 5 ½ points as heavyweight Oscar Vega took the mat.

The dream came true when Vega pinned his opponent.

 

Bonkers.

But it happened.

But there’s a flipside to this story, the nightmare of Walden Grove, the second place team that lost to Yuma by just half a point. Based on this regular season’s performances, the paths of both schools will likely continue to intertwine atop the medal stands.

The D-III favorites qualified a combined 25 wrestlers for the start of the state meet Thursday at Prescott Valley Event Center. Last year, two matches before Vega’s miracle on the mat claimed Yuma’s first team wrestling title since 1963, Walden Grove was docked a point.

Its coach, Victor Gonzalez, said he was dinged for a coaching misconduct after apparently saying something, which he disputed.

“It has haunted me the whole year,” the coach said.

Without the coaching misconduct, Walden Grove goes home with a half point victory over Yuma and its first team wrestling championship.

But Gonzalez’s boys never blamed their coach.

“They told me, ‘It had nothing to do with you,’” Gonzalez said. “To have kids that great is good.”

Leading Walden Grove’s redemption tour this season is a group of seniors who’ve been throwing their weight around since they were in middle school.

“That’s a family to them,” Gonzalez said.

The kingpin of the group is three-time state champ Diego Guerrero (134).

The senior conquered Sunnyside’s Jesse Ybarra, 6-4, after dropping down in weight to square up against the Iowa commit at Flowing Wells.

“That was one of the best matches I’ve been a part of,” Gonzalez said. “It was a pretty neat experience. There was an outpouring of support from the crowd. What a great match. With a kid of Jesse’s quality, you have to bring you’re ‘A’ game.”

Also dropping in weight and winning a prestigious Flowing Wells Caballero was Walden Grove’s Owen Berry.

Berry (122) transferred from Colorado and quickly made himself at home in Arizona. He’s only lost one match this season.

“Man, Owen is funky,” Gonzalez said, “In wrestling terms that mean’s he’s great at scrambling. He’s tough on on top and good on his feet as well. He’s deceptively strong.”

Berry also immediately clicked with Walden Grove’s Guerrero, Adam Alveranga, Jackson Edwards and Conrad Medina, the friends who’ve been wrestling together since 7th grade.

They are now high school seniors and on a mission.

“I remember the kids saying that (what happened last year) won’t happen this year,” Gonzalez said. “We are going to go up there (Prescott) and hopefully show some people who we are and show just how dedicated we are. The kids didn’t like how it ended last year. I’m sure they are going to come out firing.”

That’s exactly what Yuma did last year.

On Day 2 of the 2017-18 championships, Welsing told his team about the dream he had a couple of months before the state meet. Before the start of the final day at state, Welsing instructed Vega how he saw his final match unfolding.

In last season’s D-III heavyweight bout, Vega defeated a Moon Valley opponent who pinned him in the regular season.

“They (Yuma wrestlers) were blown away,” said Welsing about winning the school’s first team title in any sport since 1990.

Yuma lost two champs and a 4th place finisher from last year.

The leaders this year have each won more than 50 matches, Jacob Sanchez (182) and Aidan Erwin (170). But the team suffered a big blow about three weeks ago when Servando Campos (40-2 record, 170) fractured a leg during a home match.

Welsing will have to rely on the depth he’s developed to defend Yuma’s title. It took a while to get Yuma back to the top, but Welsing never lost hope.

“I had some doubt,” said the 14-year coach. “But I kept grinding and grinding. I knew if I kept doing it the right way, good things would come.”

Welsing still watches the video of last season’s unbelievable ending.

“Every day,” he said. “That’s what drives me.”

(Walden Grove. Photo courtesy of Walden Grove.)