Sacred Heart Cathedral Wrestling hosted the WCAL Championships on Saturday, and it was a day to remember, with a new school record set in an eventful day for the Irish. 

Naomi Van Zandt '25, cornered by coaches Gavrielle Thompson '15 and her brother Ryden Van Zandt '22, won her third straight league title, a first in Irish wrestling history.

Jared Perez '25 made his third straight finals appearance and won his second league title, joining only a handful of two-time league champs in program history, including head coach James Woods '18, Greg Garcia '19, Kate Napolitana '22, and his teammate Van Zandt. 

In the girls' 112-pound weight class, Sarah Gantulga '26 won her first WCAL championship and qualified for her second CCS regional. She took the top position despite going up in a weight class and fighting through injury setbacks all season.

Zelia Curtiss '25 made the finals and finished second for the second straight year, while seniors Matthew Spillane, Aliana Akilu, and junior Finn Lindgren finished third to round out the medalists. 

Other sectional qualifiers were freshmen YahShuah Tuilao and Garrett Bowie, sophomore Braden Loya, and juniors Rylan Wong, Paco Luzardo, and Conor Gard. Valentino Vitolo-Giorni and Aliana Aklilu will move on as alternates.

The Irish finished with nine boys and three girls qualifying for the Central Coast Section finals, plus one girl and one boy as alternates.

"I am so proud of the kids who gave it their all and finished the year strong," Woods said about his team. "The team was devastated with injuries and illness in the season's final few weeks. Only 20 out of 43 wrestlers were able to finish the season on the mat, and many freshmen and first-year wrestlers were forced to take on varsity roles. The team still represented well despite all the adversity, thanks largely to the leadership of their captains, Jared Perez, Matthew Spillane, Aliana Aklilu, and Naomi Van Zandt."

The post-season qualifiers will compete this Saturday, February 10, at the Central Coast Section Northern Regional at Gunn High in hopes of reaching the CCS Masters on February 1 for the opportunity to qualify for the CIF State Meet. 

Full Results 

Frosh/JV Boys

• Sophomore Luke Chommanard (122 lbs.), WCAL Champ, would be a varsity wrestler if not for Jared Perez.
• Freshman Gabriel Ochoa-Bermudez (122 lbs.), 0-2, competed hard as one of our few wrestlers to stay healthy all year.
• Sophomore Ted Gikas (128 lbs.) finished 3rd
• Freshman Jack Trudeau (138 lbs.) finished 3rd
• Freshman Simon Rose (167 lbs.), WCAL champ, finishing an impressive season in which he won multiple JV tournaments and had a handful of varsity wins
• Freshman Clive Gabrielsen (177 lbs.) finished 2nd.

Varsity Boys

• YahShuah Tuilao (108 lbs.) had a gutsy 2-2 performance, placed 5th as a freshman, and will move on to CCS.
• Garrett Bowie (113 lbs.) placed 5th out of 5, another freshman CCS qualifier.
• Junior Jared Perez (122 lbs.) won WCAL for the second time and was in the finals for a third straight year, joining only a handful of two-time league champs in program history.
• Sophomore Ronin Innes (128 lbs.), 0-2, finished 7th in his first varsity league finals.
• Junior Rylan Wong (134 lbs.) placed 4th and advanced to CCS for the first time.
• Senior Matthew Spillane (144 lbs.) had an impressive day and finished 3rd, qualifying for CCS for the first time.
• Sophomore Roman Maimone (152 lbs.) 0-2, finished 7th in a challenging weight in his first year as a varsity wrestler.
• Sophomore Braden Loya (159 lbs.) finished 5th out of 5 and will make his first trip to CCS.
• Junior Phineas Lindgren (167 lbs.) pinned his way to third place as a first-year wrestler, continuing a dominant season.
• Valentino Vitolo-Giorni (177 lbs.) finished 6th and will qualify for CCS in case of an injury or dropout.
• Junior Paco Luzardo (192 lbs.) gutted out a win over Mitty to finish 4th and will make his first trip to the CCS tourney.
• Junior Conor Gard (213lbs.) finished 5th out of 5 and will get a chance to wrestle at CCS as a first-year wrestler.

Varsity Girls 

• Junior Zelia Curtiss (107lbs.) finished second and will make a second appearance in the CCS tournament.
• Freshman Winifred O'Callaghan finished 5th.
• Sarah Gantulga (112 lbs.) won her first WCAL championship and qualified for her second CCS regional. 
• Sophomore Elizabeth Ogden finished 4th.
• Sophomore Parker Harad (117 lbs.) finished 5th.
• Senior Aliana Aklilu (122 lbs.) finished 3rd in a tough bracket and will continue to CCS as an alternate.
• Junior Naomi Van Zandt (157 lbs.) won her third straight WCAL title, the first 3-time champ in program history, male or female.