Dropping a weight class
good move for Ramos
After finishing just short of earning a
berth in last year’s state tournament at
120 pounds, Gering’s Marcelino Ramos
made the decision to drop to 113 this
season in hopes of achieving even
more success.
That decision has paid dividends for the junior, who has
already surpassed his win
total last year (19), with 30 and
counting.
Wrestlers are known for
going down a weight class at
times to be “bigger” at that
weight, and Ramos felt he
was too small to compete at 120
so he made the transition this
season.
“I just felt like I was a small
120 pounder, so I dropped
to 113 to see what I could do
from there,” he said.
He added that the move
has improved his chances of
qualifying for the state tournament next month.
“I feel like my season has
gone pretty well. I dropped
down a weight class, so I
feel good,” Ramos said. “I
just need to keep working
hard and keep pushing
myself.
Ramos ran into one of
the state’s best 106 pounders on
Tuesday night when the junior
squared off with Scottsbluff’s Cruz
Delacruz, who is ranked No. 3 in Class
B. Despite falling 6-4, Ramos feels like
he gained a lot of confidence.
The junior didn’t disappoint after
the tough loss to Delacruz, wrestling
untouched through the first day of the
Chadron Invite on Friday and coming
through with a sixth-place finish on
Saturday.
Earning a medal at the Chadron Invite is usually a pretty good indication
a wrestler can make some noise at the
Nebraska state tournament according to
Gering coach Jj Behrens.
“All of the guys have set a goal from
the beginning of the season,” Behrens
said. “And with all of the hard work
they’re putting in, we’re fast approaching
it, I think.”
Ramos defeated Kody Hagen of Hot
Springs in a 13-4 major decision before
downing Valentine’s
Noah Ecklund 9-5 in the quarterfinals.
Ramos suffered his first loss of the
tournament in the semifinals, falling to
Sterling, Colorado’s Colby Duncan, who
won the tournament with a pin in the
finals.
Behrens is pleased with Ramos’ competitiveness at this point of the season
and said he is making a lot of progress
from his feet.
“He’s getting better and better on his
feet, week in and week out,” Behrens
said. “He keeps himself competitive in
all of his matches, and his next big piece
he wants to work on is closing out those
close matches. I think that was the difference maker this weekend was closing
out those close, close matches in the final
period.”
The Bulldogs competed against Alliance where Marcelino suffered a loss, at
home against Torrington having the 120
pounder pick up another win. Marcelino
added three more wins to his record
when he competed in the Sterling, Colorado Invite. At the last dual of the season, Marcelino got one more win before
having to compete in the Class B, District
4 tournament on Feb. 14-15 in Cozad.
Ramos, who is currently 30-13 this
season, is setting his sights for Cozad
and said he is ready for the challenge
of earning a berth at this year’s Class B
state tournament.
“My goal is to place at districts and
state,” Ramos said.
Ramos made it out of districts and advanced to state, but went 1-3 in the state
tournament.
Nicole Brown
Gering High School