Over 20 high schools converged onto the Dublin High campus on Saturday, December 7th to compete in the 2nd annual Gaels Showdown Girls Wrestling Tournament. The competition took place throughout the morning and afternoon in both the Sports Complex and Auxiliary Gym, featuring some of the region’s top wrestlers.
Dublin had a really strong showing in the event, placing in 2nd place as a team. Many wrestlers medaled, with Navjot Waraich and Candice Carandang finishing in 1st place in their weight class while Lana Nguyen posted a 2nd place finish. It was a promising start to the season for the Gaels, as they continue to grow the program into one of the North Coast Section’s top contenders.
Meanwhile, the Boys Wrestling team will begin competing next weekend and is poised for a successful season as well. The Boys and Girls each have several tournaments on the horizon before returning home on January 9th for a Dual Meet against Granada.
In addition to a busy day of wrestling, the campus also hosted a quadruple header of soccer, starting with a Junior Varsity Girls matchup on Saturday morning between Dublin and Alameda. The Gaels controlled the first half to take a 2-0 advantage into the break, watched as the Hornets dominated much of the second half to pull even at 2-2, only to score with less than 2:00 remaining to earn the 3-2 victory.
The Varsity Girls contest that evening was far less dramatic, as the Gaels were in command throughout and defeated Alameda 3-1. Freshman sensation Sylvia Fok scored 2 goals, while Alina Rios finished the scoring to help give the Gaels a victory in their season opening match. Dublin’s Varsity will be back in action on Wednesday afternoon (December 11th) as they host American at 4:00 (JV at 6:00).
The evening doubleheader featured the JV Boys and Varsity Boys taking on Pittsburg. The Boys had a close battle but ultimately fell to the Pirates. It appeared as if the Varsity Boys might suffer a similar fate as they trailed 2-0 with less than 20 minutes remaining.
However, the Gaels rallied valiantly, scoring two goals including a free kick by Ethan Kennedy with less than 2 minutes left to come away with a 2-2 draw. Dublin also had a tie in their season opener (0-0 against Castro Valley on Friday night), so their record now stands at 0-0-2. The Gaels’ next contest will be on December 18th when it hosts Piedmont at 7:00
