When Daniella Vazquez’s interest in wrestling started a few years ago, her youth coach, Moses Delfin, brought her and others to the downtown Bakersfield arena to see the showcase of top high school wrestlers in the state compete for championships.

“I remember afterward her saying, ‘I want to be a four-time state champion,’” Delfin said.

Dreams are big when you think about them, especially at a young age, but fast-forward to this past Saturday night. Vazquez, now a Garces High freshman, was right where she wanted to be. She was on the mat on the Dignity Health Arena floor, battling Buchanan freshman Alexandria Marin for the 100-pound girls state championship.

Although a 10-0 major decision loss at the end of the second period wasn’t part of the dream scenario, there’s no denying what Vazquez did in reaching the CIF State final was an impressive feat.

“For her to make it to the state finals as a freshman is a huge accomplishment at this level,” said Delfin, Garces’ head wrestling coach. “She has come so far in a short amount of time. It’s cool to see her grow and get to this level. She works so hard every day, so no complaints.”

The battles between Vazquez and Marin had played out throughout the season. Delfin said it was their fourth time meeting this season, going 2-2. Their most recent match was a 3-0 decision for Vazquez in the CIF Central Section Division 1 championship quarterfinals on Feb. 14. Vazquez went on to win the D-1 individual title. She was fourth at the Masters to earn her state berth.

On Saturday, Vazquez held her own with Marin, but the latter got a first-period takedown for a 3-0 lead. Marin escaped Vazquez’s grasp for another point and then two near-fall situations gave the Bears’ standout the 10-0 lead, and eventually, the final result.

“She was down the whole match, but she kept coming after her,” Delfin said of Vazquez. “That’s all we expect, to do your best. It was her best performance tonight and Marin’s just happened to be better.”

The loss ended what had been a strong showing each day at the three-day state event. Vazquez won her first three matches by fall and then had an 11-8 semifinal decision over Monache’s Bailey Hoard to reach the state final.

“We traveled all over the state this year, looking for the best girls in the state,” Delfin said. “The rankings kept shifting. I think there were three girls in the top eight who did not place.”

Aside from a reversal of the outcome, the Rams coach was very proud of Vazquez, who he’s known since she was in the sixth grade. Delfin, a 1999 NCAA All-America selection while wrestling at 125 pounds for Cal State Bakersfield, became Garces’ head coach this season. It was quite a nice debut season in his role now with the Rams, after serving as a development coach prior to moving into his new role.

Vazquez was one of five Garces wrestlers to reach the state tournament. Senior Kaila Delfin made it at girls’ 115 and three guys, senior Adan Board (113) and sophomores Keanu Garcia (165) and Gabryel Juarez (120) reached the season’s final high school tournament. Garcia, who was the 14th of 16 seeds at 165, got the farthest, going 3-2, losing in the consolation round of eight. No. 1 Board went 2-2, Kaila Delfin went 1-2 and Juarez was unable to pick up a state victory in two matches.

“All of them did great, all year,” Delfin said of the Rams’ state representation. “They each know the commitment and sacrifice it takes just to get here to state. They each wrestled hard, did what we asked of them and did their best. No regrets.”

Buchanan sweeps State team titles

The Buchanan girls and boys swept the CIF State team championships.

The Bears’ boys won the program’s 10th state title, scoring 288.5 points. Poway was second (229.5 points) and St. John Bosco was third at 219.5. Buchanan boys went 3-3 in championship final matches. The top local team finisher was Frontier, which had nine male entrants, and came in at 11th place with 69 points.

The Buchanan girls won the program’s first state team title, with two individual wins in three finals to get 147.5 points. Huntington Beach’s Marina (109) and Northview (100.5) were second and third, respectively. Highland, which qualified six wrestlers for state, was the top local team, 17th with 36.5 points.