Walden Grove alum Sal Silva, who attends North Idaho College, captured the NJCAA wrestling championship at 149 pounds on Thursday with a 3-1 decision over Jacob Beeson of Pratt (Kan.) at Council Bluffs, Iowa.
Silva, who won the 138-pound state championship to help pace Walden Grove to a Division III second-place finish in 2018, took third place at the NJCAA national champions last year in the 149-pound weight class.
Silva announced in February his commitment to continue studies and wrestling career at Arizona Christian in Glendale. Former Cienega standouts Bobby Tellez and Carlo Castagnaro wrestle for the Firestorm along with former Sahuarita standout Tucker Leinen.
Silva’s title comes a month after Sunnyside great Roman Bravo-Young won the NCAA title at 133 pounds while with Penn State.
Silva’s championship run:
First round — Sal Silva, North Idaho, defeated Cameron Bergman, Joliet, by forfeit.
Second round — Silva, North Idaho, major decision over Kael Bunce, Muskegon, 15-5.
Quarterfinals — Silva, North Idaho, defeated Joel Ostrom, Cloud, 5-1.
Semifinals — Silva, North Idaho, medical forfeit Malik Johnson, Cowley, 6-1 4:50
Championship — Silva, North Idaho, defeated Jacob Beeson, Pratt, 3-1
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ALLSPORTSTUCSON.com publisher, writer and editor Javier Morales is a former Arizona Press Club award winner. He is a former Arizona Daily Star beat reporter for the Arizona basketball team, including when the Wildcats won the 1996-97 NCAA title. He has also written articles for CollegeAD.com, Bleacher Report, Lindy’s Sports, TucsonCitizen.com, The Arizona Republic, Sporting News and Baseball America, among many other publications. He has also authored the book “The Highest Form of Living”, which is available at Amazon.
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