Gallup senior enters
NMAA state wrestling meet at 40-0

KIRTLAND, N.M. – It’s been a record-setting year for Gallup wrestler Jhalil Denetclaw.

The Gallup senior enters the New Mexico Activities Association Class 4A state meet with a perfect record as Denetclaw improved his mark to 40-0 after winning the two-day NMAA Region 1-4A meet at Kirtland Central High School on Saturday.

Denetclaw pinned Santa Fe St. Michael’s Jedrek Lewandowski in the second period with 18 seconds left in the 285-pound weight class for the region title.

“I just don’t like losing,” Denetclaw said of his motivation to push himself every time he gets on the mat. “Every time that I lost, I didn’t like that feeling of losing, so this year I wanted to be better.”

With his impeccable credentials, the Gallup grappler is looking to win his first state crown as the NMAA state meet is slated to start on Friday and end on Saturday at the Rio Rancho Events Center.

Last season, Denetclaw finished fourth at the state meet as he came up short to two-time defending state champ David Gutierrez of Socorro by a fall in the third period in the semifinal.

In the consolation rounds, Denetclaw made the third-place match and wrestled region rival Robert Williams of Bloomfield.

Williams beat Denetclaw in a 6-0 decision as the Gallup wrestler compiled a 32-3 record during his junior campaign.

“I wasn’t happy with that,” Denetclaw of his state finish. “I lost to Socorro, and he ended up winning state. I felt like I could have beaten him.”

Gutierrez is also entered in the state meet as the Socorro senior ran his record to 36-2 after winning the NMAA Region 2-4A meet at Valley High School in Albuquerque on Saturday. For the state meet, Gutierrez earned the top seed while Denetclaw is the second seed.

“I’m trying to win it all with it being my last year,” Denetclaw said. “That is what I’m working for.”

Gallup coach Dexter Dale is excited about Denetclaw’s chances for a possible state crown. He feels that the competition he’s faced this season has prepared him well.

“Jhalil has won three tournaments this year in Holbrook, Window Rock and Ignacio and he saw some tough competition,” Dale said. “He’s a guy that doesn’t quit. As his coach, I have not seen him reach his limits yet. He just keeps going and going.”

As one of the team captains, the Gallup wrestler is leading by example.

“He’s a special kind of athlete because he pushes everyone,” Dale said of Denetclaw. “If he sees one of his teammates slacking, he will call him out and tell him not to cheat himself out.’

As for his pupil’s prowess on the mat, Dale has nothing but high praises for Denetclaw.

“Jhalil is very technical, meaning he will maneuver his way around his opponents strategically for takedowns, for points and for tech falls,” the Gallup coach said. “There’s a thing that coach Redd (Gashytewa) and I have like to say, which is don’t play with your food.

“He’s always going for those extra pins in hopes to tech his opponents,” he added.

Dale will be supporting seven athletes (three boys and four girls) at the state meet. Jhalil’s younger brother, Mason, also earned a state qualification. Morgan (20-7) placed fifth at 210 at regionals while sophomore Jacob Yazzie (18-11) received a wildcard.

“Mason is the complete opposite of his brother, meaning Jhalil is one that will pick up an opponent and slam him,” Dale said. “But Mason is more of a patient wrestler where he will wait for his opportunity. “He’ll work it, and he’ll tire his opponent out until they’re exhausted, then he’ll go for the pin.”

The four other state qualifiers are senior Tiana Tom (19-4), junior Faith Swatzell (17-11) and freshmen Quanndreia Ramone (11-10) and Mia Silago (14-16) on the girls team.

At the NMAA Girls Region I meet at West Las Vegas High School on Feb. 8, Tom placed third at 132 pounds while Silago took fifth at 235 and Ramone garnered eighth at 185. Swatzell, meanwhile, received a wildcard entry at 165 pounds.

“They’re all awesome,” Gallup girls coach Redd Gashytewa said. “They committed to it, and they were disciplined. They came in and got their jobs done to make state.

“Two of them are wrestling for the first year,” Gashytewa said of Ramone and Silago.

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