Four Firebirds opened the season at the prestigious Walsh Ironman Tournament in Ohio, and brothers Filip and Boris Novachkov both placed second. Then there was F. Novachkov's individual championship and the team's fifth-place finish at the 92-team Reno Tournament of Champions just before Christmas.

And last Saturday Fremont claimed second place at the 21st Cupertino Memorial Wrestling Tournament, with each member of The Fantastic Five--Staats, the Novachkovs, Greg Crane and Kurtis Ogasawara--earning first-place medals.

None, however, are more significant than a victory over perennial Santa Clara Valley Athletic League De Anza Division rival Los Gatos in a Dec. 15 dual meet. To Fremont's entire "Wrestler Nation," the Firebirds' 36-35 triumph was quite an accomplishment.

"It was the first time since 1990 that we beat them," Soto marveled. "Los Gatos is always a solid team and such a challenge."

"We had to wrestle them tough," said Ogasawara, a senior rated second among Central Coast Section 140-pounders and among the top 12 in the state.

"We were so excited about beating them," Staats said of the win at Los Gatos. "I've never seen anything like it."

Many wrestling aficionados are saying the same thing about Fremont's Fantastic Five. "The higher the caliber tournament, the better Fremont will do," one onlooker predicted during the Cupertino Memorial event. "You usually don't see so many superior wrestlers on one team. Their best wrestlers are real studs."

Filip Novachkov, a two-time SCVAL and CCS champion and a 112-pound state meet runner-up in 2005, signed a National Letter of Intent to compete for Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo next winter. Crane has signed with Cal State Bakersfield. Ogasawara and Staats, both still unsigned, hope strong senior seasons will turn into wrestling scholarships. Boris Novachkov, who won national championships last summer in both freestyle and Greco-Roman, is a junior competing at 103 pounds, the lightest weight class.

A couple of younger wrestlers joined the five veterans with key efforts against Los Gatos, Soto said. "Sophomore Donny Mena came in and got a third-round pin for us at 215," the coach explained, "and a freshmen, Stephen McKee, came up from junior varsity and hung tough at 103."

McKee did not win, but he did not get pinned either. Los Gatos scored four points for the decision at 103, but, as Soto pointed out, "if McKee gets pinned, Los Gatos gets six points and we lose by one instead of winning by one."

McKee was in the varsity line-up because B. Novachkov moved up to 112 for the match. His older brother moved up two classes to 130. "With their skill levels, they are capable of beating heavier guys," Soto explained.

At the Cupertino tournament, which was dedicated this year to Fremont volunteer assistant coach Dave Levens, the Firebirds finished second with 175 points. For the second year in a row, Del Oro of Loomis (235) took home the first-place trophy.

St. Francis (170.5) was third and host Cupertino (113) took fourth. The King's Academy, led by 145-pound champion Stephen Thalin, placed 10th with 52.

B. Novachkov, Ogasawara and Crane all beat Del Oro wrestlers in the finals. Crane, who scored first-round pins in all three of his bouts and needed just 36 seconds to win the finale, received the Outstanding Wrestler award for the upper weights (160-275 pounds). B. Novachkov earned the top honor for the lower weights (103-130), and Thalin picked up the top honor for the middle divisions (135-152).

Thalin's third-round pin in the finals against St. Francis senior Joel Shaw (ranked No. 1 in the CCS and seventh in the state) was his first career win against a state-ranked opponent and his first tourney title this season. Last season, while competing at 135, Thalin won the SCVAL crown and placed fourth at CCS before going 1-2 at the state meet. Going into last weekend, Thalin was ranked fifth in CCS with second-place efforts at the Coyote Classic in Bakersfield and the Coast Classic at Scotts Valley.

Shortly after Staats edged Palo Alto junior John Hall, 9-8, in the 189-pound title match, his brother claimed third at 275 pounds. Sophomore Jimmy Staats turned a reversal into a pin against Mark Kornei of St. Francis.

Senior Michael Alpers (152) and junior Atchison Brittle (171) both picked up sixth-place medals and Mark Scandalis (125) won the consolation bracket for Fremont.

Homestead junior Paul Howard lost his first match in the 130-pound class, then won three in a row to capture third place.

King's 135-pound senior Evan Winslow scored two first-round pins to claim the consolation medal. Brian Yoon, a Homestead senior, finished sixth at 140.