Heartland Team Judo Competition

On October 30th, the Lovato Jiu Jitsu Team had two members compete in a local Team Judo Competition. Travis Serna (Lovato Jiu Jitsu Brown Belt and Judo Black Belt under Sensei Brian Picklo and Sensei Mike Darter) and Jon Combs (Lovato Jiu Jitsu Purple Belt and Judo Green Belt under Sensei Mike Darter) competed at the Heartland Judo Competition hosted by OKCDT. The format of the tournament was teams of five to compete against each other trying to win 3 out of 5 weight classes. There were a few ways to win; 1) Throwing for two ippons 2) Submitting your opponent 3) Winning on points at the end of the 5 minute round. The weight classes were: below 150, 151-170, 171-190, 190-210 and an open weight class. There were quite a few teams from around the Mid-west including, (Multiple) OU Judo Teams, OKCDT, Matrix Grappling, Dallas Judo, and a few others.

Travis Serna competed for the OKCDT Seniors Advanced Team at the 170 and below weight class. He went 2-1 on that day showing both his stand up (throwing) ability along with his groundwork. Travis' only loss that day was to a good Judoka who has been ranked nationally in the past.

Jon Combs participated in multiple divisions and for multiple teams during the tournament. In the novice division he competed in the 150 and under division as well as the 171-190 division for the OKCDT Team. Combs (as most people refer to him) did not lose a match in the novice division at either weight. He also competed for Team Matrix in the advanced 150 and under division. In this division he was 2-1, beating two black belts and losing a tough match on points to Connor Adams.

In the end, Team Matrix took the overall Team Title with OKCDT taking second.


Check out the pictures from the tournament on the OKCDT Flickr page.

This tournament was featured on USA Judo's newsletter:

The Lovato Team is proud of Combs and Travis! They have dedicated the time and effort to cross-training in Judo and Jiu Jitsu to supplement each other.

Way to go guys!