The W.F. West boys wrestling team got off to a slow start on Wednesday, falling behind double-digits in Aberdeen early.
A run of three straight pins gave the Bearcats the lead, though, and a later run of four straight pins helped W.F. West secure a 45-32 victory over the Bobcats.
“It was a good team effort,” W.F. West coach Jamie Rakevich said. “We had a couple guys really step up.”
The first run came with the Bearcats down 10-0, when John Alexander (120), Seth Norby-Betts (126), and Kyson Peterson (132) each picked up a victory via pin to give W.F. West the lead. Both Alexander and Peterson’s pins came in the first period, while Norby-Betts needed just 18 seconds of the second period to win his match.
Gabe Alvarado followed with a win of his own via decision, and Rakevich called Alvarado the “linchpin” of the match.
“Gabe’s a really tough kid,” Rakevich said. “It kind of got everything going.”
The Bobcats picked up back-to-back wins to make it 21-20, but that led to W.F. West’s second big run of the night.
Liam Land (157), Race Scalici (165), and Graysen Serl (175) each pinned their opponents to push W.F. West’s lead back to double-digits, and Solomon Dennis “put the icing on the cake” with a pin of his own at 190.
“They came up clutch and took care of it,” Rakevich said. “Aberdeen’s got a good, tough squad, and we didn’t match up great with them … But our guys competed really well. We had to move some guys around and wrestle out of weight classes just to hill for some sickness and other things, and the kids stepped up and responded really well. I’m really proud of them.”
The Bearcats will head to Tumwater next Wednesday, Jan. 21 before returning home for senior night the following Wednesday, Jan. 28 to face Shelton.
