By Jordan Nailon
W.F. West may have set a record for team points here on their home mats at the 2A Sub-Regional tournament on Friday and Saturday. It’s a matter on which Bearcats coach Jamie Rakevich is not entirely certain.
What’s certain is that the Bearcats will be sending a full flank of singlets to Regionals after they won the Sub-Regional round in convincing fashion. W.F. West wound up with 432 points piled up on their side with four champions on the podium.
By comparison, Tumwater placed second as a team with 185.5 points. The top five finishers in each bracket earned the right to advance in the postseason.
“Our front door guys all made it through, which is huge,” Rakevich said. “I think we’re taking 22 guys which is awesome. That’s all we really care about is get to the next thing. Everybody’s in the winners bracket so let’s get those younger guys that Regional experience and see how that goes.”
Zach Evans turned in what may have been the most impressive performance in the tournament as he wound up first in the 132 pound bracket. Evans defeated Daillin Schlecht of Rochester with an 8-2 decision in their title tilt.
“Zach Evans looked really good. That might have been the toughest bracket and he won it and he looked good. The kid he beat in the semis and the finals were guys he lost to last year but he puts the work in and does everything right so he can do that.”
Desmond Parriott added another title for the Bearcats when he defeated Phillip Severson of Tumwater with a 14-13 decision at 160 pounds. Daniel Matagi tacked on another top finish with a 5-0 defeat of Tumwater’s John Judy at 220 pounds and Bryson Boyd took top honors in the heavyweight bout with a 5-1 win over Tate Elliot of Black Hills.
“Boyd had a huge win over a good guy and Daniel Matagi is looking good for a freshman,” Rakevich added.
Centralia tied for third place with 183 points. Like the hosts, Centralia wound up with four wrestlers on the top step of the podium.
“I kind of expected all five of our finalists to make it. I knew they had to wrestle solid to do it but I knew they could do it,” Centralia coach Scott Phillips said. “Now winning in the finals, that was going to be tough.”
Juan Gaspar didn’t get that memo. He finished first at 113 pounds and wasted little time doing it with a 19-second pin over Ashton Butterfield in the finals.
“Juan Gaspar is just kind of a man on a mission right now,” Phillips said. “I think he’s won about 19 in a row and they’ve all been butt-kickings. He’s just finally figured out some technique. He’s really only a third year wrestler but he’s so good physically that as he figures some stuff out he’s going to be really hard to beat.”
Eddie Matias rose to the top of the 126 pound bracket with a 5-4 victory over a familiar foe in the form of Caleb Walters of W.F. West. Alex Hicks-Avron also got the best of a rival opponent when he pinned Darren Gray in the third round of their 138-pound title match.
Caleb Hylton claimed first for the Tigers in the 170-pound bracket with an inspiring 8-6 come-from-behind overtime victory over Gavin Murphy of Tumwater. Hylton trailed by five points with less than a minute remaining in regulation before turning his opponent and nearly notching a pin at the end of regulation.
“He hasn’t lost to that kid yet but being down 5-0 and fighting off your back for a whole round and then battling back and winning overtime, that takes a lot of grit,” Phillips said of Hylton. “A lot of kids would just lay down at that point and take the loss.”
Rochester finished seventh as a team with 121 points that included two champions. Riley Cohron finished first at 145 pounds with a 7-1 decision over Justin Lake of Centralia in the finals. At 152 pounds Jayden Lancaster bested Evan Moon of W.F. West with an 8-5 decision.
Rochester coach Jason Dick expected Lancaster to win his bracket but came away particularly impressed with Cohron’s run to the top of the podium.
“He said he had something to prove tonight and went out there and won like he did. He was dominantly in control of that match,” Dick said.
The Warriors will send five wrestlers to Regionals thanks to a second place finish by Daillin Schlecht at 132-pounds and a pair of third place finishes by Kalob Spann (160) and Elijzah Spitzer (HVY).
“Of course you want a couple more, especially some of my underclassmen, but you know 2A is tough. Getting underclassmen through this with limited experience is tough,” Dick lamented. “I’ve got two weeks to prep are my guys for state. Our goal is always to advance. The goal is to punch your ticket for the next week.”
In addition to their champions Centralia will also be sending Justin Lake and Sawyer Kassel to compete on Saturday. Lake placed second at 145-pounds while Kassel finished fourth at 160 pounds.
The rest of the W.F. West contingent consists of six runner-ups, five bronze finishers, four fourth-place wrestlers, and three fifth-place finishers.
Kayden Ryan (106), Bo Davis (120), Caleb Walters (126), Darren Gray (138), Evan Moon (152), and Isaac Reavis all placed second for the Bearcats.
Cristo Parriott (120), Henry Jordan (126), Connor Trodahl (138), Bryce Laufenberg (145), and Brock Guyette (182) all managed to finish third for the Bearcats.
Mcguire Bull (170), Brennan Trujillo (182), Austin Lucht (195), and Garett VonMoos all wound up in fourth place for the Bearcats.
W.F. West rounded out their Regional qualifications with fifth place finishes from Damian Hernandez (106), Anjel Navarez (113), Waylen Land (152), and Tristan Snyder (HVY).
The Regional tournament will be held on Saturday at Tumwater
Class 1A
FORKS — Tenino emerged from the 1A Evergreen League wrestling championships here on Saturday with 11 wrestlers still imagining a potential path through the postseason.
The Beavers were able to qualify seven wrestlers, who finished in fourth place or better, for the Regional tournament at Hoquiam without equivocation. Four other Tenino wrestlers were able to snag alternate status with fifth place finishes.
Robby Marti (220) and Andres Capilla-Zamudio (195) both brought home titles from the tournament while Riley Rice (285) and Jon Fernandez (113) finished as runner-ups.
Austin Hohner (132) and Kysen Knox (138) were both able to win their final match of the day to claim third place in the tournament while Zach Keech placed fourth at 106 pounds. The four Beavers who placed fifth place and earned alternate status to Regionals include Easton Snider (120), Tyler Pietras (138), Zach Thayer (152), and Carlos Wetter (170).
The band of Beavers will head to Hoquiam on Saturday to compete in the Regional tournament.
Class 1B/2B
Rainier Leads the Way with Ten Wrestlers Headed to Regionals
RAYMOND — The Mountaineers approached the top of the heap here on Saturday as they placed third at the 1B/2B Sub-Regional tournament and qualified ten wrestlers for the Regional round of the postseason.
Brody Klein and Joe Gerrish were both able to claim individual titles for Rainier. Klein dispatched Abram Foreman of Kalama with a 9-4 decision in their 160-pound bout while Gerrish pinned Diego Pedaris of Ocosta in the first round of their 132-pound match.
Jayson Ducey (106), and Julian Hambly (152) each finished second for Rainier while Adrian Hambly wound up 3rd at 145 pounds. Levi Swann (113), Gabe Price (120), and Collin Davis (132) brought home fourth place finishes for the Mountaineers. Zach Coleman (106) and Kayleb Jackson (220) were both able to snag the sixth place,and final confirmed berth to regionals, from their respective brackets.
Toledo wound up in seventh place with five wrestlers advancing to the regional round. Trey Rego (145) and Michael Echtle (220) paced The Tribe with second place finishers in their weight classes. Justin Filla finished third at 132 pounds while Hunter Smith finished fourth at 220 pounds. Damion Soto will join his Toledo teammates on the mat next week after placing sixth at 160 pounds.
Lucas Ashley powered Adna to a top ten finish by taking first in the 182-pound bracket. Tristan Ridley helped the Pirates point tally with a fourth place finish at 145 pounds while Christian Gelvin placed sixth at 152 pounds.
Dusty Thayer notched a first place finish for Winlock at 126 pounds when he pinned Garrett Armbruster of North Beach in the second round. Kyle Patton punched his ticket to regionals with a fifth place finish for the Cardinals in the heavyweight bracket.
In the 138-pound bracket Kolby Mozingo of Onalaska finished second while Dustin Krause of Napavine finished sixth. In the 195-pound bracket Ashtin Draper of Onalaska finished second and Napavine’s Grant Bennett placed third.
The 1B/2B Regional tournament will take place on Saturday at Kalama.
