Colville Wrestlers Rebound With Win Against East Valley

When freshman 101-pounder John Slater won to assure Colville’s 33-28 wrestling victory at East Valley, a dark cloud hovering over the Indians for nearly a week finally lifted.

Early Tuesday, Colville had agreed to forfeit its match against West Valley which was suspended last Thursday when referee Bob West was head-butted by Colville 190-pounder Chad Hildebrandt and knocked unconscious.

The forfeit came after coaches and administrators from both schools met during the day.

“The decision was based on the circumstances,” said Colville activities director Randy Russell. “Trying to replay it wasn’t feasible. The bottom line was we wanted to do what’s right and get the negative situation behind us.”

Slater’s 15-7 major decision over Jim Plumb was Colville’s eighth win in 12 matches and salvaged the wounds from earlier events.

With their third straight win over East Valley and coupled with West Valley’s 38-30 loss in Clarkston, the Indians can secure a piece of the Frontier League title with a win at Riverside on Thursday.

“We practiced in the dark because we thought we had a dark cloud over us,” said coach Monty Jones of the incident which has attracted national attention. “The dark cloud is over.”

Pins by seniors Justin Divis (141 pounds) and Jame Lontz (148), followed by three straight three-point decisions, staked inspired Colville to a 25-7 lead.

A disqualification and two-point team deduction at 275 pounds for biting kept the cloud lingering awhile.

Slater’s convincing victory dispelled it for good.

“What we’ve been through the last week shows the maturity level of this team, even with four freshmen on the mat,” said Jones. “You don’t know how great I feel.”

Elsewhere, big wins by Mike Reyes (101), Mike Lynch (158) and Tyson Thivierge (168) helped Clarkston (3-2) to its win over visiting West Valley (3-1).

Reyes pinned Ty Roberts in the first round. Lynch, typically on junior varsity, rose up to beat Ryan Soss 12-4. Thivierge moved up from 158 for a 16-4 major decision over Jason Pannell.

At Cheney, Jack Myers’ comeback win at 148 and continued strong performances by Gabe Schaefer (135) and Jacinto Shamp (129) helped the Blackhawks (1-4) to a 45-24 win over visiting Pullman (0-5).

, DataTimes