Knights Put Three In Semis East Valley In Third Place After First Day Of Mat Classic X

3A wrestling

John Sommer didn’t set his sights high enough last year.

He wasn’t going to make that mistake again.

“My goal last year was only to make it to state,” the East Valley sophomore said. “This year my goal is to make it to the finals, because I know I can.” He took two steps in that direction Friday by winning his first two matches in the State 3A wrestling tournament of Mat Classic X in the Tacoma Dome.

The sophomore 101-pounder made it look easy, beating Bellingham sophomore Nghia Huynh 12-1 and sophomore Jesse Mapelli of Renton 11-4.

His first match wasn’t as easy as it appeared. The second was easier than he expected.

“The first guy was strong,” Sommer said. “I stepped it up a level… . I look at people and think about them and (Mapelli) looked pretty good. He looked scary out on the mat. I thought it would be a tougher match. I was surprised. I thought he would be a lot harder to take down.”

East Valley brought eight wrestlers, but only 122-pound senior Kevin Woolf and 141-pound senior Brad Crockett joined Sommer in the semifinals for the 1997 State AA champions.

Woolf beat Brian Gilliam of Sequim 8-4 and edged Anthony Doucette of Edmonds-Woodway 7-6. Crockett was dominant, whipping Seth Williamson of Yelm 8-0 and scoring an 18-3 technical fall over Joe Val of Mariner.

East Valley’s dream of repeating took an early hit when four wrestlers lost in the first round.

Regional rival Moses Lake, the State AAA runner-up last year, got eight of 12 wrestlers through the first round and seven made the semifinals.

“We only got four in the front door,” EV coach Craig Hanson said after the first round. “I thought we had a chance for six, but I thought we would get five.”

Three Knights are still alive in the consolation bracket.

Moses Lake has 80 points, with Lake Stevens second at 54 and East Valley third at 43.

The only other Frontier League wrestler in the hunt for a title is Tyson Thivierge of Clarkston. The 178-pound senior topped Jeremy Ball of Edmonds-Woodway 9-3 and pinned Joe Amick of North Mason in 1:15.

West Valley’s Ty Roberts (141) and Cheney’s Falor (275) are still in the consolation bracket.

Sommer said the team disappointment helped him.

“It kind of fires me up, but I have to put it out of my mind,” he said. “I know we have wrestlers who will score more points.”

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