Bliss Brings Dream Duals To Mead
Scott Bliss started the prestigious Washington Dream Duals wrestling meet five years ago at Auburn High.
So, when he became Mead’s coach last year, his colleagues in Eastern Washington started pressuring him to bring the event to Spokane.
That’s what Bliss did. The 24-team Dream Duals, which begin at 8 a.m. Saturday in the Mead gym and fieldhouse, will now alternate each year between Auburn and Spokane.
“When I moved over here, it only made sense,” said Bliss, who got the idea for the meet during college when he competed in a similar event for the University of Oregon.
The West Side coaches didn’t fight the idea of coming to Spokane, he said. They weren’t going to miss out on a meet that attracts the top teams in all classifications in the state.
“I look at it as the state championship for dual meets,” said Lake Stevens coach Brent Barnes, whose team is one of the best in 3A. “I think it’s tougher to win a dual-meet state championship. You have to put 14 kids on the mat.”
Barnes, a former North Idaho College wrestler, said he’s excited to bring his team to Spokane.
“Spokane high school wrestling has a great draw,” he said. “They do a great job filling the stands for dual-meet matches.”
Bliss said Lake Stevens is the strongest team in the tournament.
The Vikings won the 27th Tri-State championship last month in Coeur d’Alene and finished third at state in 1998. Their top three wrestlers are 101-pound junior Danny Kleven, who was third at state last season, 108-pound freshman Burke Barnes and 129-pound senior Theo White, sixth at state a year ago.
In 1A/B, the top four teams from the state meet compete - Warden, Liberty Bell, Tonasket and Zillah - along with the sixth-place team.
Defending State 2A champion Toppenish pulled out of the meet but Lakeside (second) and Mt. Baker (third) will attend.
Besides Lake Stevens, Moses Lake and East Valley are the top 3A teams. Moses Lake won state last year and EV was second.
University and Wenatchee are the favored 4A teams. Tahoma, third in state last year, also will compete.
This is the third year schools from every classification have participated. And only teams in each class that have competed in the Dream Duals have gone on to win state each year, Bliss said.
Washington Dream Duals When, Where: Action begins at 8 a.m. Saturday at Mead. Finals are scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Third-fourth and fifth-sixth matches begin at 2:45 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. Format: There are six teams from each classification - 4A, 3A, 2A and 1A/B. Teams will be split into two three-team pools, with pool winners advancing to the finals. Teams: 4A - Battle Ground, Mead, Sumner, Tahoma, University, Wenatchee. 3A - Anacortes, East Valley, Hanford, Lake Stevens, Moses Lake, Squalicom (Bellingham). 2A - Hoquiam, Kiona Benton, Lakeside, Mt. Baker, Nooksack Valley, Othello. 1A/B - Chelan, Liberty Bell, Reardan, Tonasket, Warden, Zillah.