Mountain View Wrestlers Keep On Winning

Sat., Dec. 16, 2000

By Mike Vlahovich mikev@spokesman.com (509) 927-2180

It’s a streak that never ends. Nor does the coach want it to.

Mountain View Middle School wrestlers recently put the finishing touches on their 10th straight unbeaten Spokane Valley Junior High Activities League season.

“I never envisioned 10 years. I’ve never thought past the coming year,” said the streak’s architect, Lancers coach Dave Smith.

Mountain View wrestlers have now won 70 straight dual matches and in Smith’s 17 years as coach have gone 103-8 with 14 unbeaten teams in the continuing saga.

Success, Smith reiterated, has been a combination of things. The East Valley School District has strong freestyle and youth programs. He has good assistant coaches and a weight-lifting program that includes sixth-graders. And tradition has given the program a life of its own.

“You get on a roll and the kids respond,” he said. “Everybody knows about the streak and no one wants to be remembered as the one who ends it.”

This year the Lancers completed their season with eight champions among 10 finalists and 15 placers in 19 weight classes at the Junior High All-League meet.

Bowdish had five champions and two runners-up, Greenacres had seven finalists among 14 finalists and East Valley had four champions among seven finalists and 13 placers. So the competition gets sterner.

But Smith offered a word of warning saying next year looks good as well at Mountain View.

“We have nine kids coming back so I’m optimistic,” he said. “It’s been a good ride.”

YMCA league registration

YMCA youth basketball and indoor soccer seasons are approaching.

Basketball for youngsters grades K-3 and soccer for grades 4-6 will be Saturdays from Feb. 10 to March 24.

Registration deadline is Jan. 9. Cost of $60 ($35 for Y members).

Call for registration information at the Valley YMCA, 777-9622 or the Downtown YMCA, 838-3577, ext. 121.

Local journalism is essential.

Give directly to The Spokesman-Review's Northwest Passages community forums series -- which helps to offset the costs of several reporter and editor positions at the newspaper -- by using the easy options below. Gifts processed in this system are tax deductible.

Meet Our Journalists

Jesse Tinsley

Meet Jesse Tinsley. As a certified drone pilot, this veteran Spokesman-Review photographer often can be seen capturing beautiful aerial photographs of our region. Sometimes though, the job requires getting down with the dogs.
Jim Meehan

Jim Meehan is no stranger to Zag Nation. As the lead writer covering the Gonzaga men’s basketball team, he tells the stories behind the game and gets fans a bit closer to their favorite players.
Molly Quinn

There is no artist in Spokane like Molly Quinn. Her whimsical style is instantly recognizable to readers of The Spokesman-Review. She has painted gorgeous illustrations that instantly elevate the journalism accompanying it. She brings to life the stories that defy photography. She makes our pages better.
Rob Curley

Spokesman-Review editor Rob Curley loves to talk with people and learn about their lives, whether it's a best-selling author or a stranger he meets downtown on his walk to lunch. It's that inquisitive nature combined with a playful sense of storytelling that helps make our newspaper different than most.