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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Eagles pin their hopes on superb six

J.D. Larson Correspondent

TACOMA – He wished he could have brought more than six wrestlers to Tacoma, but Lakeside-Nine Mile Falls head coach Scott Jones remained thrilled Friday with the half-dozen who made the trip.

Lakeside advanced four of its six wrestlers into today’s 2A semifinals of Mat Classic XVII in the Tacoma Dome, and sits fourth after one day of wrestling with 49 points, seven behind first-place Ephrata.

“You know, for the amount of guys we brought, winning six out of six in the first round, it was a perfect day,” Jones said of his team, which brings all six wrestlers back today. “We’re a long shot, so we can only control how we compete.”

Medical Lake ended the day tied for fifth with 39 points, but only has two in the semifinals: junior David Snyder at 140 pounds at senior Garrett Raulston at 189. The Cardinals have two more wrestlers alive in the consolation bracket.

Jones still has hope for a top trophy despite his small stable of wrestlers.

“We’ve got to push all four through,” Jones said of his semifinalists – Kyle Johnson (103), Matt Dinsmore (145), John Millard (160) and Jones’ son, Levi (125). “If we can get a trophy, that’s a pretty great feat for six athletes.”

Chewelah put three of its four wrestlers into the semifinals. Eric Burrows (215) and Joseph Tetro (275) join first-time state entrant Devon Benedict, who built an early lead in the 171 quarterfinals and hung on for an 8-4 decision over Cory Creighton of Stevenson.

“It felt good for the first time,” Benedict said. “It just felt right. I was really comfortable.”

Riverside junior Robert Spackman made the semis at 112, joining fellow Great Northern League wrestlers Nick Mahugh (215) and Ricky Hall (275) of Colville. Riverside has three alive in the consolation bracket.

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Grizzlies stand tall

It’s been a season of breakthroughs for Newport, and the first day would be no different.

Newport sits in third place with 53 1/2 points, trailing Warden (89 1/2 ) and Royal (60).

“We’re pretty excited about it,” Grizzlies coach Terry Haney said. “It’s been a great season. We had a hard time in the beginning, came back out and put our whole body and mind into it. It’s one of the best years ever as a team.”

Newport has four wrestlers in the semifinals: 112-pounder Eric Moody, Kevin Jared (145), Clinton Teeples (152) and Jared Skiles at 160. Skiles finished fourth last year in the 2A tournament as a 152-pounder.

“I’ll be pretty disappointed if we don’t have three of the four in the finals,” Haney said. “To be on the board in third right now is phenomenal. We’ve got to keep our guys in and win. If we do that, we’ll be on top of the board (today).”

Colfax was the other local team in the top 10, sitting seventh with 40 points. Jeff Jordan (125) made the semifinals for the Bulldogs, along with Josh Campbell (171) and 135-pounder Derek Hall, who cruised behind a 44-second, first-round pin and a 13-0 shutout in the quarterfinals.

Freeman’s Daniel Mathews advanced to the semifinals at 112. He was joined by Liberty’s Brice Williams (119) and Adam Thies (135), Matt Fisk of Davenport (140), Republic’s Seth Schertenleib (145), Justus Caudell of Wilbur-Creston/Keller (171), and defending state heavyweight champion Mic Goad of Springdale.