Greg Lee: Local wrestling no longer laughing matter
It wasn’t too long ago that 5A wrestling teams in North Idaho were the laughingstock of the state.
Oh, there were the occasional top individual placers. But area teams rarely cracked the top 10 and they usually brought up the rear.
Coeur d’Alene started to change things in 2005 when the Vikings took third. It was CdA’s first state trophy since it took fourth in 1986. The Vikings slipped to ninth in 2006, but they took sixth last year, finishing 13.5 points out of fourth and a trophy.
For the first time, three area teams will challenge for trophies this season – Lewiston, Post Falls and CdA.
It wouldn’t shock Lewiston coach Dan Maurer if all three teams capture trophies.
“At the minimum, we want to be in the top three this year,” Maurer said. “And Post Falls is right on our heels. They’re darn near as good as we are, and Coeur d’Alene will score points based on a lot of quality.”
Mountain View of Meridian is tabbed the favorite to win the state title. It’s wide open for the next three spots, Maurer said.
“We thought we’d be third or fourth last year,” said Maurer, whose team finished eighth. “It was disappointing. It left a bad taste in our mouth. We have just one state trophy in school history (fourth in 1991).”
Lewiston is favored to defend its Region I championship based on depth alone. The Bengals qualified a school-best 23 to state last year and return 17 state qualifiers. Maurer expects to qualify as many as 23 this year.
For other notes and a look at all the area teams, check out my blog at spokesmanreview.com/blogs/ sportslink.
Not bad, not bad at all
If early results mean anything, then area 5A boys basketball should be nothing short of scintillating this season.
Defending Inland Empire League champ Coeur d’Alene, league runner-up Lewiston and Lake City, which is favored to win the league title this year, all opened on the road. CdA had the best start.
The Vikings swept a pair of games in eastern Idaho, starting with a 73-61 win over 4A Rigby followed up less than 24 hours later with a 64-53 win over defending 5A state champ Madison.
Lake City, which made the same trip east, stopped at Madison on Friday, falling to the Bobcats 76-75 in double overtime. On Saturday, the Timberwolves pulled out a 68-65 win in overtime at Rigby.
Lewiston had perhaps the most difficult opener at Hermiston, which is ranked No.1 among Oregon’s 5A teams and is predicted to win a state championship. Hermiston topped the Bengals 60-50. The teams play again Saturday at Lewiston.
“Even if Madison graduated all of its starters from a year ago, a victory in Rexburg is impressive since the Bobcats rarely lose at home.
“That was a good start for us,” CdA coach Kent Leiss said.
The Vikings gave up 4-5 inches at each position against Madison.
“Leiss, who is in his fifth year at CdA, said the Vikings remind him of his last team at Flathead in Kalispell, Mont. That team graduated four of five starters and was picked to finish fifth in a seven-team conference. Flathead ended up playing in the state title game.
Madison coach Billy Hawkins was impressed with CdA and LC.
“Coeur d’Alene plays with an awful lot of energy,” Hawkins said. “They don’t have a lot of size, but they make up for it with their quickness. Coeur d’Alene’s guards (Nate Clinton and Andrew Prohaska) just don’t get tired and they keep going and going.”
“Lake City could be the real deal before the season is over with. The two transfers are really going to help them. And Nick Fromm is as good a big kid as there is in the state.”
“CdA and LC meet for the first of three games on Dec. 14 at LC as part of a doubleheader with the girls.
LC coach Jim Thacker thought his team should have beat Madison.
“I was concerned with getting off the bus after an eight-hour trip, but I thought we competed hard,” Thacker said. “It was a neat environment (at Madison). We made some big shots and they made some big shots.”