Meet heats cold week

During the finals of Saturday’s District 8 4A wrestling tournament at Mead, University’s Brian Owen and Mead’s Philip Smith found themselves competing side by side on adjoining mats instead of facing each other as anticipated for the 125-pound title.

Owen, who had injured a toe that prevented him from running, failed to make weight and wrestled instead at 130 where he breezed to the title with two pins and an 18-4 decision.

That, in turn, paved the way for Smith’s second straight district first-place finish. What ran through his mind when he learned he wouldn’t be facing Owen?

“It was an 11-month early Christmas,” Smith said with a laugh. “I know Brian will do fine in either weight class.”

“I’ve been wrestling at 135 all year,” said Owen. “So it’s not really a big deal to me.”

But the vision of the two, competing side by side, only served as a backdrop for the unusual nature of this year’s tournament.

School closures caused by snow prevented practices and raised doubt if the meet could go on as scheduled.

It did and was a competitive and close four-team battle. Mead, with 19 top-six finishers, scored 296 points to hold off Central Valley’s 279.5, U-Hi’s 278.5 and Ferris’ 227.

“I didn’t realize we had that many,” said Panthers coach Phil McLean. “The kids did a good job.”

CV had eight finalists, five champions and a total of 12 regional qualifiers. The Bears finished with a flourish, going 1-2 at 189 where Logan Bowman got a third-period takedown and held off teammate Jacob Neumann 5-4.

Then, on adjoining mats, Tyler Cochran won at 215 with a late pin and Colby Davis ended a taut 285 final with a takedown and near fall in the final seconds for his 8-2 triumph.

Earlier in the night, Tanner Teeples capped a 112 title run in which he never wrestled into the second round, winning by his third straight pin in 1 minute, 31 seconds. In a thriller at 152, Josh Renfro’s overtime takedown after he was dinged for a tying stall point gave him a 3-1 triumph.

“Hopefully, you’re looking at getting to regionals and advancing to state,” said CV coach John Owen. “We’re competing better and so far have met every obstacle along the way.”

Mead also advanced 12 wrestlers to regional, with five finalists including champions Smith and Drew Comito at 160.

U-Hi had six finalists and 10 regional qualifiers, three of them champions. Besides Brian Owen, Anthony Rivera ran roughshod over the 119 class.

In another overtime dandy, at 140, U-Hi sophomore Ryan Zumwalt survived Shadle’s Jacob Rittenhouse 7-5. Rittenhouse escaped to force OT and shot deeply for the winning takedown. Zumwalt somehow managed to fend off and secure the winner.

“I just keep pressure on and eventually they cave in,” Zumwalt said.

Ferris had nine regional qualifiers.

“I’m taking more kids to regionals than since I’ve been here,” Ferris coach Tim Owen said. “And that is the most points we’ve scored.”

For economy of scale you couldn’t beat Gonzaga Prep. A team that went 0-10 in league put three wrestlers in the finals and won three championships.

Returning state placers David Hall, a senior at 103, and Kevin Healy, a senior at 135, repeated as titlists with 5-2 and 6-2 decisions, respectively. They were joined by sophomore Chris Tripplet, a 5-3 winner at 145.

“It’s tough when you don’t have the (numbers) in the room,” said Healy, “but we find ways around it.”

The other champion was Shadle Park’s Bo Schuetzle at 171.

“I’m just pleased to have a kid win,” said first-year Shadle coach Shawn Howard.

All eight GSL schools advance at least three wrestlers to next week’s regional.

3A: East Valley had four champions and three other finalists and scored 294.5 to win the subregional in Kennewick.

The Knights advanced 10 wrestlers to next week’s regional. Winners included Clete Hanson, who either pinned or won by technical fall in four matches at 189; Dakota Lawson, who pinned Mt. Spokane’s John Bergstrom at 171; Nic Price, the 145 champion; and 215-pounder Jordan Berezay, who won 3-1 in the final.

Justin Scott of fourth-place Mt. Spokane captured the 130 title as one of eight Wildcats advancing to regionals. North Central qualified four.

2A: Deer Park and Riverside hogged the awards stand during the District 7 tournament at West Valley.

Between them they had 11 of 14 champions and four other finalists. DP outscored the Rams 358.5-336.

Among the titlists, Riverside’s Jake DesRoches upended Deer Park’s Waylon Cork at 160, while DP’s Cody Miller beat freshman Nick DesRoches for the 152 title. Senior Ryan DesRoches, the winner at 171, was the third family finalist.

1A: At Chewelah, Lakeside (Nine Mile Falls) won 9 of 14 championships and qualified 22 wrestlers to next week’s regional tournament in Cashmere.

The Eagles won the night’s first four and last four weight classes, including Ben Fuson at 285 over state third-placer Brad Thew from Newport. They scored 363.5 points to outdistance Chewelah, which had three champions and 15 regional qualifiers.

Six of Lakeside’s district champions are returning state placers, including defending champs Jacob Lauderdale, who won an all-Lakeside final at 119, and Reid Chivers at 189.

B: Host Reardan opened defense of its state title with a 326-322.5 South subregional victory over Kittitas. Each team had six champions. Three of them were state-placing Indians including defending 285 titlist Derek Toney, Tim Eggleston (135) and Josh Eldred (140).