Area wrestling teams set to compete at inaugural State Dual tournaments | Notebook
With the postseason just over a week away, some of the Greater Spokane League’s top teams are getting an early look at the state’s best competition.
The Mead, Gonzaga Prep, University and Mt. Spokane boys, along with the University and Cheney girls, are set to participate in Saturday’s inaugural State Duals event hosted by the Washington State Wrestling Coaches Association.
Mead and Gonzaga Prep, two of the top-ranked 4A teams in the state, will head to Rogers High School in Puyallup, Washington. University and Mt. Spokane will be at the 3A boys tournament at Edmonds-Woodway High School in Edmonds, Washington, while the University and Cheney girls will participate in the 3A girls tournament at Kelso High School in Kelso, Washington.
The tournament format is a traditional bracket event with the highest-seeded team taking on the lowest in the opening round and continuing on until two teams remain for a championship round. Teams will wrestle a full dual slate to determine who moves onto the next round.
“Wrestling is always thought as an individual sport, but it’s a team sport,” Mead coach Phil McLean said. “I would have loved to have this event the last four years, because you build up a really good team, and the dual tournaments are really fun. On any team you have the best of the best and you have a kid who’s crawling to get to postseason, but in a dual setup, you need them all.
“And so you need every element of your program involved to be successful.”
To qualify, teams had to be a host school, finish in the top eight at Mat Classic last year or be invited.
Cheney girls claim league title: In the first season of dual meets for GSL girls teams, Cheney has been dominant from the start.
Under coach Jeremy McGee, the Blackhawks sit at an unbeaten 7-0 going into Thursday night’s league finale against Ridgeline, but last week’s win against Shadle Park sealed the league crown early. Victories include an impressive 58-24 win against University, and a 42-15 win at Mead.
Cheney junior Jennifer Tian is second in the Washington Wrestling Network 3A girls rankings at 120 pounds, while senior Jalisca Holmgren is third at 130.
Trio of wrestlers top 10 in pound-for-pound rankings: University’s Czar Quintanilla, along with Gonzaga Prep’s Izzy Acosta and Ryder Owen, are all ranked in the top 10 of WWN’s pound-for-pound rankings – a poll that lists the most dominant wrestlers in state regardless of weight or classification.
Quintanilla, who is seeking his fourth Mat Classic title, is ranked third in the poll, while Acosta – a two-time state champion – is seventh. Owen, a freshman standout for the Bullpups, is ranked No. 10. Fellow Gonzaga Prep freshman Austin Schield and Mt. Spokane senior Brendan Hughes are listed as honorable mentions.
In the team rankings, Gonzaga Prep is second and Mead is third in 4A boys, University is third and Mt. Spokane is seventh in 3A boys and Davenport, Northwest Christian, Almira/Coulee-Hartline and Newport are Nos. 6-9, respectively, in 2B/1B boys. In the girls rankings, University is fifth in 3A.