Raider wrestlers clean up competition on west side

The Raider wrestling team took second place at a 17-school tournament on the west side of the state Saturday, following a mix-and-match tournament they dominated there the previous day. They also sent a female wrestler to the Napavine Tiger Classic.

Leaving Friday on the journey to Rainier, the Raider wrestlers stopped in Yelm to have fun playing a little bowling in a team-building exercise before making it to Rainier's mix and match event, an event they weren't necessarily counting on making.

"We wrestled 20 matches and won 16 of them," Head Coach Steve Hood said.

On Saturday it was tournament time, and the Raiders placed second at the Sgt. Norton Memorial in Rainier out of the 17 teams.

Their 137.5 team points put them behind Forks, which had 246. The Raiders beat out a number of A-division schools in the process.

Raiders David Crowe, Kaleb Horn, and Tony Nichols all earned championships at the event, with Crowe wrestling at 132 pounds, Horn at 138, and Nichols at 152.

Crowe pinned his opponent, Colton Duncan from Forks, in three minutes, 32 seconds.

"We're always proud of winning a championship," Hood said.

Horn earned his first-place spot by defeating Ty Ekerson from Montesano, 4-1.

"If you get a guy who's out there just trying really hard not to get scored on, it makes it difficult," Hood explained. "Kaleb was in complete control the whole match, but when you have an opponent who is wrestling that way, it makes it difficult to pin them or rack up a bunch of points."

Nichols' win was more eventful. "He was actually behind with 45 seconds to go and ended up winning by five, scoring five points with 15 seconds left in the match, winning by 9-5," Hood said. "He just took [Lucas Ashley from Adna] from his feet straight to his back and finished him like that."

Also placing at the event were Steven Flowers, who earned a third-place spot wrestling at 195; Colton Jackson, who placed third at 106; Tony Marchand, who placed fifth at 145; and Brandon Long, who placed fifth at 182.

While the boys were reining in Rainier, Ida Sue went to the Napavine Tiger Classic, placing third in the 140 weight class.

On Thursday, the Raiders are planning to wrestle in Pateros starting at 5 p.m., but Hood said they aren't certain they'll make it due to finding out about the event late.

The Raiders will wrestle in a tournament in Kittitas on Saturday, Jan. 19 starting at 10 a.m.

Sgt. Norton Memorial

106: Jackson (LR) def. Gagnon (KLA), 11-0; Fry (MONT) def. Jackson (LR), 7-4; Jackson (LR) p. Johnson (NACH), :48; 113: McIntyre (VASH) def. Thomas (LR), 11-2; Thomas (LR) p. Heiner (MTBK), 2:56; Mitzel (NAVL) def. Thomas (LR), 9-0; 132: Crowe t.fall Titus (CASR), 21-6; Crowe (LR) p. Ridley (ADNA), 4:46; Crowe (LR) p. Duncan (FORKS) 3:32; 138: Horn (LR) t.fall Caeton (EATO), 15-0; Horn (LR) t.fall Covington (KION), 15-0; Horn (LR) def. Ekerson (MONT), 4-1; 145: Marchand (LR) p. Holder (NOOK), 2:23; Marchand (LR) p. Olsen (EAT), 5:23; 152: Nichols (LR) def. Foreman (KALA), 13-2; Nichols (LR) def. Baker (FORK), 7-3; Nichols (LR) def. Ashley (ADNA), 9-5; 160: Wiles (LR) def. Hambley (RAIN), 4-1; Slape (ADNA) p. Wiles (LR) :38; Wiles (LR) def. Chandler (KLAH), 9-7; Lane (EATO) def. Wiles (LR), 3-0; 182: Long (LR) p. Fry (MONT), 1:33; Llernas (KION) p. Long (LR) :23; Long (LR) p. Isaacson (MTBK), 2:05; Salazar (FORK) p. Long (LR), 1:54; 195: Flowers p. Christian (TENI), 1:01; Watts (CAST) def. Flowers (LR), 10-1; Flowers (LR) p. Boyd (LR) 1:30; Boyd (LR) p. Smith (KLAH), :46; 220: Vargas (LR) p. Herrera (KLAH), 2:01; Olinger (KALA) def. Vargas (LR), 13-2; 285: Saulque (LR) p. Lapine (RAIN), :46; Marti (TENI) def. Saulque (LR), 2-1; Saulque (LR) p. Clark (CAST), :28; Mata (MABTON) def. Saulque (LR), 6-1