Area wrestlers advance to regionals
February 9, 2009
By Jim Feehan
John White (top) and Jacob Borin, Issaquah senior teammates who have wrestled together since fifth grade, meet in the 160-pound title bout. By Scott Morton
While wrestlers from Issaquah, Liberty and Skyline high schools didn’t win any KingCo tournament team titles Feb. 7, each school sent several grapplers to regionals.
Issaquah posted three championship match winners: Dalton Fennell (112 pounds), Ben Tickman (130 pounds) and Jon White (160 pounds) at the KingCo 4A tournament at Juanita High School.
Wrestlers who finished in the top 5 at the tournament also advance to the next round.The Issaquah wrestlers include: Dalton Baunsgard (112 pounds), Jordan Tanner (125 pounds), Sean Novak (130 pounds), David White (135 pounds), Jacob Borin (160 pounds), Jon White (160 pounds) and Tyler Volk (171 pounds).
Woodinville won the 4A title with 254 points, followed by Inglemoor 195 and Issaquah 188. Skyline finished seventh with 118 points.
“I’m really proud of our team,” said Issaquah coach Kirk Hyatt. “Our goal was to finish among the top three and we did that.”
Liberty hosted the KingCo 3A championships and had three individual winners: Matt Weik (125 pounds), Brandon Studer (160 pounds) and Malcolm Dike (171 pounds). Also advancing to the 3A regionals are Dan Valasquez (103 pounds), Riley Richmond (125 pounds), Hamilton Noel (135 pounds), Wright Noel (140 pounds), Jay Chakravarty (152 pounds) and Chris Harlin (215).
“Chris had an excellent match in winning third place,” said Darren Tremblay, assistant coach. “He was down by six or eight points, and he pinned his opponent in the closing seconds.”
Bellevue won the 3A title with 246 points, followed by Mercer Island (186 points) and Liberty (184 points).
“We knew that Bellevue and Mercer Island would be very competitive,” Tremblay said. “But I’m happy with qualifying this many wrestlers for regionals.”
Skyline will send eight wrestlers to the regional meet Feb. 14 at Todd Beamer High School in Federal Way, said Gus Kiss, Skyline wrestling coach. They include Jared Kiss (103 pounds), Joe Tono (112 pounds), Joey Lim (119 pounds), Nolan Richards (130 pounds), Larson Caldwell (152 pounds), Dan Christiansen (160 pounds) and Anthony DeMatteo (189 pounds).
In the women’s competition, Alexis Wilcher (145 pounds) won in her weight category and advances to the women’s regional competition Feb. 14 at Liberty High School.
“Alexis is ranked No. 1 in the state,” Kiss said. “She’s a very determined young lady and I like her chances at the state meet.”
Reach Reporter Jim Feehan at 392-6434, ext. 239, or jfeehan@isspress.com. Comment on this story at www.issaquahpress.com.
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