After wrestling in six matches on three consecutive days, the Huskies extended their winning streak to eleven.
The long week, designed to replicate the feeling of the state tournament, started when the Huskies toppled a tough 4-A Valley league team, McKay, 42-34. They went on to defeat Corvallis convincingly 58-12.
Then they took the bus into the mountains, knocking off league opponent Sisters 54-21 and then rallying to beat the number one ranked 2A team, Culver, 39-31.
The trek ended with another road meet at North Marion. After toppling North Marion, 64-10, they handled Central Linn as well, 44-27.
They didn’t miss a beat on Friday. They continued to practice hard, and it is that hard work that has the Huskies pointed in the right direction for the district tournament. Coach Steve Thorpe pointed to the improved technique of Jon Sutten at 103, to the ability to step up for big matches by Trevor Tagle, and to the extra effort in conditioning by Brian Lindsay as examples of wrestlers who have begun to shine.
Lindsay, who notched 4 pins in his six victories at , has finally reached his correct wrestling weight and he has had to put in the extra effort to do it.
“He’s having to train extra to maintain that weight class,” said Thorpe. “Because of that extra training, it means more. He paid a higher price.”
Lindsay has grown in confidence and used the grueling week’s matches to prepare himself for his goal of going to state. He is learning there is no time to let down.
“If you take a break in the state tournament, you’re done,” said Lindsay.
He also credits his training with Tomas Rosa as a reason for his success. Rosa has established himself as a top rated wrestler at 140 pounds. Thorpe said that Rosa has become a better wrestler on top, earning more pins than he has typically had in the past.
“A lot of it is mental,” said Rosa, who fought nagging injuries all last year. “I have a lot of confidence in the way I’m training.”
In probably their toughest match against Culver, the Huskies came through with big pins at the top four weight levels. Shane Vandehei, a sophomore and one of the Huskies most consistent wrestlers, started out against the top rated 2A wrestler who is a two time state runnerup.
Vandehei, after trailing early, came back in the third period and had Moyses on his back for nearly the entire third period. Thorpe felt that Vandehei actually had him pinned. But the referee didn’t rule that way and Vandehei lost 9-6.
Pins by Hance Woody, Donny Cliver, Jesse Aitken, and Rob Martin at the upper end finally sealed the deal after the Huskies trailed. It marked a comeback of sorts for Martin, who had suffered only his second defeat in the match against McKay. And it was a comeback also for Aitken, who had been fighting an early season injury.
“I’m just trying to get back in rhythm and get back to where I was before,” said Aitken, who had five pins and a forfeit to his credit during the week.
For Thorpe, the Culver match was a symbol of the team’s progress.
“Not only are we wrestling fundamentally better, we are having guys that are winning the close matches,” said Thorpe. “Conditioning for us has really come into play. We haven’t peaked yet though and we’re not training to peak yet.”
Practices won’t be any easier, but the schedule will be. The Huskies have just the one match at home versus league rival Cascade on Thursday.