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‘Limping’ Huskies still manage 9-1 run in busy wrestling week

Sweet Home’s boys went 3-1 at the Thurston Duals Saturday, Dec. 17, beating Springfield 72-12, McNary 70-6, Culver 72-9, and Bend 64-15, and losing a close match to Mountain View 38-35.

“We wrestled nine duals in three days, and we went 8-1,” Coach Steve Thorpe said. “We should’t have lost to Mountain View. You can always find three points somewhere.”

There were reasons, he allowed. The Huskies were missing a number of their normal starters both at Thurston and at a six-team home meet they hosted Thursday, Dec. 15.

“To say that we were limping in this week would be an understatement,” Thorpe said. “we have a couple of guys sick and a couple injuries. It is what it is. You compete. You don’t back out. You don’t not show up because it’s a bad situation. We had people step up for us in big ways.”

Juniors Kyle Sieminski and Jayce Miller both went 9-0 for the week, as did senior Trenton Smith.

“Trenton had a great week,” Thorpe said. “He showed me a lot of leadership. When things were difficult, he really stepped up and did some things that were unselfish for the team, bouncing up a weight, that sort of thing. That makes me pretty proud of guys.”

The Sweet Home girls wrestled individually at Thurston, with the Huskies finishing third, with 125 points, in a field of eight teams behind McKay (229) and Thurston (225), and ahead of Tillamook (90), Bend (74), Mountain View and North Eugene (40) and Culver 34.

Seniors Kendra Jamison (105) and Zoey Erevia (125), and freshman Bailey Chafin (130) paced Sweet Home with championship finishes in their divisions.

Jamison pinned McKay’s Charnel Gonzalez (2:26), Erevia pinned McKay’s Jaleata Rodriguez (3:16) and Chafin pinned Tillamook’s Bryanna Hillstrom (0:47) to win their divisions, all three pinning their way through. Junior Kaylene Zajic was second at 140, losing by a fall to to Thurston’s Kristal Zamora (0:59).

Other placewinners were freshman Emma Pangle, third at 190, and junior Mahlia Lane at 100, senior Kelsie Rush at 110, junior Lydia Wright at 135, and junior Miah Miller at 145, all of whom were fourth.

“We have to compete against Tillamook and the Culver girls who are in our division,” Thorpe said. “You don’t get better wrestling bad people. You get better wrestling good people.”

On Thursday the Huskies hosted boys and girls duals with Stayton, South Albany, Cascade and Elmira, both sweeping the four matches.

Boys scores were: Sweet Home 72, Stayton 6; Sweet Home 70, South Albany 12; Sweet Home 72, Elmira 12; and Sweet Home 54, Cascade 28.

On the girls side, scores were Sweet Home 72, Stayton 6; Sweet Home 60, South Albany 12; Sweet Home 60, Cascade 12; and Sweet Home 60, Elmira 12.

Thorpe said he appreciates the opportunity to compete against a “very well-coached” team like Cascade.

“Their kids compete hard,” he said.

He said that the girls sport is getting to the point that dual meets like the one Thursday are necessary.

“If we want to progress with women’s wrestling, we have to treat it the same as men’s wrestling.”

Up next for the Huskies are the Northwest Duals Dec. 28 and 29 at the Linn County Expo Center in Albany. The dual-format tournament starts at 9 a.m. both days. There is no seating, so spectators are encouraged to bring their own chairs.

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