Sweet Home finished third at the seven-team Tillamook Tournament Saturday, minus four of its regular varsity wrestlers.
Missing from the line-up were Levi Weikel (ill), Logan Clark and Nick Pitts (injured), and Shaw Valentine (family obligations).
“We held some guys out for different reasons,” Coach Steve Thorpe said. “Although we entered without four scorers, we still did well. I was very happy with how we competed.”
Though the tournament was for varsity teams, the Huskies got to enter two wrestlers in some weights, though only one could score. JV and novice wrestlers competed in a round-robin tournament.
Brock Crocker, at 135 pounds, beat Jimi Martin of Tillamook, the tournament’s top seed, 12-2, in one of the day’s more impressive showings.
“He wrestled very well,” Thorpe said.
Cascade took the tournament title with a score of 208.5. Tillamook was second (192.5) followed by Sweet Home (164), Molalla (137.5), Stayton (130.5), Mac High (116) and McMinnville (50).
Huskies who placed first in the tournament were Taylor Tagle (103), Kris Newport (119) and Brock Crocker (135).
Sweet Home will be back in action Saturday at the South Albany Tournament and will host Newport on Thursday, Jan. 31.
Tillamook Tournament
Sweet Home Individual Placers
103 – Taylor Tagle, 1st
103 – Mitch Grove, 2nd
112 – Danny Johnson, 2nd
112 – Matt Grove, 5th
119 – Kris Newport, 1st
119 – Casey Johnson, 2nd
125 – Jack Perry, 3rd
125 – Brehk Veitenheimer, 6th
130 – Marshall Arndt, 4th
130 – Kyle Hummer, 6th
135 – Brock Crocker, 1st
140 – No Entry
145 – Keenon Martin, 4th
152 – No Entry
160 – Brad Pitts, 4th
171 – Anthony Albright, 3rd
189 – Marc Callagan, 4th
215 – No Entry
285 – No Entry
Culver 46, Sweet Home 26
Sweet Home’s wrestlers fulfilled Coach Steve Thorpe’s early-season prediction Thursday against defending state 2A champion and top-ranked Culver, losing 46-26 to the experienced Bulldogs.
Thorpe said at the start of the season that the Huskies, currently ranked third in the 4A division, would not be as strong in dual meets this year and it showed against the Bulldogs.
“If a team matches up well with us, we have a hard time beating them,” Thorpe said. “Their average kids can beat our average kids.”
Seven of Culver’s wrestlers were seniors, compared to three for Sweet Home, one of whom is Shaw Valentine who didn’t wrestle last year.
That experience was evident from the start of the match as Culver senior Jake Nelson, who’s ranked fourth overall in the state at 112, opened with a 15-10 decision over Sweet Home 125-pounder Kris Newport. Then senior Miguel Beltazar, also ranked fourth overall in the state, won a major decision over Husky junior Jack Perry, 19-3 in the 130-pound match.
The only underclassman for the Bulldogs who won Thursday was 145-pound freshman Austin Baramy, who beat Sweet Home’s Keenon Martin, also a freshman, 9-0.
Sweet Home sophomores Mitch Grove (103) and Taylor Tagle (112) put an exclamation point on the end of the match, showing what the Huskies’ future opponents have to look forward to, with a pin by Grover over freshman Justin Bunch in 1:44 and a technical fall by Tagle over sophomore Jack Merrill, 16-1.
Other Sweet Home winners were sophomore Brock Crocker at 140 and Anthony Albright, who pinned Paul Krueger at 171.
“Anthony Albright was the big highlight for us, with a big fall,” Thorpe said. “Taylor Tagle wrestled very well – probably better than I’ve ever seen him wrestle.”
Thorpe said that after being away from Husky Gym since Dec. 20, it was good to be back in front of the home crowd.
“It was good to have Culver come over here and wrestle them,” Thorpe said. “We had some great matches. I do believe we lost some close matches that should have been closer. We should have won them.”
The Huskies will be back in action at the South Albany Tournament this Saturday, Jan. 26, and will be back in front of the home fans Thursday, Jan. 31, against Newport.
Sweet Home 80, Taft 0
103 – Mitch Grove (SH) won by forfeit; 112 – Taylor Tagle (SH) pinned R. Parker :40; 119 – Danny Johnson (SH) won by forfeit;
125 – Kris Newport (SH) won by forfeit; 130 – Jack Perry (SH) won by forfeit; 135 – Kyle Hummer (SH) pinned K. Riddle (T) :51; 140 – Brock Crocker (SH) won by TF over Cody Cox (T) 15-0; 145 – Levi Weikel (SH) won by forfeit; 152 – Nick Pitts (SH) won by forfeit; 160 – Brad Pitts (SH) pinned N. Larkins (T) 1:31; 171 – Anthony Albright (SH) pinned Debello (T) :35; 189 – Marc Callagan (SH) won by forfeit; 215 – Logan Clark (SH) dec. Padilla (T) 10-4; 285 – Shaw Valentine (SH) won by forfeit.
Culver 46, Sweet Home 26
103 – Mitch Grove (SH) pinned Justin Bunch (C) 1:44; 112 – Taylor Tagle (SH) won by TF over Jack Merrill 16-1; 119 – Danny Johnson (SH) won by forfeit; 125 – Jake Nelson (C) dec. Kris Newport 15-10; 130 – Miguel Baltazar (C) dec. Jack Perry (SH) 19-3; 135 – Jared Schenen (C) dec. Kyle Hummer (SH) 11-2; 140 – Brock Crocker (SH) dec. Patrick Foster (C) 9-2; 145 – Austin Barany (C) dec. Keenon Martin 9-0; 152 – Spud Smith (C) pinned Brad Pitts (SH) 1:02; 171 – Anthony Albright (SH) pinned Paul Krueger (C); 189 – Austin Alley (C) pinned Marc Callagan (SH) 1:29; 215