The Cheney High wrestling team checked off another goal at Mat Classic XXVIII, Feb. 20, finishing ninth out of 65 teams with 54 points, and having three wrestlers making it to the podium.
“To have three kids place and our name on the (top 10) board was amazing,” head coach Brad Rasmussen said. “At the same time we had individual goals that we didn’t quite achieve, but overall the kids accomplished what they wanted to do. “
Michael Ferguson (220-pounds) took second in his weight class. In Ferguson-fashion, he pinned Orting’s Evan Barger, Tumwater’s Brin Hanson and Anacortes’ James Swanson on his way to the championship round where Hockinson’s Cameron Loos pinned him. This marked the first time Ferguson had been pinned all year.
Devon Waterman (195), in his third state appearance, finished fifth place in his division. After pinning Bremerton’s Cole Bonagofski and Orting’s Dylan Amedo, he had back-to-back losses against Othello’s Anthony Ruiz, 4-3, and Kingston’s Dawson Johnson, 5-3. He rebounded from the losses and pinned Blaine’s Saul Magallon in the fifth-place match.
They weren’t happy with how it ended for them, but that’s how it shakes out sometimes,” Rasmussen said. “They’re a little salty right now, but they should be proud of themselves and I think they will be when it sinks in.”
Boedy Taylor (170), in his first state tournament, took fourth in his bracket. He pinned Franklin Pierce’s Bryce House and defeated Sehome’s Davis Canfield-Cole, 6-0, before East Valley’s Trey Meyer pinned him in the semi-finals. He defeated Othello’s Abel Gomez, 6-0, to advance to the third-place match where he lost to Washington’s Tariq Ellis, 3-2.
“Boedy wrestled phenomenal and came back from that loss in the semi-finals,” Rasmussen said. “He was a workhorse all weekend.”
Also competing at the Mat Classic were Garrett Pederson (285), who was 1-2 in his bracket, and Cameron Wiseman (145), who was 0-2 in his.
Rasmussen, who is coming off his third season as head coach, said the team had high expectations all year and that they felt a shift in momentum after they defeated West Valley, 43-30, in January.
“From there we started to winning bigger matches and placed higher as a team in tournaments,” he said. “We got better every day.”
While the 2015-16 season was a “great one” for his team, Rasmussen said the preparation for next year has already begun. Many of the wrestlers who plan to compete next season are already in the weight room and plan to sign up for camps during the offseason.
Al Stover can be reached at al@cheneyfreepress.com.
Reader Comments(0)