Class 3A wrestling: Sedro-Woolley pins down three-peat

TACOMA — The normally reserved Patrick O'Neil jumped in the air, clenched his fist and smiled broader than the width of the Tacoma Dome.

It was perhaps more emotion than O'Neil had ever showed.

His coach, Jay Breckenridge, grinned like a proud father. He saw all the sweat and tears.

The Sedro-Woolley wrestler reaped the fruits of a grueling training regimen, just as the Cubs did in securing their third consecutive Class 3A state championship at Mat Classic XVI last night.

Led by state champions Nathan Decker at 119 and O'Neil at 130, Sedro-Woolley cruised into the championship matches with the title already clinched. Sedro-Woolley put up a state-record 160 points, easily outdistancing second-place Kelso's 106 and Ferndale's 95.

Title No. 3 only needed the cherry on top, and Decker, a junior, and O'Neil, a sophomore who is blind in his right eye, provided the garnish.

"Knowing that I'm a state champion is just an awesome deal," O'Neil said after scoring a 4-3 title decision over Clover Park's Matt Roll. "That's because it's something that stays with you the rest of your life. It's overwhelming getting an individual title and the team getting a title."

The Cubs' three-peat was anything but a breeze, even though it might have looked that way on the scoreboard.

It started with two state placers returning this season. It ended with the emergence of three underclassmen, including two who reached the finals.

"We've got some young wrestlers who are going to be high-point scorers their whole careers, because they are diehard wrestlers," Breckenridge said.

The Cubs became just the second school to capture three or more titles in Class 3A. Sunnyside has the 3A record of four in a row from 1977-80.

It was the eighth team title for Sedro-Woolley, tops among 3A schools.

With four finalists, Sedro-Woolley had already outdistanced Kelso, which sent three wrestlers into title bouts. Before the finals, the Cubs held an insurmountable 152-92½ advantage.

Sedro-Woolley posted the second-best 3A team total with 160 points, behind the 164½ by Moses Lake in 1998.

Mount Rainier senior Tony Dorward made amends for leaving early to the hospital and settling for sixth last season, securing the 160-pound crown with a 9-6 decision over Sedro-Woolley's Tanner McCoy.

Dorward (37-0) became the first Seamount League state champ from the King Division and first since the Rams' Jacob Davis won at 122 in 1995. Dorward won despite going on the defensive after suffering a severely swollen right eye and bloody mouth, which cost him three of his allotted five minutes of blood-stoppage time.

"I backed off and let him come back in it," said Dorward, who finished his career 137-8. "I wasn't worried about the blood. I put so much into this sport, and this was my senior year, so it was now or never."

Defending 140-pound champion Bj Ward of Liberty left with a completely different feeling, falling to River Ridge senior Greg Ford by pin in 1:03 in the final.

"I got caught," said Ward, who finished his senior season 34-2, with both losses to Ford. "I don't know what happened. It wasn't much of a match. I appreciate last year when I took first. I couldn't have asked for anything to go better last year.

"I could've asked for a better match than this one. I wish I could've wrestled better."

Ford, who transferred from Heritage after three seasons there, finished 29-1.

Notes

• Columbia River junior Kyle Bounds was denied his bid for a third straight state title, losing 4-3 to Peninsula junior Jake Friedman in the final at 152. Bounds, 27-1 this season, won the 145 crown in 2003 and the 135 title in 2002.

• Returning champions Brandon Sitch of Kelso pulled off another title at 135, downing Clarkston's Mike McPeak 4-2. Sitch went 35-1 this season — finishing with 26 wins in a row — and is 71-3 for his three-year career.

• Ferndale senior Chet Slevin (39-1) capped his career with his second consecutive title at 189, edging previously unbeaten junior Brad Padgett of White River 10-8.

• White River junior Dustin Haukenberry (30-0) got his second title in a row at 171 with a 15-3 major decision over Ferndale junior Cody Leifheit (38-2).

• Squalicum twins Mason and Nick Webb concluded their careers by finishing fourth and fifth, respectively, in the 145-pound weight class.

• West Seattle junior Curtis Baskett settled for sixth place at 275, falling to Barry Greenwood of Yelm 7-3. Chief Sealth senior Tali Talakai collected a seventh-place finish with a 12-9 decision over Franklin Pierce's Brian McCarver.