Mendez wins the title, Perez makes it three in Tacoma
CASEY MCCARTHY | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 4 years, 8 months AGO
Casey McCarthy/Columbia Basin Herald Isaiah Perez and Othello head coach Rudy Ochoa II embrace after the senior claimed his third title on Saturday evening in the Tacoma Dome.
Casey McCarthy/Columbia Basin Herald Othello's Emily Mendez zones in before going for the title, a year after falling just short in the Tacoma Dome.
Casey McCarthy/Columbia Basin Herald Othello's Isaiah Perez embraces head coach Rudy Ochoa II after claiming his third title in his final bout on the mat on Saturday in Tacoma.
Casey McCarthy/Columbia Basin Herald Othello's Iyazely Barraza (second from left) and Moses Lake's Bianca Johnson (right) both found the podium on Saturday in Tacoma in the 115 pound division.
Casey McCarthy/Columbia Basin Herald Othello's Emily Mendez fights on the mat against her opponent, Salyna Shotwell, in her final shot at a title as a Huskie on Saturday in the Tacoma Dome.
Casey McCarthy/Columbia Basin Herald Othello's Arturo Solorio tries to prevent the slam by his opponent in his championship bout at the Mat Classic in Tacoma on Saturday.
Casey McCarthy/Columbia Basin Herald Emily Mendez overpowers her opponent as she moves on to claim the title at 110 pounds on Saturday in Tacoma.
Casey McCarthy/Columbia Basin Herald Isaiah Perez and his Othello coaching staff hold up the "threes" to celebrate the senior becoming the first three-time state champion in school history with his w
Casey McCarthy/Columbia Basin Herald Othello's Emily Mendez maintains control of her opponent, Salyna Shotwell as she went on to claim her first state title in her senior season on Saturday.
Casey McCarthy/Columbia Basin Herald Othello's Arturo Solorio faced off against Orting's Seth Dawkins in the finals at 145 in the Tacoma Dome on Saturday.
Casey McCarthy/Columbia Basin Herald Othello's Isaiah Perez looks to take down his friend and opponent Eduardo Mendez of Wapato as he moved toward claiming his third title at the Mat Classic on Satur
Connor Vanderweyst/Columbia Basin Herald Othello's Emily Mendez has her arm raised after winning the 110-pound state championship.
TACOMA — An Othello legacy like few others came to a fitting end on Saturday evening in the Tacoma Dome as Isaiah Perez walked off the mat as the first three-time champion in school history.
Perez grabbed his third title at 285 with little trouble, facing off against his friend Eduardo Mendez of Wapato, in the championship round at Mat Classic XXXII. The final seconds ticked off, cementing the 16-3 major decision as the senior threw up “three’s” with his hands towards the Othello crowd.
“Just feels unreal that it’s over and everything,” Perez said after his win. “It’s just nice to be able to wrestle one of my friends in the finals too. It was a good match.”
As the senior soaked in the moment after his win, he talked about the emotion as another chapter in his Othello career comes to a close.
“It feels crazy right now in my head,” Perez said. “No more high school, on to real life.”
An accomplished wrestling career coincides with a football legacy that has Perez heading to Brigham Young University to continue his gridiron career, once he completes his mission trip after high school. Perez talked about how his accomplishments help to prepare him for success moving forward.
“I think work ethic can translate into everything in being successful,” he said. “I think I can accomplish whatever I want if I work towards it.”
Perez wasn’t the only Othello wrestler to walk away with the title in Tacoma. Senior Emily Mendez returned to the championship round after a second-place finish in 2019. Mendez found herself facing off against the reigning champion at 110, Rogers’ top-ranked junior Salyna Shotwell.
Mendez picked up the 7-3 decision in the win over Shotwell. A look of pure focus washed into a smile on Mendez’ face as her arm was raised by the referee after the match.
Mendez talked about just how enjoyable it was seeing the work and time she’s put in these past four years finally culminate in the title.
“A lot of people say that sometimes it can be hard,” Mendez said. “Yeah, last year it was hard to fall one short. But to go with that strive to keep going, it really pays off in the end.”
Finishing just shy of the title last season pushed the Othello senior to come back stronger this season, Mendez said.
“I have goals that I set out to seek,” the newly-minted state champion said. “When I set goals, I’m so determined to go for it. Last year, I had the same goal, but I fell short. This year, I came back better and stronger. It feels amazing to get that.”
Junior Iyazely Barraza fought her way into the finals as well for Othello at 115. Barraza fell to Redmond’s top-ranked Molly Williams in the championship round, with Williams refusing to allow Barraza to gain any traction in the bout.
Barraza placed for the first time at the Mat Classic, taking second after finishing atop the region last weekend.
In the 145 division in 2A, Arturo Solorio capped his season off with a trip to the championship round on Saturday evening. Solorio couldn’t hang on to an early lead in the match, however, as Orting’s Seth Dawkins came back from an early points deficit to claim the title. Solorio dropped the 12-6 decision to Dawkins to take second place in Tacoma.
Alexis Monday joined senior Emily Mendez on the podium at 110 after finishing fourth on Saturday. Monday lost the major decision to Kamiak’s Diana Cantini in the third-place match after falling to Shotwell of Rogers in the semifinals.
Elijah Roylance fell in the quarterfinals to Cyrus Wheeler of White River, but managed to pick up a pair of wins to secure the seventh-place finish at 220 over the weekend. Roylance defeated Bryce Williams of Washougal in his final match on Saturday, picking up the win just moments into the third round.
At 138, Jaxon Rocha found his way to the podium with the seventh-place finish on Saturday in Tacoma. Rocha took the 3-0 decision over Hunter Despino of Cheney to take seventh.
Josue Solorio fell to Liam Heikkla of Aberdeen in the quarterfinals with the 3-2 ultimate tiebreaker after a 6-6 draw after three rounds. Solorio fell in his opening consolation match.
