BASIN WRESTLING REPORT: Jeremiah Schmunk Invitational results
IAN BIVONA | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 3 days, 19 hours AGO
Warden freshman Nikko Ruiz, left, takes down Wahluke freshman Jaden Perez-Long during a match in the 138-pound weight class at Saturday’s Jeremiah Schmunk Invitational in Warden.
IAN BIVONA/COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD
Warden senior Junior Santiago, top, wrestles against Moses Lake senior Jesse Humpherys at Saturday’s tournament in Warden. Santiago took third in the 144-pound class, while Humpherys tied for sixth.
Moses Lake junior Blayne Richards, background, takes down Othello junior Luis Feliciano, foreground. Feliciano won the match and took fourth in the 157-pound class.
Ian Bivona serves as the Columbia Basin Herald’s sports reporter and is a graduate of Auburn University in Auburn, Alabama. He enjoys the behind-the-scenes stories that lead up to the wins and losses of the various sports teams in the Basin. Football is his favorite sport, though he likes them all, and his favorite team is the Jets. He lives in Soap Lake with his cat, Honey. | January 14, 2025 3:25 AM
WARDEN – A busy weekend for the Warden boys wrestling team concluded with Saturday’s Jeremiah Schmunk Invitational, which followed duals against Okanogan and Tonasket on Thursday and Friday.
Moses Lake had the highest finish among local teams, taking second place at the tournament. The host Cougars finished second, while Othello took eighth.
“We’d been away for most of the season, and we had a three-day stretch at home, which was really good for us,” head coach Johnny Hernandez said. “... It’s nice to be in front of the home crowd and perform in front of them. The kids really enjoyed it.”
Tonasket won the tournament, scoring 197.5 points as a team, followed by the Mavericks with 156.5 points. Rounding out the top three was St. Maries (Idaho) with 156 points.
Warden finished the tournament with 109.5 points, narrowly edging out Othello, who finished with 107 points.
Among the placers for the Cougars were eighth-grader Stratton Yorgensen (106, tied-sixth), freshman Luis Cisneros (120, fourth), senior Michael Gonzalez (138, tied-sixth), senior Junior Santiago (144, third), junior Gabriel Serna (215, fourth), junior Valentin Juarez (285, tied-sixth) and sophomore Jesus Arias (285, tied-sixth).
“I told the guys before the tournament, ‘This was the toughest tournament we had wrestled in all year,’” Hernandez said. “We had a couple seniors – Michael Gonzalez and Junior Santiago – their brackets were pretty loaded, had two or three state placers in there. They needed that for their own mental boost, to be in a tough bracket in a tough tournament and be able to place. I thought we performed really well; we had some young guys do well.”
Warden junior Erik Camacho won the 120-pound class at Saturday’s tournament, pinning Tonasket's Cass Rothrock in the first round of the finals. Moses Lake freshman Jose Villafana (106) and Othello freshman Elliot Mitchell (285) also finished on top of their respective weight classes, and both won with first-round pins.
“He’s (Camacho) been on a tear all year, it’s his third tournament win,” Hernandez said. “He’s got a nice 20-2 record; he’s been hot all year.”
Coming up next for the Cougars is a league meet at Cle Elum-Roslyn on Thursday, followed by tournaments in Prosser and Tonasket on Friday and Saturday, respectively.
“This is the kind of stuff you need to prepare you for that three-day stretch in February when we get to the (Tacoma Dome),” Hernandez said. “This was really good for us to go back-to-back-to-back like that because when you get to Tacoma, you’ve got to have a stretch like that. We took some tough losses, but being able to bounce back from them will prepare us for what’s to come in February.”
Jeremiah Schmunk Invitational Results
Moses Lake – 2nd place
Placers: freshman Jose Villafana (106, first), junior Samuel Janke (126, third), sophomore Matthew Orellana (132, fourth), senior Jesse Humpherys (144, tied-sixth), senior Ethan Huntley (175, tied-sixth), senior Malaki Town (190, third), sophomore Ryder Janke (215, third) and junior Mason Meek (285, fourth).
Warden – 7th place
Placers: Yorgensen (106, tied-sixth), Camacho (120, first), Cisneros (120, fourth), Gonzalez (tied-sixth), Santiago (144, third), Serna (215, fourth), Juarez (285, tied-sixth) and Arias (285, tied-sixth).
Othello – 8th place
Placers: Junior Dallin Hammond (113, fourth), freshman Jayden Gonzalez (113, tied-sixth), freshman Xavier Guzman (120, third), sophomore Jeremiah Vargas (120, tied-sixth), junior Luis Feliciano (157, fourth), senior Jonathan Rios (165, tied-sixth) and freshman Elliot Mitchell (285, first).
Wahluke – tied-17th place
Other Local Results
Braided 64 – Kelso
Royal – 13th place
Placers: junior Sharon Arroyo (100, second) and senior Lauren Jenks (135, eighth).
Moses Lake – 15th place
Placers: senior Katelyn Rodriguez (235, fifth).
Othello – 22nd place
Placers: senior Bella Garza (105, third) and sophomore Grayce Mendez (110, eighth).
Ephrata – 27th place
Placers: junior Adylene Sanchez (155, fifth).
Connell Girls Invitational – Connell
Othello – 1st place
Placers: freshman Gabriela Pruneda (100, fifth), freshman Mili Flores (105, first), sophomore Brooklyn Hilman (110, third), freshman Ezmee Perez (115, third), freshman Celeste Cruz (125, fourth), sophomore Miriam Garcia (140, third) and senior Elena Zuniga (190, sixth).
Warden – 16th place
Placers: senior Dannika Escamilla (110, first) and junior Ashley Cruz (130, sixth).
Wahluke – 30th place
Crusader Classic – Colbert
Almira/Coulee-Hartline – 7th place
Placers: senior Jack Molitor (120, second), senior Grayson Beal (175, second) and sophomore Noah Butler (215, second).
Sgt. Justin Norton Memorial – Rainier
Lind-Ritzville/Sprague - 15th place
Placers: senior Carson Kubik (150, fourth) and senior Brock Tracy (285, third).
Warden senior Junior Santiago, top, wrestles against Moses Lake senior Jesse Humpherys at Saturday’s tournament in Warden. Santiago took third in the 144-pound class, while Humpherys tied for sixth.
Moses Lake junior Blayne Richards, background, takes down Othello junior Luis Feliciano, foreground. Feliciano won the match and took fourth in the 157-pound class.
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