First-year Auburn wrestling coach Dennis Herren expected big things from his squad at last weekend’s South Puget Sound League North 4A sub-regional meet at Kent-Meridian High School.
And the Trojans delivered on the mats, grabbing third in the team competition with 226.4 points and advancing eight wrestlers to this weekend’s West Central District III Regional meet at Thomas Jefferson High School.
“I am really happy with this group of wrestlers,” Herren said.
Auburn finished the tournament boasting three weight-class winners, with senior Brian Alonzo and juniors Seth Mizoguchi and Josh Tate snagging championships.
Alonzo – who finished fifth at 103 pounds at last year’s Washington State Mat Classic XXIII Championships – defeated Tahoma’s Todd Link 3-1 in the title match to take first at 106 pounds.At 160, Mizoguchi came from behind against Kentwood’s Jonathan Ohashi to win the title with a 14-5 major decision.
“(His) third-round throws to come from behind in the finals and win the league title were remarkable,” Herren said of Mizoguchi.
Also stepping up for the Trojans was Tate, who defeated two state placers – Tahoma’s Dan Haniger (fourth at 135 pounds in 2011) and Auburn teammate Tilden Sansom (seventh at 145 pounds in 2011) – on his way to the title.
“He is surprisingly dangerous,” Herren said.
Tate outlasted Sansom 7-2 in the title match.
In addition to its individual winners, Auburn moves on sophomore Cameron Hiller (fourth at 113), sophomore Tyson Gaillac (third at 126), senior Sansom (second at 152), senior Stephen Heinze (fourth at 170) and junior James West (second at 182).
Herren credited his senior leadership for his team’s performance at the tourney.
“Much of the team’s ability to continue to grow and improve as we move into the post season is owed to Alonzo and Sansom, two outstanding captains who went to the (Tacoma) Dome for the Mat Classic in 2011,” he said. “All season I have watched these two seniors face adversity with courage, grow from setbacks, and dig deep to train even harder when things seem impossible. The underclassmen on the team see this, too, and it has become the team culture.”
Tahoma finished first in the team competition with 475.5 points and eight individual class winners.
Auburn Riverside finished fifth with 159 points.
The Ravens advanced four wrestlers to district behind senior Eduard Yakimchuk, who finished fourth at 132, junior Keaton Dalfrey who snared fourth at 138, senior Nate Mead who placed third at 145 and sophomore Larkin Williams who took second at 285.
The WCD III District meet gets under way at 10 a.m. Saturday.
The top four finishers in each weight class qualify for the Feb. 17-18 Mat Classic XXIV at the Tacoma Dome.
ALSO: The Auburn girls also fared well at sub-regionals, with senior Katrynia Todd leading the way with a league title at 137 pounds. Todd, a state champion at 140 last year, defeated Todd Beamer’s Vanessa Dixon with a pin at 5 minutes, 13 seconds in the title match. Teammate Anel Nurzanhov was third at 100 and sophomore Hana Mizoguchi was fifth at 124 pounds. … Auburn Riverside was represented by Chrystal Gibbs who finished fifth at 130 pounds. The girls 4A regional tourney is Saturday at Emerald Ridge. … A sub-regionals, Auburn Mountainview’s Alyssa Aquilar took home third at 118, Jazmine Aquilar grabbed third at 130 and Tiffany Chang was fourth at 112. The Lions compete at regionals Saturday at Castle Rock High School. … The Auburn Mountainview boys moved four wrestlers to the 3A regionals with Dakota Wier (285), Alex Harris (195), Erik English (152) and David Boone (132) earning spots. The regional meet at Bonney Lake High School begins at 4 p.m. Friday and continues at 9:30 a.m. Saturday.
