Moses Lake earns victory over Eastmont

Chiefs wrestle win from Cats

MOSES LAKE — The Chiefs have a long memory. Tuesday night they were remembering a two-point loss to Eastmont last year.

This year it was a different story, with the Chiefs pinning Eastmont four times and taking the overall win with a score of 43-24.

"I'm happy," said head coach Jim Nielsen. "This is a big win for us. We came in and defended our house."

The match got rolling with the second dual of the night, between Stevie Vasquez of Moses Lake and Seath Kimball of Eastmont wrestling at 189.

Vasquez fell behind in points early but recovered with an escape and a take down. The two moves put Vasquez up for good and gave him a 5-2 win.

"We took advantage of some good opportunities," said Nielsen.

Next on the mat, at 215, was John Fackrell. Fackrell took a 5-0 lead in the first period of the match, beating his opponent out of the gate.

The momentum shifted after a time-out was called for blood in the second period. Eastmont jumped ahead 6-5 after a take down.

In the third period, Fackrell tied it up at 6-6 before making an escape of his own to take a 7-6 lead. Fackrell extended his lead with a take down and won the dual 9-6.

"I'm proud of them (the team)," Nielsen said. "They went out and fought."

In the heavyweight dual, Brett Frederickson took on Nick Gale. The two battled to a 2-2 tie at the end of the first period.

As the dual continued, Frederickson wore Gale down and won the match 7-6.

Matt Palmer, wrestling at 119, had the first pin of the night for Moses Lake.

Palmer was up 2-0 with time winding down in the dual when he pinned his opponent to start sealing the team victory for the Chiefs.

Gabe Guzman was down 5-3 at the end of the first period in the 125 lb. match but came back and pinned his opponent with 1:03 left in the second period.

In the 130 weight class, Sean Hoiness took on Robbie Medrano. Hoiness hoisted Medrano up for a slam and brought him down hard. The impact jarred Medrano, who defaulted, giving Hoiness the win.

Jordan Hill was on the mat for 48 seconds before he pinned his opponent in the 135 weight class.

Cody Hoiness continued the pinning trend, putting Joe Logan on his back for the win with 41.1 seconds left in the first period of their dual.

Thomas Courtright had the last win of the night for the Chiefs wrestling in the 152 weight class. Courtright took a 7-1 lead in the first period of his match and continued to dominate the mat, winning 12-1.

"Some of the younger kids have lots to work on," said Nielsen. "And for some of the older ones, its about refining some things."

In the other matches of the night, Ty Sainsbury was pinned with 11.3 left in the second period in the 171 weight class.

Tyler Vela, wrestling at 103, fell behind 8-0 before being pinned with 1:30 left in the second period.

Roberto Cruz lost the 112 bout 6-2.

After a battle in the 145 class, Jacob Hittinger lost 6-0.

In the last dual of the night, Trevor Cole was pinned in the second period.

"The first match of the season is always the worst," Nielsen said. "You're nervous. You're not as in shape as you'd like to be."

Moses Lake will take on Eisenhower at home Thursday, with varsity beginning at 7 p.m.