Seniors propel Cougars to victory

Pin in final match gives Warden 35-32 win

WARDEN — Trailing 32-23 with two matches to wrestle, Warden needed big matches from seniors Aaron Pruneda and AJ Phillips just to have a shot of beating rival Cashmere Tuesday.

The seniors, wrestling their final dual in front of the home crowd, didn't disappoint.

Aaron Pruneda got Warden back in the match with an injury default victory, and AJ Phillips put the Cougars over the top with a second round pin to lift Warden to a 35-32 victory.

In the 145 pound finale, Phillips fell behind 2-0 early in the first round to Cashmere's Tyler Thibault. The Warden senior escaped midway through the period, then scored a takedown and 3-point near-fall to grab a 6-2 lead.

During the second round, Phillips got an early reversal to extend his lead. From there, the Warden wrestler turned Thibault to his back and ended the contest with 1:27 remaining in the second round.

At 140 pounds, Pruneda opened up a 4-1 first round lead over Cashmere's Shawn Kropi.

Pruneda gave Kropi an escape with 11 seconds remaining in the round, then managed to score a takedown at the edge of the mat as time expired.

In the second round, Pruneda executed a granby roll off the whistle and scored a quick reversal. Kropi's shoulder was injured during the roll, and the Cashmere wrestler was unable to continue the match.

The victory closed the margin to 32-29, setting up Phillips' crowd-pleasing finale.

Phillips and Pruneda weren't the only seniors that shined Tuesday night.

In the 152 pound match, senior Anthony Martinez held a 7-4 lead with 30 seconds to go. However, Cashmere's Brandon Kilgore scored two takedowns, the last one with four seconds remaining, to send the contest into overtime.

"He lost his edge in the third round," said Warden coach Rick Bowers of Martinez.

In overtime, Martinez rediscovered his edge and scored the winning takedown on an arm drag.

"He found a way to win," said Bowers. "That's heart."

After Martinez's overtime victory, Cashmere won four straight matches to take a 14-3 lead.

Senior Nathan Alvarado's first round pin of Cashmere's Logan Church ignited a run that ended with Warden holding a 23-14 lead.

Following Alvarado, Warden's Jesse Guerra pinned Cashmere's Austin Miller to give Warden a 15-14 lead.

At 112 pounds, Warden senior Steve Elizalde entered the third round with a 7-1 lead. Knowing his team needed every point he could provide, Elizalde exploded for 15 third round points and a 22-5 technical fall victory.

Leading 18-4 with 11 seconds to wrestle, Elizalde gave Cashmere's Tyler McCord an escape in hopes of scoring a technical fall.

Seconds later, Elizalde got a takedown near the edge of the mat to end the match.

"He's just got ultimate faith in his shot," said Bowers. "When he needs it, he can get it."

Robert Pruneda followed with a 12-6 victory at 119 pounds to extend the Warden lead to nine. Cashmere responded with three pins to take the 32-23 lead.

The rivalry between Warden and Cashmere, of the 2A CWAC, began some twenty years ago.

"Cashmere is big to me because of the tradition in the '80s," said Bowers. "When we first became known, we had to beat Cashmere."

The win over Cashmere caps a big week for the Cougars

"The last two home matches have been really special," Bowers added. "Drama, excitement; you can't ask for more."

Warden 35, Cashmere 32

152 - Anthony Martinez (W) d. Brandon Kilgore, 10-8 OT; 160 - Levi Parkins (C) d. Jose Velez, 6-0; 171 - Jesse Newberry (C) d. Joel Martinez, 2-0; 189 - Justin Davis (C) m.d. Kenny Guerra, 18-10; 215 - Dan Worlery (C) m.d. Robby Horn, 14-4; 275 - Nathan Alvarado (W) p. Logan Church, :39; 103 - Jesse Guerra (W) p. Austin Miller, 3:35; 112 - Steve Elizalde (W) t.f. Tyler McCord, 22-5; 119 - Robert Pruneda (W) d. Tanner Schwind, 12-6; 125 - Tanner Wood (C) p. Freddy Flores, 3:59; 130 - Brent Evans (C) p. AJ Martinez, 3:36; 135 - Josh Mason (C) p. Carlos Landeros, 3:04; 140 - Aaron Pruneda (W) in. def. Shawn Kropi; 145 - AJ Phillips (W) p. Tyler Thibault, 2:33.