Othello boys crowned state champion

TACOMA - It was one of those magical seasons for the Othello boys wrestling team.

The Huskies finished undefeated in the Central Washington Athletic Conference, claimed a district and regional title, then went on to turn back all comers to be crowned the 2A State Champion at the 25th Annual Mat Classic in Tacoma over the weekend.

Othello finished with a team total of 133.5 points. Deer Park was second with 111, and Orting third with 96.5.

"This is the best season we've had since 2004," coach Ruben Martinez said. "The kids worked extremely hard to accomplish their goals. But I think the biggest difference from year's past is my staff and I were able to get these young boys to believe in team unity."

A task that is not always easy to do Martinez said.

"They were running together, hanging out together, supporting and coaching each other.  Especially when a teammate would lose at an event," he said. "They gathered around each other and gave each other a boost.   This is not always easy, but we were able to successfully accomplish the difficult task and that's what led to the success that we've had the past three weeks."

Othello sent nine qualifiers to the big stage. Martinez thought if seven or eight Huskies were still in contention after the first day of competition, his team might just have a chance to finish near the top of the heap.

"We ended up having seven wrestling Saturday," he said. "We had four in the finals, which I believe is a first for Othello, and two wrestling for third and fourth place and one for seventh and eighth."

The actual match that clinched it for the Huskies was Isaiah Barrera verses Aaron Klauder from Deer Park who were battling it out for third place.

"When Isaiah won we could enjoy the finals a little better, as we knew we had won the state team championship," Martinez said. "This was a total team effort. I am very proud of every single wrestler who stuck it out to end.  We could not have become such a good team without those wrestling in the practice room everyday, as that is where champions are made."

Martinez said he was very appreciative of the community support the team received this year and believes the red, white and black worn by their fans at all the postseason tournaments, gave his wrestlers an added incentive to perform at their best.

Although the state tournament just concluded Sunday, Martinez said he can't wait to start all over again.

"We are already discussing how we can do a better job next year," he said. "It's always fun looking towards next season, especially after winning out the past three weeks. I believe we can accomplish the same thing next year as we have many returning regional veterans and five state veterans, four of which placed this year."  

The seven placers for the Huskies at this year's Mat Classic were state champions Anthony Barrera (106) and Lucas Garza who wrestles at 126, runner-up's Alec Espinoza (113) and Bubba Ruiz (285) who lost in triple overtime, Isaiah Barrera (106) who finished third, Manny Martinez (120), who wrestled to a fourth-place finish, and Eric Garza (145) who placed eighth.