Othello wins team title at Schutte Invitational

OTHELLO — You hear that? That’s Othello banging on the door. It’s early yet and nobody cares what you did in December, but the Husky wrestling team sent a message to the Washington state Class 2A that they are coming.

The Huskies put seven in the finals and won the 29-team Leonard Schutte Invitational in Husky Gym on Saturday in commanding fashion with a 222.5 point total. It was a long day, beginning at 7 a.m. for some and ending with the finals, which didn’t start until after 8 p.m.

But it was reason to smile for a team that held off second-place Southridge (Kennewick) (185.5). The Central Washington Athletic Conference schools were right there. Selah was third (146) and Ellensburg got most of its points with six third-place finishes, was fourth (138).

The Huskies, who were six points out of third place in last year’s Class 2A state tournament, put seven in the finals, crowned three champions, and defended the house, topping some of the best programs in the Pacific Northwest.

“It really means a lot (to win this tournament). We’ve had some rescheduling and weather postponements and the guys have been itching to battle. So we’re very happy with our performance and winning in our own gym,” said Husky coach Rudy Ochoa II, who is in his second year after taking over for legendary coach Ruben Martinez. “The boys have been working hard, with a never-give-up attitude, and I think it showed today.”

The field did include the Moses Lake junior varsity, which crowned a champion, Riley Burgess at 106, and finished 12th. But the day belonged to Othello.

Chris Melo beat Angel DelAngel of Kiona-Benton 2-1 to win the 113-pound championship. The two had scored a combined 30 points in their semifinal wins. But the championship bout was a one-point difference and a strategic match, to say the least.

“It was a long, long day, but not too bad,” said Melo, a championship has a way of making it better. “I’m happy to be able to win it here at home. Having seven in the finals was really good and it says a lot about us as a team.”

The Huskies won 3-of-7 championship matches. Had they run the table, they would have just blown the field away.

Collin Freeman won at 152. T.J. Martinez claimed the title at 195 and of course Melo worked a nice, efficient match to win at 113.

“Winning this tournament means everything,” said Martinez, who bested Arie VanVeen of Stanwood 6-4 in overtime to win the 195 title. “We been working our (bleep) off for the whole year just to get ready for the season. We’re planning on being on top (at state) and the only way you can do that is to put seven-eight guys in the finals like we did today.”

It was definitely game-on in a quality field. CWAC programs Ellensburg and Selah were right there making some noise coming through the wrestle-backs. There was also a couple of early-season clashes with title ramifications down the road.

Washington state 2A qualifier Reese Jones and Aaron Pimentel of Selah went move-for-move to the end in the 170-point title bout, which happened to be the last of the night. Pimentel won this round, 4-3, but this dance is likely to continue with a state title on the line.

Jaxon Rocha didn’t have it this particular good night in his 10-1 loss to Daniel Callahan of Selah in the 120-pound final. Husky 132-pounder Ben Garza was pinned at 3:59 in the 132-pound final.

Isaiah Perez wrestled for the 220-pound championship, falling to Conner Krouse of Chewelah by pin.

It was a big day, however, for Moses Lake sophomore Burgess, who defeated Justin Smith of Clarkston for the championship.

“I was wrestling to win. I took a lot of shots,” Burgess said. “I’ve been wrestling since seventh grade, but this was the first final for me in high school wrestling. I wanted to put a lot of pressure on him and go for the win. This is a big win for me and I hope a lot more to come.”