Moses Lake-Othello dual is a showcase of proud wrestling history

I spent a great deal of time covering Pat Whitcomb’s wrestling program over at North Idaho College in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.

Pat takes his guys to the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational every year to get some exposure for recruiting purposes and compete in the elite field of NCAA Division I programs. You’d think some Juco program from Cord-a-Wood in North Idaho would be canon fodder for the likes of Michigan, Ohio State, Northern Iowa, Penn State and any one of the other 40 programs competing at the December classic in Vegas.

But the Cardinals tend to hold their own on a bout-to-bout basis against some of the best collegiate wrestlers in the nation. A lot of the guys you see in Vegas wrestle for an NCAA national championship later in the season.

That’s what I like about wrestling. You can get there from here, meaning that guys from smaller programs can compete on an elite level no matter where they come from. You don’t have to play for Ohio State to get to the Rose Bowl.

Obviously a team championship is a different story, but on an individual basis it’s one circle, two guys, one winner ... Go for it.

That’s also what I like about the Moses Lake-Othello wrestling dual on Wednesday. These are two proud, accomplished wrestling programs that have put the Columbia Basin on the map as a wrestling mecca, a place where champions are forged.

The Chiefs have 18 4A state championships dating back to 1959. They won eight state championships in 10 years between 1959 and 1968. But it’s not just ancient history, Moses Lake had a three-peat in 1998-99-00 to usher in the 21st century and most recently won a 4A Mat Classic in 2015 in the Jamie Garza era.

Garza was a part of three state championship teams for Moses Lake and won an individual championship in 1998. He learned and earned his stripes in the room of legendary wrestling coach Ron Siebel (1976-2004).

On the other side of this epic confrontation is a 2A program, which history dates back to 1958. The Huskies have won state championships five times since 1964, including back-to-back in 1968 and 1969. Their bid to repeat again in 1975 came up short and they were the 2A state runners-up after winning in 1974. The Huskies last won a state title in 2013.

Rudy Ochoa II is in his third season, taking over for the legendary Huskies coach Ruben Martinez, and is carrying forward another proud wrestling tradition in the heart of the Columbia Basin.

The Chiefs and the Huskies are first up at 5:30 p.m. in a twin bill that will later feature the Chiefs and Chiawana.

Last year’s Moses Lake-Othello dual went right down to the wire where eventual 2A state champion Reese Jones defeated Beau Mauseth by decision in the final match of the night. But the Chiefs held on to win by a single point. Jones later gave me one of those quotes that ya hang onto for years to come.

“It was too scary to be fun,” he said.

This year has all the makings of another clash of Columbia Basin Titans. Moses Lake’s Maximus Zamora defeated Chris Melo at the Tri-State tournament before the break. That should be an interesting rematch at the top of the order. Hunter Cruz has been nigh untouchable for the Chiefs, winning his second Tri-State championship, and now adding a Gut Check Invitational championship to the resume. Throw in a dominant win against Lake Stevens and I’m thinking he should be wrestling for Whitcomb at North Idaho next season.

Wednesday night at Moses Lake should be a classic night for wrestling fans: One circle, two guys, one winner.

Rodney Harwood is a sports writer for the Columbia Basin Herald and can be reached at rharwood@columbiabasinherald.com