Mavericks boys wrestlers get convincing dual meet win
Joshua Grubb, left, of Moses Lake faces off against Zander Mora of West Valley (Yakima) in Wednesday’s dual meet.
CHERYL SCHWEIZER/COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD
Cody Byers, left, Moses Lake, attempts to take down Nicholas Gomez, West Valley (Yakima).
Dayton Regan, right, Moses Lake, takes the measure of his opponent Tyler Vigansky in Moses Lake’s dual meet against West Valley (Yakima) Wednesday.
Moses Lake’s Blake Stowe, left, tries to turn his opponent, Tanner Spaeth of West Valley (Yakima).
Gabriela Vela, Moses Lake, top, works against Sydney Masengale of West Valley (Yakima) in Wednesday’s dual meet.
MOSES LAKE — Moses Lake boys wrestling Coach Jose Tanguma said the goal in Wednesday’s dual meet with West Valley (Yakima) was to get decisive wins. The Mavericks did that – only one match went to a decision in a 66-15 Moses Lake win.
The girls dual featured only one match, with the rest being forfeits; Moses Lake won 54-12.
“Our guys went out there and got pins, and that’s what I wanted them to do today,” Tanguma said.
Maverick wrestlers pinned all but two opponents.
Tanguma said the team has learned a lot since the season’s first dual with Sunnyside, which the Mavericks lost 58-18. He attributed that to their effort in the wrestling room.
“Hard work,” he said. “Hard work in practice, changing it up, situation drills, more live wrestling. Just more conditioning. We’re going more technical now, picking our shots, finishing our takedowns.”
In the girls dual meet, Moses Lake’s Gabriela Vela was pinned by Sydney Masengale of West Valley with 1:09 left in the third period. That followed two hard-fought rounds, where both wrestlers came close to pinning their opponents.
Vela had the lead going into the third period, and Moses Lake girls wrestling Coach David Peralez said there’s always the temptation to push too hard in front of the home fans.
“When we’re ahead we just have to wrestle tough and we don’t have to do anything extra,” he said. “And I think that sometimes the wrestlers (think that since) we have a home dual, and it’s underneath the lights, they feel like they’re almost obligated to give the fans something to watch.”
But it’s more important to focus on the task at hand, he said.
“We just have to make some of those corrections in practice, (be) aware of the situation, just come out with a win and not do anything extra,” Perales said.
The Maverick boys will compete in the Jeremiah Schmunk Memorial Tournament Saturday in Warden, while the girls are competing in the Kelso Girls Wrestling Tournament Friday and Saturday. Peralez said a tournament of that size, with long periods between matches, will be a challenge for all participants.
“It’s really going to test their mental toughness, their emotional toughness,” he said.
Cheryl Schweizer may be reached at cschweizer@columbiabasinherald.com.
