Huskies defeat Prosser, West Valley in double dual

OTHELLO — The Huskies picked up wins against Prosser and West Valley (Spokane) to improve to 6-1 in duals this winter, defeating the Mustangs 66-6 before taking down the Eagles 45-21 to close the night.

After road duals against East Valley (Yakima) and Wapato before traveling to Ellensburg for a tournament last week, the Huskies got some much-needed time off before Thursday’s double dual.

“It felt good to have a break,” Othello head coach Rudy Ochoa II said. “Last week we were in a bit of a grind; we went three straight days traveling a couple hours every day. It felt good just to see them a little rested and not as fatigued like we were last week. To be in front of our home crowd and to get a couple wins was awesome.”

After Mustang forfeits in the 106 and 113-pound bouts, the Huskies opened the first dual with four straight first-round pins, with senior Isaac Campos (120), sophomore Mason Russell (126), senior Anthony Abundiz (132) and senior Marcos Zuniga (138) all picking up wins. Prosser had forfeits in the 150 and 157-pound matches, with Othello sophomore Miguel Zuniga (190) and junior Mason Perez (285) later pinning their opponents.

Huskie juniors Ismael Torres (144) and Anthony Solorio (215) also won by decision in Thursday’s dual against Prosser.

Coming off a 66-6 win, Ochoa spoke on the importance of keeping a competitive mindset entering the second dual Thursday.

“It’s trying to get these guys to have the mindset where no matter the stage, they’re sticking to their match and sticking to their game,” he said. “I think it’s really important to work on how they prepare in their pre-match routines and how they go into the match.”

The West Valley dual opened with three consecutive pins by Campos, Russell and Abundiz before the Eagles won the 138, 144 and 150-pound bouts. Othello sophomore Camilo Mendez III got the Huskies back on track with a second-round pin in the 157-pound match, followed by senior Jesus Bonilla winning in overtime by taking down his opponent for an 8-6 win.

Bonilla’s win was the first overtime win of the night for Othello; Solorio later won in overtime.

“We’ve really been trying to work a lot of scenarios — controlling the match, match IQ and stuff — just trying to not panic and consistently trying to wrestle the match, no matter what the score is,” Ochoa said. “Stick to their game, and hopefully more times than not we end up on top.”

Similarly to Bonilla, Solorio also won by taking down his opponent in overtime. Solorio’s won clinched the win for the Huskies. 

“Just stay in good position — I did it, stayed in good position when he went for a takedown and shook him by,” Solorio said. “Got the takedown. I knew I was going to win, I just had to do it.”

Campos, Russell, Abundiz, Miguel Zuniga, Solorio and Perez all won both of their matches Thursday night.

“They’ve been putting in the work, it’s all credit to them,” Ochoa said. “They’re the ones putting in the work every single day and being disciplined outside the room. I’m so proud of them when it pays off; even some of the losses we had, I think they were quality losses. The dual was a lot closer if you were here, a lot closer than what the score showed.”

After traveling to Quincy’s Mat Animal Boys Wrestling Tournament on Saturday, the Huskies travel to Grandview Tuesday and host Ephrata on Thursday.

“They’re a good group,” Ochoa said. “Good character, they work hard. They’ve just got to stay the course and not get content with where we’re at. There’s still an end goal, we still have a month of wrestling and we’re still improving.”

Ian Bivona may be reached at ibivona@columbiabasinherald.com.

    Othello senior Isaac Campos, top, was one of six Huskies that won both of their matches during Thursday’s double dual against Prosser and West Valley (Spokane).
  

    Othello junior Mason Perez, background, works to take down Prosser’s Jacob Marks during Thursday’s double dual.
  

    Othello junior Christopher Garcia, top, works to flip West Valley (Spokane)’s Jaxn Fraser.