Huskies wrap up districts with 28 state contenders

OTHELLO — The Othello Huskies finished out district competition Saturday with the team sending 13 boys and 15 girls, for 28 total wrestlers heading to the state tournament this weekend. 

Boys  

The Huskies boys team brought 23 wrestlers into the district meet and came out of the event third overall with a score of 275.5 and had 13 of those boys qualify to head to Tacoma this weekend. 

“It was a good weekend... there’s nothing I can complain about at all,” said Huskies boys head coach Reuben Lopez. “The boys wrestled tough, even the guys that didn’t get to make it through, they battled and they walked off the mat with their head held high and happy with what they did and how they performed out there. As a coach, all you can ask for is that these guys battled and gave it all they had.” 

The Huskies had one district champion on the boys' side with Camilo Mendez III at 150-lbs. Mendez won his first two matches by pinfall early in the competition and finished out with a match-decision victory over Wyatt Green from Ellensburg and then finished the tournament with a sudden-victory over Isaiah Rios from Toppenish to take first in the bracket. 

At 113-lbs both Xavier Mendez and Xavier Guzman qualified for state, with Xavier taking second and Guzman taking fourth in their bracket. Another two-man qualifying bracket came at 138-lbs where Mason Russell took second and Nathaniel Flores took fourth. 

“Two guys out of the same bracket, that’s pretty tough to do,” said Lopez. 

With only a few days left until the state tournament, the coach said there is very little for the Huskies to work on other than getting some last bits of fine-tuning in and keeping team stamina up heading into this weekend.  

“We just kind of touch up on the things that these guys are really good at that got them to this point and trying to get it perfected for this last week,” he said. 

The Huskies' morale is very high, and the team is prepared for what is coming ahead for state. Lopez said the upperclassmen on the team have been beneficial in helping the younger wrestlers stay comfortable in their abilities as the state tournament approaches. 

“These guys have been working hard all year and it’s showing,” he said. “Next weekend is where we’ll step up a little bit more, we’ll get them ready and we’ll let the fun begin.” 

Girls  

For the Huskies girls, advancing 15 girls into the state tournament was a hard-fought battle as they competed against some strong opposition in Grandview at districts. 

“Overall, I'm pretty excited. Our girls went in there looking for a fight and they got one,” said Huskies girls head coach Sammy Rocha. “Luckily for us, a majority of our wins were really by one or two points and our girls just kind of grind away.” 

The Othello girls wrestlers had three district champions come out of Grandview with senior Angie Monday at 130-lbs, freshman Addie Russel at 140-lbs and junior Karla Guzman at 145-lbs.  

Rocha said Monday will be a tough contender in the state competition as she has wrestled at a high level throughout her career. Heading into the weekend has the coach excited to see what the wrestler can accomplish. 

“Angie’s just super confident right now and I think she’s going to be one of those girls who comes away with that first-place medal because she’s just really good,” he said. 

Russel, making her first state appearance, will be another strong Huskie wrestler to keep an eye on during the competition, said the coach. 

“Addie’s just strong and really aware of situations and as a freshman, she’s going to be tough to beat,” said Rocha. “She could be one girl who could win four state championships, so we’re really excited to keep her moving forward.” 

Guzman, like Monday, is another state returner from last season who has gained a great deal of momentum heading into the final stretch of competition, he said.  

Another highlight from the state qualifiers was from sophomore Anai Galvez, who placed fourth in districts to qualify for state in her second season. This follows a tough freshman season where Rocha said the young wrestler only won a single match. 

“She’s our most improved wrestler for sure and I’m going to use her as an inspirational story for the next few years that I’m coaching,” he said. “Most girls would quit, but Anai came back into the year, worked during the offseason and just had great partners.”  

With the state competition quickly approaching, the coach said each of the qualifiers are excited for what lies ahead for the team. As the team travels to Tacoma this weekend, Rocha wants to thank the fans who supported the team this season. 

“I want to thank our community for being out there and really energizing these girls and so I hope that this weekend we can get even more people in that Tacoma dome and just be the loudest section,” he said. 

    Lucy Gilbert from the Huskies looks for an opening against her opponent earlier in the season. Gilbert qualified for state by taking second in the 170-lb bracket.
  

    Camillo Mendes III, a senior from the Huskies, gets ready to battle against his opponent during a previous home meet this season. Mendes finished first in the 150-lb bracket to become a district champion Saturday.
  

    Othello wrestler Mason Russell brings down his competition during a meet in Ephrata earlier this season. Russell qualified for state by taking second at 138-lbs.