Huskies defeat Jacks in dual meet

OTHELLO — The Othello Huskies boys and girls wrestling were victorious over the Quincy Jacks on Tuesday. The boys won 43-31 while the girls won 52-21 as they push into the latter half of the regular season.  

“We're getting better on our feet,” Othello Girls Head Coach Sammy Rocha said. “One of the problems that we've had the last couple of weeks is (that) we're not attacking on our feet. We're playing too much defense. We're scoring okay on defense, but we're trying to get to the postseason when we're the first ones to score.” 

Both teams took to the mats simultaneously for a dual meet Tuesday. Both Huskie teams jumped out to a lead early and did not let up throughout the night. The boys were first to secure the team win.  

“We've been working a lot on pushing the pace. Today we're really aggressive, really pushing our pace and our attacks. We've been picking up practices a little bit harder and focusing on attacking, just getting to our offense before they can attack,” Othello boys head coach Reuben Lopez said.  

For the girls, Rocha was complimentary of Mya Rivera for earning two takedowns in her eventual win by pin and Angie Monday for not allowing a score in her match.  

“We’ve got young fire. All these girls are like fireballs, and they're just ready to go. Every time in that wrestling room, they’re very energetic. It's a close-knit bunch, all of them,” Rocha said.  

Rocha said he has also turned up the intensity at practice. The goal for the Huskies, who are ranked second in the 2A, is to be their own best competition whenever they walk onto a mat.  

“It's pretty easy when we run into another team, where sometimes I feel like our room is probably the strongest competition that we're going to get. For us to push each other in the room, we're really just kind of coaching each other up at the same time,” he said.  

On the boys' side, Camilo Mendez III earned his 100th career win after securing a pin in the 157-lb weight class. Lopez praised his work ethic and dedication to consistently improving. Sometimes Mendez will stay two hours after practice with his dad to keep training, Lopez said.  

“He's one of the hardest working guys in our room,” Lopez said. “He had a rough weekend this weekend in Prosser. He lost a couple tough ones, and then flat out told me Saturday night, ‘I'm done losing. I'm never doing it again.’ And he's putting the work in.”  

Mendez’s approach to wrestling is infectious, according to Lopez. He noted that many of the other wrestlers feed off his energy and, at times, provide a spark to the rest of the team whenever he succeeds on the mat.  

“I said, ‘You're in the middle weights, but they see you go out there and beat someone and now they want to try to do it with you. He brings a lot of passion. He loves his stuff, and he puts in the work, so he's getting hungry for it at the right time of the year, just to start wanting to push himself that much more,” Lopez said.  

As the boys begin their push for the postseason, Lopez said he will continue to push the intensity in practice as he gets his wrestlers ready. As they work on stamina and footwork, he’s noticed their improvement as they face different teams that present nuanced challenges.  

For the girls, Rocha is excited for the momentum they are building as injured players are making their comeback.  

“I’m getting a bunch of my injured girls back. That's first and foremost, I haven't had a complete lineup with all my wrestlers in there; tonight, I sat out two or three state veterans. So, we're pretty stacked. We got a lot of depth, and it's going to be a matter of if I can go into the postseason pretty healthy. We're going to be pretty dangerous,” Rocha said.  

The girls return to the mat Thursday at Selah starting at 6 p.m. The boys will follow, starting at 7 p.m. at Selah. The Jacks travel to Grandview for another dual meet starting at 7 p.m. 

Boys Results: 

106: Jacinto Camacho (QNCY) over Max Romero (OTHL), pinfall  

113: Kevin Morales (QNCY) over Othello, forfeit  

120: Johnny Blancas (QNCY) over Othello, forfeit  

126: Dominic Mendez (OTHL) over Lucas Martinez (QNCY), MD 17-9 

132: Daniel Gonzalez (OTHL) over Braiden Irish-Riveira (QNCY), pin 

138: Nathaniel Flores (OTHL) over Liam Fox (QNCY), pin 

144: Mason Russell (OTHL) over Jorgie Castro III (QNCY), pin 

150: Armoni Zuniga-Mendez (OTHL) over Jody Gardner (QNCY), decision 14-10 

157: Camilo Mendez III (OTHL) over Diego Diaz (QNCY), pin 

165: Enrique Rebollo (QNCY) over Zayvier Olazcon (OTHL), decision 19-12 

175: Angel Farias (QNCY) over Ben Meredith (OTHL), MD 9-0 

190: Miguel Zuniga (OTHL) over Anthony Averill (QNCY), pin 

215: Alejandro Barajas (QNCY) over Othello, forfeit  

285: Elliot Mitchell (OTHL) over Isaac Villaraoz (QNCY), pin 

Girls Results:  

100: Emiko Kondo (QNCY) over Janissa Barrera (OTHL), decision 3-1 

105: Mya Rivera (OTHL) over Naylanie Heras (QNCY), pin 

110: Grayce Mendez (OTHL) over Brielle Baughman (QNCY), pin  

115: Yaritzi Flores (OTHL) over Klare Gans (QNCY), pin 

120: Celeste Cruz (OTHL) over Jade Guerrero (QNCY), decision 9-3  

125: Ezmee Perez (OTHL) over Melissa Mendez (QNCY), pin 

130: Victoria Deleon (OTHL) over Thalia Castro (QNCY), MD 16-5 

135: Angie Monday (OTHL) over Hailey Courtade (QNCY), pin 

140: Addie Russell (OTHL) over Yajaira Mata (QNCY), pin 

145: Miriam Garcia (OTHL) over Kimberly Solano (QNCY), tiebreaker-1 2-1 

155: Estrella Acevedo (QNCY) over Othello, forfeit  

170: Lucy Gilbert (OTHL) over Gabriela Lopez (QNCY), pin 

190: Evelyn Silvas (QNCY) over Anai Galvez (OTHL), pin 

235: Abigail Garcia (QNCY) over Phiona Pruneda (OTHL), pin 

    Emiko Kondo, top, and Janissa Berrera, in black, work for position during their match Tuesday. The Huskies Head Coach Sammy Rocha called his team a young ,fiery group.
  

    Camillo Mendez III celebrates his 100th win as an Othello Huskie. Mendez earned a pin in his century mark win Tuesday.
  

    The Huskies’ Mya Rivera, left, and Naylanie Heras, Quincy, right, spar with each other during their match Tuesday. Rivera earned the victory with a pin.
  

    The Jacks’ Lucas Martinez, in green, attempts to take down the Huskies’ Dominic Mendez, in black, during their match Tuesday. Mendez won via majority decision 17-9.