Armendariz celebrates 100th win on senior night

MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake Mavericks girls wrestling squad defeated the Davis Pirates 54-22 on Thursday while also taking the opportunity to celebrate Elyssa Armendariz for surpassing 100 match wins at Moses Lake.  

“When I was a freshman, this day felt like it was for was never going to come,” Armendariz said. “And now that it's here, it's just an emotional roller coaster. I was extremely lucky to get it for senior night. I've been wrestling since I was 6 years old, going everywhere around the country just to be here.”  

The Mavericks dominated from the opening contest, earning three pinfalls, a forfeit and a decision victory in the first five matches. Moses Lake only gave up two matches via decision and pinfall, while the other two losses were forfeits. The Mavericks earned four more pinfall victories to secure the team win at home. 

“I didn't expect that big of a gap in the score. I thought it'd be a little bit of a tighter match. Davis is kind of a (Big 9) league rival, so we knew some of the matches could swing either way, and the matches kind of all swung our way,” head coach Tony Lee said.  

After Kayla Gonzalez battled for an 8-3 decision victory in the opening contest, Elyssa Armendariz took to the mat for her match against Jazmin Bucio in the 105-lb class. 

The two went back and forth until Armendariz took control on the mat to pin her for the win. Upon winning, she stood up and signaled ‘100’ with her hands to signify the moment. The meeting took a brief pause to acknowledge Armendariz and her achievement.  

“Wrestling for this team has been really amazing to me all four years and wrestling for these coaches who have been with me since my freshman year, so I think that's what I'm going to miss the most,” Armendariz said.  

Coach Lee said he was proud to see her reach this milestone in her final season as a Maverick.

“That just shows that long-term success and that hard work over multiple years. It wasn't just one match that got her that. It took her 100 hard-fought matches to get to that,” Lee said.  

Armendariz’s win provided a spark for the Mavericks for the rest of the night. Trinity Town and Kamilah Martinez added to the team score with pinfall victories in the 115-lb and 120-lb matches. Hayden Morris made the switch from the 125-lb class to 130 to seek out a new challenge, Lee said.  

Morris responded to the challenge by outscoring Honey Lopez on the mat 5-1 for a decision victory.  

“Whether it's bumping up or staying in her weight class, she's able to take care of business and go into the postseason with confidence that it doesn't matter what weight class (she’s in), she's already competing with the best of the best and coming on top,” Lee said.  

After dropping a match via pinfall, Anahi Garcia sealed the dual win for the Mavs after pinning Samaria Sanchez in the 140-lb class. From there, Lexie Gruber, Emma Thompson and Izzabella Fredly added to the overall score with pinfall victories in their respective matches for a final score of 54-22. 

After the dual, Armendariz, Morris and Naomi Cruz were also celebrated as this was their final home dual as Mavericks.  

“It was cool seeing the seniors on their night, getting to go out and really earn a bigger win than we even expected,” Lee said.  

The Mavericks hit the road Saturday to compete in a tournament at Kittitas High School. Results for the tournament were not available at the time of press. Moses Lake finishes its regular season on the road against Sunnyside on Feb. 3 at 7 p.m. and Wenatchee for another tournament on Feb. 7 at 11 a.m. 

“When it's a league opponent, those are the matches that matter the most for seeding into the postseason,” Lee said. “We got to go wrestle the same league girls at districts for a spot in the state tournament. If you're able to have success in all your matches in league, that kind of shows you where you're at as far as getting into state.” 

RESULTS: 

100: Kayla Gonzalez (MLHS) over Kiahna Huizar (Davis), decision 8-3 

105: Elyssa Armendariz (MLHS) over Jazmin Bucio (Davis), pinfall 

110: Ariah Loiseau (MLHS) over Davis, forfeit  

115: Trinity Town (MLHS) over Ashley Penaloza (Davis), pinfall 

120: Kamilah Martinez (MLHS) over Araceli Nunez (Davis), pinfall 

125: Reinalda Gonzalez (Davis) over Moses Lake, forfeit  

130: Hayden Morris (MLHS) over Honey Lopez (Davis), decision 5-1 

135: Carla Arce (Davis) over Meczi Johnson (MLHS), major decision 9-1 

140: Anahi Garcia (MLHS) over Samaria Sanchez (Davis), pinfall 

145: Lexie Gruber (MLHS) over Jaselle Aguilar (Davis), pinfall 

155: Emma Thompson (MLHS) over Abigail Gonzalez (Davis), pinfall 

170: Gianna Sowers (Davis) over Naomi Cruz (MLHS), pinfall 

190: Izzabella Fredly (MLHS) over Sophia Lucatero (Davis), pinfall 

235: Sawyer Newman (Davis) over Moses Lake, forfeit  

    The Mavs’ Hayden Morris, left, eyes her opponent as she looks for a chance to take her down. Morris moved up to the 130-lb class to face an opponent with state experience.
  

    Meczi Johnson, right, fights for wrist control over her opponent during their match Thursday.
  

    Kamilah Martinez, left, gets set in her neutral stance before her match Thursday. Martinez earned a pinfall win.