If anyone thought a move up to 5A was going to slow down Crook County’s wrestling team, the Cowboys offered some convincing evidence otherwise last weekend.
Crook County, winner of five of the last six 4A titles, beat five-time reigning 6A champion Roseburg to win the 35-team North Bend Coast Classic.
The Cowboys outscored the Indians 266-213 for first place, getting titles from juniors Hunter Mode (126 pounds), Zachary Mauras (132) and Kyle Knudtson (182) and senior Jaxson Rhodes (195).
“We try to have a tough schedule, and Roseburg’s a tough team,” Crook County coach Jake Gonzales said. “Yeah, we want to beat them, but it’s not like that’s my goal, to beat Roseburg. My goal is to get all these guys better each day, each week, and be ready for the end of February.”
Mode, the team’s only returning state champion, seems to be adjusting well to his move from 106 to 126. He pinned his way to the final, where he posted a 10-1 decision over Crater’s Angel Diaz.
“He’s bigger, he’s stronger, and he seems a little more focused,” Gonzales said of Mode. “He’s tough on top. Some guys are kind of figuring that out, but he’s adapting really well on top, trying to go to some different moves. He’s fun to watch.”
Mauras pinned four of his five opponents at 132, including a third-round fall of Redmond’s Trae Bolken in the championship match.
“He’s getting more mat savvy,” Gonzales said. “He really understands wrestling position. He’s got good hips, and he’s fighting. At the Coast Classic, he stayed in the match and he fought the entire time, and it was good to see.”
Knudtson was named the tournament’s outstanding wrestler after pinning his way through the 182 bracket, needing 42 seconds to defeat Hidden Valley’s Dustin Brown in the final.
“He’s really athletic, really powerful, really strong,” Gonzales said. “He’s got an amazing half-nelson that he runs. When he was a freshman, he was kind of rolling around, catching guys. Now he’s back to basics.”
Rhoden showed improved poise to beat Century’s Loudyn Reese 8-3 for the 195 title.
“Sometimes he has a tendency to kind of get hyped up and lose focus,” Gonzales said. “But the whole tournament, he kept his composure and scored points. In the finals, there was a bunch of blood time, which can be frustrating, and he just kept his composure and stuck to the plan.”
Mauras, Knudtson and Rhoden were state runners-up last year, as were sophomore Steven Ware (106) and junior Tannon Joyner (113). So the lineup is loaded with hungry wrestlers.
“We’ve got a great group of guys,” said Gonzales, who replaced Jake Huffman as coach this year after assisting in the program for eight seasons. “The expectation is pretty high. They understand when we head somewhere, yeah, we want to win.”
Photos of state championship events are available from Northwest Sports Photography at 4nsp.com
jerryu@osaa.org
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