Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Portland is the site for the 2024-25 OSAA / OnPoint Community Credit Union Wrestling State Championships presented by the US Army. For three days, starting tomorrow, wrestlers will grapple with the possibility that they might become state champions in one of 70 boys brackets across five classifications and one of 28 girls champions across two.
Let’s start by reviewing what happened last year:
Boys
2024 team state champions
6A – Newberg
5A – Dallas
4A – Sweet Home
3A – Harrisburg
2A/1A – Toledo
2024 underclass individual state champions
6A
106 – Drew Dawson, Roseburg – wrestling at 113 this year
132 – Gavin Rangel, Newberg
138 – Oscar Doces, West Linn – wrestling at 144
150 – Gus Ammerson, Newberg – wrestling at 157
175 – Bridger Foss, North Medford
190 – Logan Sunnell, Tualatin
215 – Lusiano Lopez, Lake Oswego
285 – Dominic Mason, Nelson
Rangel missed the season due to injury and will not participate.
Doces is a two-time champion.
Lopez and Mason are undefeated on the season.
5A
106 – Aiden Nelmes, Mountain View – wrestling at 120 this year
113 – Jeremiah Oliva, Crater – wrestling at 120
120 – Joseph Johnson, Dallas – wrestling at 126
126 – Aiden Godley, Crater – wrestling at 144
138 – Joey Hutchins, Crater – wrestling at 132
144 – Colton Annis, Thurston – wrestling at 157
165 – Leif Larwin, Bend – wrestling at 175
215 – Jackson Doman, Canby
285 – Brash Henderson, Silverton – wrestling at 215
Hutchins and Doman are undefeated.
4A
106 – Jesse Landtroop, Sweet Home – wrestling at 120 this year
113 – Skyler Sutton, Cascade
138 – Landon Lavey, Crook County
144 – Tommy Belding, La Grande – wrestling at 157
150 – Riley Barrett, Philomath
157 – Maverick Heimbuck, Scappoose – wrestling at 165
175 – Ashton Swanson, Sweet Home
190 – Gavin Sandoval, Crook County – wrestling at 175
Sutton was not a part of the Cascade wrestling program this year.
Swanson was disqualified in a District semifinal and is ineligible to participate.
Sandoval is a two-time champion.
3A
106 – Andrei Donayri, Harrisburg – wrestling at 120 this year
113 – Riley Flack, La Pine – wrestling at 120
120 – Luke Cheek, Harrisburg
126 – Kale Cornell, Burns
132 – Owen Turner, Banks
138 -- Landyn Philpott, La Pine – wrestling at 144
144 – Devon Kerr, La Pine – wrestling at 138
150 – Cannon Kemper, Burns
165 – Brody Buzzard, Harrisburg – wrestling at 175
175 – Easton Kemper, Burns – wrestling at 190
215 – Kaison Smith, Warrenton – wrestling at 285
Cheek, a three-time champion, did not make weight at Districts and is ineligible to participate.
Turner will not participate due to injury.
Cornell, Philpott, Kerr and Easton Kemper are all three-time champions.
Buzzard is a two-time champion.
2A/1A
106 – James Conn, Illinois Valley – wrestling at 120 this year
120 – Harley Hardison, Lowell – wrestling at 126
126 – Taylor Parsons, Grant Union / Prairie City
157 – Kayden Tiller, Oakridge – wrestling at 150
Hardison and Parsons are two-time champions.
Girls
2024 team state champions
6A/5A – Thurston
4A/3A/2A/1A – La Grande
2024 underclass individual state champions
6A/5A
100 – Sarahi Chavez, McKay
105 -- Skyler Hall, North Medford
110 – Polly Olliff, Dallas – wrestling at 115 this year
115 – Layla Morris, Mountainside – wrestling at 125
125 – Zorina Johnson, Ida B. Wells – wrestling at 130
130 – Sadie Hall, North Medford
140 – Kennedy Blanton, Forest Grove
155 – Izabella Castleberry, Thurston – wrestling at 190
170 – Isabel Herring, Cleveland – wrestling at 155
235 – Bianca Miranda, Liberty
Skyler Hall and Olliff are two-time champions.
Chavez, Morris and Johnson are undefeated on the season.
4A/3A/2A/1A
100 – Zoe Brewer, Willamina – wrestling at 105 this year
105 -- Vanessa Keller, Oakridge – wrestling at 110
110 – Paxton Steel, Harrisburg
115 – Lyndie Isaacson, La Grande – wrestling at 120
125 – Bailey Chafin, Sweet Home
130 – Kali Williams, Oakridge
170 – Jadyn Pense, St. Helens
190 – Ylyani Sandoval, Crook County
235 -- Mallory Lusco, Grant Union / Prairie City
Lusco is a three-time state champion.
Sandoval is wrestling in Pennsylvania this season.
Keller and Chafin are two-time champions.
Can’t be beat
In addition to the undefeated returning state champions noted above, our reports indicate that there were six others to go through the regular season and District tournaments undefeated.
Of those six, only three are seeded No. 1 in their state tournament brackets. Michael Salas Sanchez of Thurston (42-0) is No. 1 at 5A-113. Zachary Brown of Heppner (36-0) is No. 1 at 2A/1A-157. And Paisley Conway of Newberg (26-0) is No. 1 at 6A/5A-105, ahead of North Medford’s Skyler Hall, the wrestler who beat her for the state title last year. It should be noted, however, that Conway pinned Hall in January at the Lady Dragon Invite.
Bend senior Eric Larwin (28-0) is the No. 2 seed at 5A-150 behind Jaxon Godley of Crater.
Mazama freshman Shyla Sells (21-0) is the No. 4 seed at 4A/3A/2A/1A-135
Finally, Crescent Valley freshman Jack Mulvahill completed a 30-0 season when he won the Mid-Willamette Conference title at 106 pounds, but is not eligible to compete for a state title.
Anticipation
What are some of the juiciest potential matchups to get excited for?
In Boys 2A/1A, the 126-pound final could pit reigning champion Tyler Parsons of Grant Union / Prairie City against Lowell’s Harley Hardison, the 2024 state champ at 120 pounds. The 285-pound championship bout could see David Finch of Lowell and Kolby Coxen of Toledo. Those two finished 2-3 last year in the heavyweight division.
In Boys 3A, there will be tons of excitement as Cornell (126), Philpott (138), Kerr (144) and Easton Kemper (190) all try to make history with their fourth consecutive state title. Kerr’s path looks like the toughest, with Trayson Truesdale of Harrisburg and Kisor Savage of Willamina in the bracket.
The 120 pound bracket in 3A could see La Pine’s Riley Flack, the 2024 113-pound champ, take on Andrei Donyari of Harrisburg, the reigning 106-pound champion. The heavyweight bout could be special, too, is Warrenton’s Kaison Smith, the 2024 215-pound champion; meets Hunter Langham of Harrisburg in the final. Langham was third at 285 last year.
The Boys 4A classification has some intriguing finals potentially. At 120 pounds, Jesse Landtroop of Sweet Home and Braegen Anderson of La Grande are on a collision course for the crown. They met for the state title at 106 last year, with Landtroop winning by 6-2 decision. At 165 pounds, Maverick Heimbuck of Scappoose, a defending state champion at 157, might have to stare down Sweet Homes Jacob Landtroop, who finished second at 150 last year. Finally, the heavyweight bracket has three big timers with La Grande’s Kenai Huff, Cascade’s Nicholas Lopez and Skyler Folau of Marshfield. There’s nothing like watching talented bigs get after it!
It appears that the 120-pound bracket in all boys classifications will be in the spotlight. That’s also true for 5A, where Aiden Nelmes of Mountain View, the 2024 champion at 106 pounds; could take on Crater’s Jeremiah Oliva, last year’s champion at 113, for the title at 120. You know the 126-pound bracket is tough when Dallas senior Joseph Johnson, a District champion and last year’s state champion at 120 pounds, is seeded fifth overall! That’s also true at 157, where 144-pound state champion Colton Annis of Thurston is a 5-seed.
At 150 pounds, Jaxon Godley of Crater and undefeated Eric Larwin of Bend could meet in a dynamic final. The same holds true at 215 pounds, where undefeated 2024 state champion Jackson Doman of Canby is on a collision course with Brash Henderson of Silverton, last year’s heavyweight champion.
In Boys 6A, Drew Dawson of Roseburg blanked Caleb Enochs of Clackamas, 7-0, in the 106-pound final last year. Those two could battle again at 113 pounds. At 120, Forest Grove sophomore Archie De La Rosa, one of the best wrestlers in the state pound-for-pound, will be looking for his first title after being denied last year; but he may have to get through Carter Dawson of Roseburg to reach the top rung. At 126 pounds, Lincoln’s Nico Farinola is seeded first. Lincoln has had no boys state champion in more than 30 years. Finally, the heavyweight division features undefeated and returning state champion Dominic Mason of Nelson, Noah Miner of Aloha and Isa De La Torre of South Medford. Macon pinned Miner in extra time for the title last year.
On the 6A/5A Girls side, the 105-pound bracket could see Skyler Hall and Conway in a finals rematch. The top two seeds at 115 are Polly Olliff of Dallas, who is going for her third state title; and Emilia Ensrud of Canby, but Corvallis’ Jennifer Russell, the state runner up to Olliff at 110 last year, is fifth! What a bracket!
The same can be said for the bracket at 130 pounds, where Sadie Hall of North Medford, the champion at that weight last year; is seeded first against 125-pound returning champion Zorina Johnson of Ida B. Wells. Johnson hasn’t lost in two years! Add Renae Cook of Forest Grove and this is a loaded group!
The bracket at 140 pounds also offers intrigue with Kennedy Blanton of Forest Grove and Kristal Zamora of Thurston, set to potentially reprise last year’s state final, which Blanton won. McKenna Unger of McNary also lurks in this bracket.
Finally, at 145 pounds, Redmond’s MacKenzie Shearon and Jenna Rogers of Dallas, who have been so good all year long, could meet to decide the title.
In 4A/3A/2A/1A, there is fascinating matchup potential across all 14 brackets. At 105, 2024 100-pound champion Zoe Brewer of Willamina faces stiff competition from the likes of Knappa’s Kiya Rose and Harrisburg’s Gracie Williams. They finished 2-3 last year at 100. At 110 pounds, there is the potential for two returning state champion, Vanessa Keller of Oakridge and Paxton Steel of Harrisburg, to meet for the crown. At 120 pounds, last year’s 115-pound champion, Lyndie Isaacson of La Grande, is the 2-seed behind Siuslaw’s Macali Lade. The 130-pound final could pit last year’s state champion at that weight, Kali Williams of Oakridge, against 115-ppound state runner up Tyler Echevarria of Crook County. Finally, at 235, Mallory Lusco of Grant Union is going for her fourth straight state title, but she is seeded second behind North Valley’s Breanna Meek, whom she defeated last year with a third period fall. If the rematch happens, it should be epic!
Strength in numbers
Any team can qualify up to 28 wrestlers for the state tournament (two in each weight category). The more wrestlers, the more the potential to pile up the points in the double elimination format.
Here are the squads bringing the most to Memorial Coliseum:
Boys
6A
16 -- West Linn
15 – Roseburg, Sprague
13 – Newberg
12 – McNary
11 – Grants Pass, Mountainside, Sandy and South Medford
10 – Westview
5A
22 – Thurston
20 – Canby
17 – Crater and Redmond
15 – Dallas
12 – Hillsboro
10 – Bend and Eagle Point
4A
20 – Crook County
18 – Sweet Home
17 – Tillamook
14 – Pendleton
13 – Mazama
12 – La Grande and Marshfield
10 – Hidden Valley
3A
15 – Burns
12 – Harrisburg and Willamina
11 – Banks
10 – Nyssa
2A/1A
15—Culver
9 – Oakridge
8 – Illinois Valley
Girls
6A/5A
12 – Dallas and Thurston
9 – Redmond
7 – Hillsboro, McKay, McNary and Southridge
4A/3A/2A/1A
11 – La Grande
7 – Crook County, Scappoose and St. Helens
Nod to Micah Martinho
Micah Martinho, a senior at Illinois Valley, won state titles as both a freshman and sophomore, but a knee injury prevented him from competing at the state tournament and cost him virtually his entire season as well. He could have been a four-time champion.
Four timers?
A total of 50 boys and four girls have won four consecutive titles in OSAA history. Five have a chance to match that feat this weekend: Cornell, Philpott Kerr and Easton Kemper on the boys’ side and Lusco on the girls’ side.
You can find this information above, but the opportunity to go an entire career as a state champion is monumental and deserved its own section.
Who will win?
Before I weigh in, here are the top three teams in each classification as determined by the coaches in today’s US Army / OSAAtoday Coaches Polls:
Boys
6A – 1. West Linn; 2. Newberg; 3. Roseburg
5A – 1. Crater; 2. Thurston; 3. Canby
4A – 1. Crook County; 2. Sweet Home; 3. La Grande
3A – 1. Burns; 2. Harrisburg; 3. Banks
2A/1A – 1. Culver; 2. Oakridge; 3. Lowell
Girls
6A/5A – 1. Dallas; 2. Thurston; 3. Redmond
4A/3A/2A/1A – 1. La Grande; 2. Harrisburg; 3. Oakridge
What do I think?
Of the seven classifications, there are two locks: La Grande will win 4A/3A/2A/1A girls for the second straight year and Culver will return to its winning ways by taking the 2A/1A boys.
La Grande has the most wrestlers by a large margin in girls 4A/3A/2A/1A, a strong senior contingent and at least two, Isaacson and Paige Allen, capable of going all the way.
Culver has won 13 boys state titles and was a 2A/1A juggernaut before slipping to a shocking 12th place finish last year. The Bulldogs are bringing 15 to State, including six District champions, and should overwhelm with sheer numbers.
In 6A boys, I’ve learned never to go against Newberg. If West Linn hadn’t broken through to win State two years ago, I wouldn’t be going against Newberg this year. But the Lions have the numbers and enough quality to top Newberg and the rest of the field. Call me a homer, but it feels like a second title in three years for West Linn.
Thurston has the numbers advantage in 5A. Canby has numbers and quality. Still, I think Crater will win. The Comets bring only 17 to Memorial Coliseum compared to 22 and 20 for Thurston and Canby, but they have seven legitimate title contenders. And they won Reser’s. That has to count for something!
In 4A, Sweet Home’s chance to repeat took a major hit when a favored 2024 state champion was disqualified at the District level. That opens the door for vaunted Crook County to win its eighth state championship and first since 2018.
In 3A, the storyline is similar. Harrisburg would probably have been the favorite to repeat had Cheek made weight at Districts. Those points will be missed. Burns might have won even with Cheek wrestling for Harrisburg, but now no one stands in the Hilanders’ path.
Finally, the most intriguing team chase may be in the 6A/5A girls. Thurston, the defending champion, and Dallas, the 2024 runner up, have the most qualifiers with 12 each. Dallas, however, has more legitimate title contenders. Redmond could find a path, but I’ll stick with the Dragons, who won the boys’ title last year, to add their first girls’ title this weekend.
***
At the end of the day, talk is cheap. It’s time for action! Let’s take it to the mat and see who will write their own headlines this weekend at Memorial Coliseum!
johnt@osaa.org
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