By GARLAND KENNEDY
Sentinel Sports Editor
Sitka High’s wrestlers were back on the mat in Ketchikan over the weekend in the second meet of the season. With only a handful of experienced wrestlers on the squad this year, the Wolves took sixth place out of eight teams.
Team captain Jason Young was happy that the team’s novice wrestlers had a chance to earn some experience.
“Our new guys did really well for only coming in for the first week and I’m really proud of them and what they’ve done and what they’ve put out,” Young told the Sentinel. He’s a junior this year.
As the season continues, he hopes the new wrestlers will continue improving.
“I’m looking forward to the success of our team and hopefully the longevity that will occur with all these new members… and I wish for a good season. I want everyone to do well and I want everyone to stay,” he said.
Personally, Young noted, this year he’s more capable on the mat than ever before. Previously, he said, other wrestlers pummeled him.
“I’ve definitely surprised myself with what I’m capable of… my freshman year and my sophomore year I was getting beaten to the mat every single time,” Young said. “Now that I’ve gotten older I’ve gotten stronger and gotten more experience.”
On Friday in Ketchikan, Young took first place in the 160-pound weight class, winning by fall over Ketchikan’s Michael Rene, Haines’ Gaelen Allen and Ketchikan’s Romel Del Mundo. On Saturday, Young took third in his weight class, winning by fall against Ketchikan’s Easten Yoder and Michael Rene but losing to Kayhi’s Ben Tab.
Team coach Curt Bartlett complimented Young’s abilities.
“He is overall a really good wrestler, a really good guy, motivated, which is why he’s team captain… But his neutral game, his foot game is really, really strong. That’s where he shines,” Bartlett said.
Young wants to improve his ability to think on his feet this season following his loss in the final match Saturday.
“Personally I need to work on more of my quick thinking and realizing the situation I’m in, because this last meet I had a bad finals match and now that’s going to be a big motivator to grind through these next couple weeks and just get way better,” Young said. “Because it was a bad match, I wasn’t expecting what went down… I’m just going to focus up and work harder than ever.”
While Young has been wrestling since he was a small child, the sport is brand new for junior Dylan Crenna.
“Might as well do it, it’s my junior year. I’ll try it out, see if I like it and maybe do it next year. It’s great conditioning, I have basketball coming up too, and it just looked like an overall fun sport to do and to try,” Crenna said.
He’d like to improve his technical abilities through the season.
“Get better at making moves and finishing right and making sure I’m doing all the stuff right, taking shots and sprawling right,” he said.
Crenna took third Friday night in the 152C weight class. He fell to Braydon Jackson, of Mt. Edgecumbe High, but won against Craig’s Tully Rice before falling again to Haines’ Rylan Jorgenson Geise. On Saturday, Crenna fell to Petersburg’s Wyatt Litster and lost again to Geise.
As a novice wrestler, Crenna noted that there is “still a lot of room for improvement.”
The coach was glad that his inexperienced wrestlers did well in the meet.
“Our wrestlers, we have a couple newer wrestlers that have been here wrestling for about a week and a half,” Bartlett said. “They actually did really good, each of them got a pin. First matches, first week of wrestling they did pretty good. Overall the team did pretty good.”
He noted that the team will continue to work on conditioning as the season progresses.
“We could use a little more, but overall our conditioning is pretty good, but mostly just mat awareness for our returning wrestlers who are coming from swimming, just feeling the match feeling where they should be. And then the newer wrestlers (are) discovering that,” Bartlett said.
At 119 pounds, Evander Elixman took first place Friday and third Saturday. Kai Davis took fourth place Friday in the 130-pound weight class. He finished fifth Saturday.
Kai’s brother David earned fourth place Friday in the 152-pound weight class. In the 171-pound weight class, Silas Ferguson took third Friday and fourth Saturday.
Wrestling in the 171B weight class, Matt Rice finished first Friday and fifth Saturday.
This is Bartlett’s first year as Sitka’s wrestling coach. He said he was asked to take up the position only three weeks prior to the season, but overall, he enjoys the new job.
“It’s super rewarding seeing them have fun and succeed,” Bartlett said.
Wrestlers from across Southeast compete again this weekend at Mt. Edgecumbe High.
