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Go Bears!!!
Tahoma Wrestling
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Tahoma Wrestling Dual Team Members
Good luck to the following Tahoma wrestlers who will be representing the state of Washington on Various Dual Teams:
Coach Feist and Coach Hopkins - Cadet Team Coaches
Tyler Lamb - Junior Dual Team Member
Steven Hopkins, Tanner Mjelde, Daniel Haniger - Cadet Dual Team Members
Garrett Autrey - School Boy Dual Team Member
While students and staff members from Tahoma Senior High School were enjoying a week off of school and relaxing with family and friends. A half dozen Tahoma wrestlers were busy practicing with their coaches and preparing for the opportunity of a lifetime.
There would be no break for these six individuals who had their sights set on becoming state champions and bringing home a team trophy. It is a dream that every wrestler has in early November on the first day of practice. To be the last man standing in your weight class in late February, and know that you have outlasted and have beaten everyone who has toed the line in front of you. To have your hand raised at the State Wrestling Finals in the Tacoma Dome; to be pronounced “Champion” is the ultimate prize that nobody can take from you for the rest of your life.
The “Tahoma Super Six” were led by seniors Zach Schuessler at 152lbs, and John Buban at 145lbs. They were accompanied by juniors Jordan Higa at 130lbs, Tyler Lamb at 135lbs, Michael Milat at 135lbs, Nick Bayer at 171lbs, and Konnor Knudtson at 215lbs. These young men after surviving a grueling regional tournament were now ready to do battle at the state level. Competition started early Friday morning at 10:00 and continued until late in the evening. At the end of the day, Tahoma faired quite well and had four wrestlers in the semi finals, with the team poised for a top five finish.
Saturday stared off much like the day before with wrestling at 10:00am. The pressure was on in the four semi final matches. Winners would move to the finals, while losers of the semis would have to find a way to regroup and battle back in an attempt to take third place. At the end of the semi final round 3 Tahoma wrestlers earned their way to the finals. Konner Knudtsen, who lost his semi final match was forced to quickly reset his goals and aim for third place. After winning his next two consecutive matches Konner reached his new goal and took home a third place medal.
In the finals 2 out of 3 bears secured state championships. John Buban was able to outlast and out gas his opponent in overtime winning the 145 pound weight class. This was John’s first trip to state, his sophomore year he was injured prior to the tournament and as a junior he lost the opportunity to go to state by losing to one of his own teammates. The second title came from Nick Bayer at 171 pounds. Many college coaches were on hand watching Nick pick his opponent apart in the finals. This is the second consecutive individual title for Nick. He now has the opportunity to do something very special next year and become Tahoma’s 4th, three-time state champion. This would give Tahoma a tie for the most 3-time state champions in the entire state in any classification. Tyler Lamb lost a close match in the finals at 135 pounds. Tyler is now a three-time state placer and he too has set himself up to be in an illustrious group of four time placers next year. This outstanding second day showing earned the team a 4th place finish overall.
Thank you to all of our community support this year.
The bears officially reached one of their team goals last Friday night knocking off the Auburn Trojans. This is the first league title for the bears since 1998. It was a team effort as Tahoma won 10 out of 14 matches to win the dual with ease. The Bears will set their sights on new goals as they enter the post season.
Bears advance 14 to Regional Tournament
The Bears had a very successful league tournament this past weekend. 14 Bears will move on from league to the regional tournament next weekend. The Bears had the most 1st place finishes with 4 Champs. Jordan Higa started things off defeating Billy Creighton from Kentwood for the 3rd time this year at 130 pounds . This was followed up by wins from Tyler Lamb 135 , Nick Bayer 171, and Konner Knudtsen at 215 Pounds. Konner’s match was a close one going into overtime with Auburns Chris Young. Michael Milat and JR Rea both made it to the finals and ended up with second place finishes. Other wresters moving on to this weekend regional tournament are Zach Schuessler, Tanner Mjelde, Jesse Vaughn, Ryan Ota, Zach Dopps, Steven Hopkins and Derek Eager. The Regional Tournament will be held at Snohomish High School this Friday and Saturday. The above photo was taken by David Clarke.
Six Tahoma wrestlers made it through the very tough regional tournament and have qualified for state. Three wrestlers will be making their first trip to the dome while the other three are seasoned veterans. John Buban, Zach Schuessler, and Michael Milat will all be making their first trip to the dome. Each wrestled very well this weekend to earn their qualifying spot. Konner Knudtsen will be making his second trip to the Tacoma Dome. Tyler Lamb and Nick Bayer will be making their 3rd trip to the Tacoma Dome. Both have their eyes set on the top of the podium. We hope to see many friendly Tahoma faces in the stands. The state tournament is this Friday and Saturday at the Tacoma Dome.
Tahoma Places Third at CK Matman Tournament
Many tough teams were on hand at this year’s CK Matman Tournament. The Bears began the tournament somewhat shorthanded having no heavyweight. The team rallied together and were able to take home a third place trophy. Three Bears made it to the finals with two of them taking home individual titles. Both Tyler Lamb and Nick Bayer won their respective weight classes. Konnor Knudtsen also made it to the finals but lost to Grant Haschek, who is currently ranked number one in the state. Many other Bears wrestled well, Zach Schuessler, Jordan Higa, Steven Hopkins, John Buban, and JR Rea all took third place. Again for the second tournament in a row, all wrestlers scored points by winning at least one match. Complete results of the tournament can be found at www.washingtonwrestlingreport.com
Tahoma Alumni Night – A Great Celebration of Maple Valley Wrestling
Tahoma’s 3rd annual alumni night was an awesome event. The night began with 12 of the Maple Valley Wolfpack wresters showing off their moves prior to our hall of fame induction. During our induction Mike Richert and Lang Davidson were both on hand to accept their awards. Two-Time Tahoma State Champion and UFC superstar Jens Pulver also made an appearance at the match. The dual began with the singing of the National Anthem, by Ed Aliverti. Ed, who has been the announcer for several Olympics was our special guest announcer and did a phenomenal job calling the matches. The Bears got off to a rough start losing the first three matches of the night, starting things off with a 12-0 deficit. Things then turned around at the 125 pound match with senior Ryan Goranson getting things rolling. The bears rolled off 5 straight wins including the match of the night. 3-time state placer from Kentwood Cody Quinn faced off against Tahoma’s John Buban. Buban, a senior worked back from a 6-3 deficit to tie up the match and send it into overtime. Johns conditioning paid off as he easily took down his opponent in the overtime round to secure the victory. Pins in the match were collected by juniors Tyler Lamb and Nick Bayer. Match video can be found at the following website: http://www.pnwlocalnews.com/south_king/cmv/sports/37623379.html
Tahoma Takes Home a Trophy
The Tahoma Bears took home a 3rd place trophy from the Pac Coast Wrestling Tournament. This 34 team tournament was held at Hudson’s Bay High School in Vancouver. Many of the top teams in the state were present for two days of intense wrestling action. The Bears had a very impressive showing with 9 wrestlers placing in the tournament .The Bears crowned two individual champions. Tyler Lamb took 1st place in the 135 pound weight class defeating Tyler King from Auburn Mountain View in the finals by a narrow margin of 1-0. Nick Bayer was the teams other champion at 171 pounds. Nick was able to beat Michael McAlister of Rogers by a major decision. The last second take down secured not only an individual win but also move the team into 3rd place, beating out Enumclaw by a half point. Enumclaw won a 3A State Championship and were ranked the number one tournament team in the state early this season .Other placers in the tournament were:
Jr Rea – 140 Pounds – 4th
John Buban – 145 Pounds – 5th
Steven Hopkins – 103 Pounds – 5th
Konnor Knudtsen – 215 Pounds – 5th
Zach Schuessler – 152 Pounds 6th
Jordan Higa – 130 Pounds – 7th
Tahoma Takes 5th Place at Tri-State
No blizzard can hold back the Tahoma Bears Wrestling Team. The Bear traveled to Coeurdalene, Idaho this past weekend to compete in one of the toughest tournaments on the West coast this past weekend. The tournament is typically made up of a 32 man bracket, but some teams were unable to make the trip over due to weather. The 28 teams that did make it are some of the toughest teams in the region. Teams from Washington, Idaho and Montana were all represented at this year’s tournament including multiple state championship teams and individual state champions from multiple classifications. The Bears improved from taking 25th last year to 5th this season! Tahoma placed 6 wrestlers in the tournament. Heavyweight Derek Eager took 8th place, along with JR. Rea at 140 pounds. John Buban took 7th place. Tahoma State Champion Nick Bayer lost his first match of the tournament, but battled back to the 3rd/4th place match where he was able to get revenge for his lost defeating Auburns Dylan Rutlidge at 171 pounds. Juniors Tyler Lamb and Konnor Knudtsen both made it to the finals of this prestigious tournament. Tyler lost a close match at 135 pounds to State Champion Scottie Bacon from Republic. Konner was bested by Lake Washington’s Grant Haschek at 215 pounds. 12 out of 14 wrestlers were able to win matches and contribute to the high team score. 10 wrestlers made it to the second day of the tournament which is a accomplishment in itself. The Bears will be headed to Vancouver, Washington on New Year’s Day for the very tough 32-Man Pacific Coast Tournament. This tournament will give the Bears a look at many other tough 4A teams. The above photo as well as other photos from the Tri-State tournament can be found at the following website: http://www.jedicheetah.com/
Knudtsen Pins His Way to Sedro Woolley Title
Although the Bears were a bit short handed due to inclement weather, those that made the trek to Sedro Woolley faired quite well. Only seven Bears were able to make the trip and three of them ended up in the finals! Tyler Lamb won the 135 pound weight class defeating three time 3A 3rd placer Shane Hunt. Nick Bayer lost a close match to Auburns Jake Swartz. Swartz is a two time 3A state Champion. The Bears second title came from Konner Kundtsen who pinned his way through the tournament taking home the 215 pound title. The Bears are hoping to make it to Idaho to compete in the prestigious Tri-State Tournament this upcoming weekend. The above photo as well as other photos from the Sedro Wooley tournament can be found at the following website: http://www.jedicheetah.com/
Tahoma Wrestlers Win First League Dual
The Tahoma wrestling team recorded their first league win last night at Thomas Jefferson. The Bears got out to a quick lead with a win by junior Jordan Higa. Jordan defeated a tough opponent who had placed 7th in last year’s state tournament by a score of 3-0. The final score of the dual was 56-18. The Bears were forced to forfeit at 125 pounds because of weight decent plan issues. Hopefully for the next dual all weights will be filled and ready to go for our next dual against a tough Auburn High School.
Bears Takedown 3rd Ranked Snohomish
The Bears took another big step on Saturday morning, defeating the third ranked Snohomish panthers. It came down to the final match of the morning. Going into the match the Bears were ahead by a score of 26-21. Junior, Ryan Ota, who weighed in under 160 pounds bumped up to 171 pounds to take on a tough Snohomish opponent. The match ended in a wild third round where Ota was able to battle his full size opponent and not give up a pin. The final score of the match was 26-25 Tahoma. It was a grueling dual with just one pin collected, by junior, Tyler Lamb. This week the Bears take on Thomas Jefferson on Wednesday night. This will be the first league outing for the Bears this season.
Tahoma Starts the Year Off 2-0
Tahoma began the year on a good note defeating two teams from the SPSL South last night. The Bears began the night knocking off 6th ranked Rogers from Puyallup. Freshman Steven Hopkins and Daniel Haniger, both started their high school career’s off with wins. The final score of the first dual was 46-21. In the second dual, the Bears displayed their hard work during the off season beating Emerald Ridge by a score of 75-3. Ten out of fourteen weight classes won their matches by fall.
Incoming Freshman earns All-American Honors
Steven Hopkins, a Tahoma Junior High student recently earned All-American honors during the 2008 National Freestyle and Greco wrestling tournament. The tournament was held over an eight day period in Fargo, North Dakota. In order to receive All-American Honors a wrestler must place in the top eight at the tournament. The national tournament is a qualifying tournament where only each state’s best wrestlers even qualify to participate. Hopkins who won our states triple crown (all three styles of USA Wrestling) ended up being an All-American in both styles at Fargo, placing 4th in Greco and 5th in Freestlye. Steven will be a part of the Tahoma Bears wrestling team next year and is hoping to make an impact on the team as a freshman. Other Tahoma wrestlers, JR Rea, Kevin Tao, Michael Milat and Joey Palmer, also partisipated in the tournament each winning multiple matches.
New Tahoma Assistant Wrestling Coach Tim Kitchen
Coach Kitchen was demonstrating some freestlye turns at practice on Monday. We are excited to welcome coach Kitchen into the Bear family. Make sure you introduce yourself this weekend at the team BBQ.
Former Tahoma Star Jens Pulver
Former Tahoma State Champion Jens Pulver recently fought in publicized fight with Uriah Faber. Above is a picture of Jens the day before his big fight showing off his Tahoma Wrestling Pride.
Three Tahoma Bears placed at this year's tourney leading to the team to a 9th place finish. Sophomore Nick Bayer won state at 160 pounds, while returning state champion Kevin Tao took second this year at 130 pounds. Tyler lamb placed for the second time, this year taking 5th place at 125 pounds.
Bears don't shake hands... bears hug.
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