Seven Blaine wrestlers finished in the top eight of their weight classes at Mat Classic XXXIII last weekend at the Tacoma Dome. Cael Button took third at 126, Jack Cheatham sixth at 152, Nicolaas Chandran fourth at 195 and Genesis Vazquez eighth at 110.
Nahum Vazquez, Victor Gervol and Tim Pomeroy also finished in the top eight, but boys varsity team head coach Tom Hinz said only the top six technically placed. The boys team also took 10th overall, which Hinz said was unexpected.
Between the boys and girls varsity teams, Blaine sent 11 wrestlers to the state championship tournament in Tacoma. The girls team sent three wrestlers, Vazquez, Briseyda Nolasco and Milania Rodriguez, which head coach Damon Higgins said was the most in school history. Eight boys wrestled in the tournament.
“It was awesome,” Hinz said of the weekend. “The Tacoma Dome was electric. It was kind of like fireworks at the end of the season.” He added that it was a really good tournament for the team as well.
Hinz said Button lost to the eventual individual state champion at 126 head-to-head by two points. Hinz said the other boys wrestled well too. “Blaine was well represented.”
Hinz said he is excited for the future holds for the boys team. The team had eight seniors this year and finished the season with a total of 31 wrestlers. Much of the team wrestles outside of the regular high school season with Blaine Barracuda Wrestling Club.
As for the girls, Higgins said he was extremely proud of how they wrestled. The team, which consisted of only three wrestlers, took 48th overall out of nearly 120 teams. Nolasco and Rodriguez were disappointed not to place, Higgins said, but they wrestled hard.
“Coming to state is an emotional battle,” he said. “I think both girls thought they could’ve performed a little better, but given the nature of the competition it’s difficult to win multiple matches in a tournament like that.”
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