TACOMA — South Kitsap heavyweight Damien Medeiros was one of the few Wolves who won during their final regular-season match against Yelm.
That does not mean Medeiros did not relish the opportunity to face the Tornados again during the two-day sub-regional tournament, which ended Saturday at Foss High School.
After all, Yelm ended South’s streak of 189 consecutive dual-league wins Jan. 24.
Medeiros’ 11-3 decision against Tristan Glaser in the 285-pound championship gave the Wolves a 3-2 advantage in title matches against the Tornados.
Yelm, which had at least one competitor in 11 of the 14 championship rounds, easily won sub-regionals with 386.5 points. South finished second among seven Class 4A Narrows League schools with 260 points.
“I was kind of hoping to pin him,” said Medeiros, adding that he still is battling a cold. “But everyone has their off days.”
Nass, who noted that Medeiros beat Glaser 5-0 during their last match, disagreed. He felt Medeiros was disappointed that he did not get the pin. Instead, Nass said he should be proud that he increased his margin of victory.
“I thought he wrestled a really smart match,” he said.
Medeiros is among four South competitors who won sub-regional championships. Ten Wolves will advance to regionals Saturday at Snohomish High School. Seniors Ben de Lacy (145), Adam Gascoyne (152) and Bryce Broome (170) were South’s other sub-regional champions.
Broome was the only one who did not face a Tornado in the final. In a performance that Nass called “dominant,” Broome pinned Bellarmine Prep’s Hunter Taylor in 1:53.
Nass scoffed at the notion that de Lacy’s win — a 9-4 decision against Yelm’s Eli Johnston — was a surprise. De Lacy entered sub-regionals as the No. 1 seed in his weight class.
“People overlook Ben all of the time,” Nass said. “You look at his stature and he’s doesn’t have much muscle on his body — he doesn’t fit the typical wrestler mold. But he’s tougher than heck.”
The bigger upset might have been Gascoyne defeating Yelm’s Brandon Rochester 3-1.
“Gascoyne came in as the No. 3 seed and won,” Nass said. “He had a heck of a tournament.”
Two Wolves finished second. Junior Adam Lutovsky defaulted against Yelm’s Dillon Harris at 138. Nass said he wanted to get Lutovsky, who suffered a broken leg during practice Jan. 4, qualified for regionals without pushing him too much. Senior Sam Skinner also lost a 9-0 decision against Yelm’s Anthony Allred at 160.
Nass said he was pleased with his team’s performance.
“Our league is a lot tougher this year than it’s been in the past,” he said. “We’re really excited. This is the best we’ve wrestled all year. We brought it both days.”
Team Scores-Yelm 386.5, South Kitsap 260, Olympia 147.5, Bellarmine Prep 143.5, Central Kitsap
106, Gig Harbor 47, Stadium 22.
Championship round
106-Jacob Nolan (Y) p. James Page (Y) 5:13. 113-Darren Harris (Y) p. Josh Criollos (CK) 1:02. 120-Warren Sprecher (CK) d. Victor Munoz (Y) 7-2. 126-Brian Rochester (Y) md. Jacob Rash (Y) 10-2. 132-Tanner Page (Y) d. Logan Pine (O) 5-4. 138-Dillon Harris (Y) d. Adam Lutovsky (SK) injury default. 145-Ben de Lacy (SK) d. Eli Johnston (Y) 9-4. 152-Adam Gascoyne (SK) d. Brandon Rochester (Y) 3-1. 160-Anthony Allred (Y) d. Sam Skinner (SK) 9-0. 170-Bryce Broome (SK) p. Hunter Taylor (BP) 1:53. 182-Taylor Ladenburg (BP) d. Josh Newbill (O) 5-1. 195-Tanner Hartsoch (O) d. Jeffrey Leuth (Y) 5-4. 220-Jack Hougan (O) p. Elliott Villars (BP) 2:55. 285-Damien Medeiros (SK) md. Tristan GLaser (Y) 11-3.
