T-Wolves beat Trojans for first time in more than a decade
JASON ELLIOTT/Press Lake City wrestler Noah Janzen attempts to take down Avery McSpadden of Post Falls during the 132-pound match in Thursday’s dual at The Arena.
JASON ELLIOTT/Press Post Falls wrestler Ethan Miller pushes the shoulder of Gavin Tuttle to the mat at 152 pounds in a dual with Lake City on Thursday at The Arena.
POST FALLS — It had all the feeling of the final night of a state wrestling tournament.
The effort.
The emotion.
The ending.
With the dual tied at 39 heading into the final match, Lake City sophomore Noah Janzen outlasted Avery McSpadden of Post Falls 5-4 at 132 pounds, giving the Timberwolves a 42-39 win over the Trojans at The Arena on Thursday.
“That effort at 132 (pounds), I can’t say enough about that effort that Noah had,” Owen said. “That’s a soccer kid, so I know he’s in good shape. But it’s his first varsity match, and I was amazed as his composure tonight.”
It was the first time in Owen’s 12 years as coach that Lake City has beaten Post Falls in a dual.
“It was a good enviroment,” Owen said. “These guys hosted a great dual meet tonight. We couldn’t have scripted it any better either. It’s 39-39 and we’ve got two really even kids wrestling for the meet. You could tell they were very, very even, and it came down to a takedown on the edge that could have gone either way, and it wins us the dual meet.”
“We knew it was going to be a close dual,” Post Falls coach Pete Reardon said. “I think historically, they think it’s Post Falls, they can lose a dual, but knew that Lake City was going to be tough and we had to take care of business. Our kids fought their hearts out tonight. Sometimes things go their way and sometimes they don’t.”
Post Falls jumped out to an 18-0 lead with pins from Isaac Jessen (138 pounds), A.J. De La Rosa (145) and Ethan Miller. Lake City countered with pins from Porter Howard (160), Seth Nutting (170) and Matthew Whitcomb (182). The Timberwolves turned the tide with pins by Connor Dremann (220), Owen Hughes (285) and Zach Macdonald (98) to take a 36-21 lead.
“I’m really proud of the kids’ effort tonight,” Owen said. “We won a few matches coming from behind. These kids believed, and they wrestled like they believed, and they got it done tonight.”
Lake City was fourth at state last February. Post Falls won its fourth state 5A title in five years.
“I don’t think there’s any doubt the north is going to be contended with at state,” Owen said. “These dual meets are huge. They’re seeding at regionals, and it’s bragging rights for the rest of the year. This is a long season, and the state title isn’t going to be decided until February, and that’s what I told the kids in the locker room. We’ll enjoy this, and step back on the gas pedal tomorrow and we’ve got to keep training.”
Pins by Roddy Romero (106), Braxton Mason (120) and Lane Reardon (126) of Post Falls pulled the match even at 39.
“I think those guys (Lake City) came into tonight thinking they had a shot to win,” Reardon said. “And when you’ve got a shot to win, then anything can happen. They came out and put some points on the board and fought back. Hats off to Corey and those guys. Corey’s been working at it a long time and is starting to see some of the fruits of his labor.”
On Saturday, Lake City competes in the West Valley tournament, and Post Falls competes in the George Wild Invitational at Kellogg.
“We knew it was going to be a bonus point deal tonight,” Reardon said. “We knew that would decide the match. We’d talked about not giving up more pins than we get, and those are big swings in a match. I was proud of our kids and how hard they fought.”
138 — Isaac Jessen, PF, p. Ayden Johnson, :41. 145 — A.J. De La Rosa, PF, p. Chase Richardson, 1:12. 152 — Ethan Miller, PF, p. Gavin Tuttle, 1:38. 160 — Porter Howard, LC, p. Trevor Miller, 4:54. 170 — Seth Nutting, LC, p. Tommy Hauser, 1:48. 182 — Matthew Whitcomb, LC, p. Nick Chase, 5:36. 195 — Isaiah Laguna, PF, d. Mahlon Clark, 3-1. 220 — Connor Dremann, LC, p. Tyler Cook, 4:46. 285 — Owen Hughes, LC, p. Austin Portner, 1:12. 98 — Zach Macdonald, LC, p. Raji Singh, 1:30. 106 — Roddy Romero, PF, p. Blaine Leonard, :51. 113 — Caden Hess, LC, d. Ryan Graves, 6-0. 120 — Braxton Mason, PF, p. Ean Amick, 2:35. 126 — Lane Reardon, PF, p. Nate Garner, :47. 132 – Noah Janzen, LF, d. Avery McSpadden, 5-4.