Prospector’s Parsons, Elgin’s Lathrop and Culver’s Johnson State Champs

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John L. Braese

PORTLAND – Culver and Elgin both claimed top five team finishes and eastern Oregon saw three wrestlers make their way through to state individual championships as the 2A/1A OSAA state wrestling tournament wrapped up a late one-day tournament on Friday, Feb. 24 at Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Portland.

After a historic snowstorm hit the area, organizers decided to push the 2A/1A tournament to a one day event.

The Culver squad placed second in the team standings, 4.5 points behind champion Illinois Valley while Elgin placed fourth in the team totals. The combined team of Grant Union and Prairie City was just outside the top five in sixth and the Enterprise/Wallowa team placed tenth.

Grant Union/Prairie City’s Taylor Parsons is one of the few freshman in the state now a state champion. Wrestling at 126 pounds, Parson took a 5-1 decision over Nestucca’s Zakai Chatelain in the championship match for the medal. Parsons finishes his season with a 33-6 record and will enter his sophomore year as a defending state champion.

On the other side of the coin, Elgin senior Joseph Lathrop graduates in May as a state champion. Wrestling in the 182-pound class, Lathrop saw Colton’s Nolan Earls unable to continue due to injury at the 3 minute, 32 second mark in the match, giving Lathrop a state medal.

Also a senior, Culver’s Wylie Johnson will leave high school as a state champion at 285 pounds after recording a 5-2 decision over Toledo’s Kolby Coxen in the finals. Johnson finishes the season with a 24-3 record.

A number of other eastern Oregon wrestlers (see below) claimed top four finishes late in the evening as finals hit the mat.

106: 3rd Place Match; Cole Roff (Culver) over Adam Palanuk (Oakridge) by fall, 1:32.

113: 1st Place Match; Micah Martinho (Illinois Valley) over Debren Sanabria (Culver) due to injury.

120: 3rd Place Match; Cole Rahi (Culver) over Juan Ramirez (Glendale) by fall, 5:14.

126: 1st Place Match; Taylor Parsons (Grant Union/Prairie City) over Zakai Chatelain (Nestucca) by decision, 5-1.

132: 1st Place Match; Logan Gerding (Toledo) over Derek Torres (Culver) by decision, 5-2. 3rd Place Match; Keegin Chitty (Echo/Stanfield) over Jacob Whittles (Nestucca) by fall, 2:46.

138: 3rd Place Match; Lute Ramsden (Enterprise/Wallowa) over Aaron Martin (Glendale) by fall, 1:26.

145: 1st Place Match; Roger Moore (Colton) over Reeden Arsenault (Culver) in overtime, 4-3.

152: 1st Place Match; Ryan Griffin (Illinois Valley) over Kelin Abbas (Culver) by decision, 2-1. 3rd Place Match; Austin Johnson (Willamina) over Ty McLaughlin (Elgin) by decision, 6-4.

160: 3rd Place Match; Gabe Hasbell (Elgin) over Jozia Williams (Illinois Valley) by fall, 1:31.

170: 1st Place Match; Thomas Bischoff (Regis) over Jake Doman (Crane) by fall, 5:42. 3rd Place Match; Gen Wintersteen (Elgin) over Alex Finley (Grant Union/Prairie City) by major decision, 11-2.

182: 1st Place Match; Joseph Lathrop (Elgin) over Nolan Earls (Colton) due to injury. 3rd Place Match; Chase Andrade (Adrian) over Tobin Payne (Monroe/Triangle Lake) by decision, 10-7.

195: 1st Place Match; Ash Blomstrom (Toledo) over Bruce Morehead (Elgin) by decision, 8-2. 3rd Place Match; Malachi Hansen (Central Linn) over Jaime Cavan (Heppner) by decision, 9-5.

220: 3rd Place Match; Gunnar McDowell (Enterprise/Wallowa) over Cody Vance (Toledo) in overtime, 2-1.

285: 1st Place Match; Wylie Johnson (Culver) over Kolby Coxen (Toledo) by decision, 5-2. 3rd Place Match; David Finch (Lowell) over Lucas Wolf (Grant Union/Prairie City) by decision, 5-0.

Team scores: 1. Illinois Valley, 154.0. 2. Culver, 149.5. 3. Toledo,              111.5. 4. Elgin, 99.0. 5. Willamina, 79.5. 6. Grant Union/Prairie City, 56.0. 7. Colton, 55.0. 8. Lowell, 53.0. 8. Regis, 53.0. 10. Enterprise/Wallowa, 43.0. 11. Central Linn, 42.0. 12. Nestucca, 31.5. 13. Oakridge, 28.5. 14. Myrtle Point, 28.0. 15. Heppner, 25.0. 16. Glendale, 23.0. 17. Monroe/Triangle Lake, 21.0. 18. Crane, 20.0. 18. Knappa, 20.0. 20. Camas Valley, 18.0. 20. Echo/Stanfield,   18.0. 22. Clatskanie, 16.0. 23. Adrian, 15.0. 24. Irrigon, 9.0. 24. Vernonia, 9.0. 26. Waldport, 6.0. 27. Kennedy, 4.0. 27. Pine Eagle, 4.0. 27. Union/Cove, 4.0. 30. Imbler, 3.0. 30. Santiam, 3.0. 32. North Lake, 2.0. 33. Bonanza/Lost River, 0.0. 33. Gervais, 0.0. 33. Joseph, 0.0. 33. North Douglas/Yoncalla, 0.0. 33. Oakland, 0.0. 33. Reedsport, 0.0. 33. Siletz Valley, 0.0.

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