Some might frown upon Bonney Lake High wrestling coach Anthony Clarke’s stoic stance on invitationals, tournaments and even South Puget Sound League 3A regular season dual matches as being warm-ups for early February’s postseason participation.
Few can question the results, which saw the Panthers claim sixth place (2009) and eighth place (2010) at the state wrestling tournament.
Now, it appears the black and teal will simply reload after producing two state champions at last year’s season-ending finale.
One of these Mat Classic belt holders, 140-pound dynamo Nick Bendon, will wrestle for Southwestern Oregon Community College this winter.
The other state 3A title keeper, 119-pound junior Andrew Cunningham, will be returning to the Panther fold.
Sophomore Matt Yuste should be vying to fill the void left by the departure of Bendon at 140 pounds, while junior James Jackson should step into the 112-pound role.
As for the 130- through 160-pound categories, Clarke said it should be interesting to see how things shake out, as there will most likely be more wrestle-offs in that weight neighborhood than ever before.
Among the suitors are Yuste, freshmen Dillon Nicholes and Chili Saban, senior Justin Rush and juniors Joey Surber, Jake Lueders, Tyler Hernandez and Jordan Magram.
Clarke’s crystal ball seems a little less murky at 171 and 189 pounds, where senior team captain D.J. Williams, appears to have been penciled in at 171 pounds and junior veteran Evan Dorsey is more than able to hold down the fort at 189.
“D.J. is just the kind of guy you want as a captain of your team, because he leads by example and his teammates really look to him to furnish that senior guidance,” Clarke said.
There will be an infestation of juniors at the upper two weights, 215 and 285. While Jordan Schultz is waiting in the wings after being the understudy last season at 215, a threesome of juniors – Josh Gruenstein, Colton Dunning and Travis Novey – will be battling it out to see who emerges at 285.
As Clarke maintains, “competition at any weight can only make the team better in the long run.”
Sumner and Bonney Lake will open their campaigns when the Spartans trek to the Panther den tonight, Wednesday, with varsity matches starting at 7 p.m.
