The Woodland boys and girls wrestling teams squared off against R.A. Long High School and Fort Vancouver High School during a home meet on Wednesday, Jan. 11, securing two team victories.
With 12 total matches against Fort Vancouver, Woodland dominated on the mat as matches were won by pins. Four matches against R.A. Long ended in a 2-2 split, while the remainder of Woodland’s points were decided via forfeits leading to two team wins on the night.
Woodland won 13 out of 16 matches during the meet.
The star of the night was most definitely Woodland’s Jersey O’Neill. O’Neill, a sophomore, wrestled in the boys 106-pound weight class and won her two matches with pins.
In O’Neill’s first match against Fort Vancouver, she secured two points on a reversal, which led to a 1:16 first round pin.
In her second match against R.A. Long, the first round ended with a 0-0 score. Halfway through the second round, O’Neill secured two points with a takedown that ultimately led to a 1:53 pin in the second round.
“Last year she was a state alternate for the girls. This year we haven’t had as many chances for the girls to get quality matches so I’ve been putting her in the boys lineup to get experience,” Wayne Miller, the head coach for Woodland wrestling, said. “She’s been able to hold her own all year with the boys.”
The two varsity girl wrestlers on the floor for Woodland went 4-0. All of their matches were decided by pins.
In her first 105-pound match of the meet, sophomore Couly McReynolds ended her grappling against an opponent from Fort Vancouver with a 56 second pin in the first round.
McReynolds next match against R.A. Long was also decided by a pin at 47 seconds into the second round.
In the girl’s 115-pound weight class, Woodland’s Addalei Siemer, a sophomore, ended her match against Fort Vancouver quickly with a 28 second first round pin. Siemer’s next match against R.A. Long saw Siemer down 1-2 after the first round. The second round ended quickly with a textbook cradle that led to a pin in just 32 seconds.
“She wasn’t wasting any time. She went move to move,” Miller said about Siemer. “That’s how she wrestles. She tries to do the chain wrestling.”
For the boys, Woodland’s Jake Sams fought hard in his one match of the night in the 126-pound weight class. Against Fort Vancouver, Sams’ first round finished with a score of 2-4 with two points on a reversal. In the second round, Sams fell behind 4-14 with another two points secured by reversal. Forty-nine seconds into round three, the improbable occurred as Sams won with a pin.
His match against an opponent from R.A. Long was decided by forfeit giving him two wins on the night.
“Jake is a smart wrestler,” Miller said. “He knows not to give up, he’s a fighter. … That’s why he just keeps waiting and keeps fighting to try and come back, which he was able to tonight.”
Since R.A. Long and Fort Vancouver have smaller teams than Woodland, some of the wrestlers for the Beavers had two matches during the three-team meet, while other wins were secured through forfeits.
R.A. Long and Fort Vancouver did not square off against each other during the meet, which provided Woodland with plenty of grappling opportunities against the two schools.
Woodland varsity boys match winners against Fort Vancouver:
106 pounds: Jersey O’Neill, 1:16 first round pin
126 pounds: Jake Sams, 0:49 third round pin
132 pounds: Mateo Gutridge, 0:43 first round pin
138 pounds: Ryder Reese, 0:25 second round pin
170 pounds: Malcolm Karchesky, 1:37 first round pin
220 pounds: Logan Busig, 1:11 first round pin
Team score:
Woodland: 54
Fort Vancouver: 24
Woodland varsity boys match winners against R.A. Long:
106 pounds: Jersey O’Neill, 1:53 second round pin
170 pounds: Malcolm Karchesky, 0:57 first round pin
Team score:
Woodland: 54
R.A. Long: 24