The Vashon Pirate wrestlers opened their season at home last Friday in a dual meet against the Elma Eagles.
The squad continued competition on Saturday at the 10-team Auburn Invitational Tournament at Auburn High School.
This year, the 23-man squad is smaller than usual with many novice wrestlers. With almost half the team sidelined due to injury, illness, academeics or not enough practices, they still put in a dominating performance on Friday night, beating the Eagles 48-18. In fact, in matches wrestled, Vashon only lost one varsity bout.
Winning for the Pirates were Luke Larson, Chase Wickman, Shane Williams, Connor Hoisington, Hunter Burger, Bryce Hoisington, Logan Nelson, Franklin Easton and Joe Coller. Eli Hudson took a forfeit at the 220-pound weight class, and junior Preston Petersen competed at 113 pounds. Getting some junior varsity action were Petersen, Williams, Nelson and Ben Angelacos.
Match of the night goes to Bryce Hoisington, who was down 4-2 at the end of round one, down 5-6 at the end of round two, and tied at 8 with 39 seconds to go. As the clock wound down, Hoisington went ahead on a 2-point takedown for the win. As one spectator noted, “Trying to pin that kid (Hoisington) is like trying to put a worm on a fish hook.”
At the Auburn tournament, the Pirates entered seven varsity wrestlers and five on the JV side. In the varsity eight-man brackets, Vashon sent three to the finals, all emerging victorious. Juniors Chase Wickman and Logan Nelson, along with sophomore Bryce Hoisington, took the top spot in their weight classes. Junior Franklin Easton finished a strong third. Also competing in the varsity tournament were freshmen Luke Larson and Connor Hoisington, who along with senior Joe Coller each won a match.
On the JV side, junior Preston Petersen capped a strong day with a second-place finish, and junior Shane Williams took the championship at 120 pounds. Freshman Alyx Arteaga scrabbled his way to a fourth-place finish to start his high school career.
At the beginning of the season, the Vashon grapplers were ranked 12th in the state in the 1A classification by Washington Wrestling Report. Several team members are ranked individually, led by Wickman, who is currently projected as first in the state. Also ranked are juniors Logan Nelson, Clyde Pruett, Chester Pruett and Franklin Easton, as well as senior Joe Coller and sophomore Bryce Hoisington.
The Pirates will take to the mat tonight, Dec. 10, at Lake Stevens High School. On Saturday, the Pirates will travel to Port Townsend for the annual Hat Trick Tournament.
— Cheryl Pruett is is the mother of a Pirate basketball player.
