Coming off a dominant performance in Port Townsend, the Pirate wrestling team enjoyed a slower pace last week while gearing up for major competition this week.

On Saturday seven of the top Pirate grapplers traveled to Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, to compete in the prestigious Tri-State Tournament. More than 60 teams from Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Montana were invited to participate and could bring no more than seven wrestlers. Representing Vashon at the competition were freshmen Chase Wickman and Logan Nelson, sophomore Joe Coller, juniors Shane Armstrong, Preston Morris and Louis Jovanovich and senior A.J. Sawyer.

Wickman made it to the quarter-finals at the competition, but lost to the eventual champion in his weight category and finished one match away from the top eight.

Nelson won one match by pin, coming from behind after trailing by 6 in the early rounds. Armstrong, Morris and Sawyer each won a match, while Coller and Jovanovich scrapped against tough competition and showed promise for the rest of the season.

Coaches Anders and Per Lars Blomgren said they were pleased with the team’s overall performance, noting that this tournament is an exciting opportunity for the wrestlers to compete against an exceptionally high level of competition.

Yesterday after press deadline, Vashon hosted a fun double dual meet featuring three exceptional teams from the area. Lake Stevens, the perennial 4A powerhouse, was in action along with teams from Yelm and Decatur. On Friday, the team will travel to Roseburg, Ore., for the annual battle of the border, where they will again face against some tough competition.

The next home action for the Pirates will be on Friday, Dec. 28, at the annual Rock Tournament. There will be lots of fantastic action as wrestlers from 10 diverse high schools compete for the coveted gilded rocks. Matches that day will begin at 9 a.m., and finals begin at 5 p.m.

— Cheryl Pruett is the mother of two Priate wrestlers.