Sequim Gazette staff

Sequim’s trio of Lady Wolves look poised for a state run this weekend.

Sophia Cornell (106), Alma Mendoza (118) and Kaylee Ditlefsen (130) are all headed to the girls’ regional tournament in Steilacoom on Saturday, Feb. 15, after either winning or taking second at the sub-regionals in Auburn Mountainview High School last weekend.

“They did amazing,” Bill Schroepfer, assistant coach, said. “Words don’t really put into writing how well they did wrestling.”

Cornell, a junior, took champion in her weight class with two pins over Thandie Sacopla of Clover Park and Sophia Lamarr of Fife.

“Sophia did as good as I’ve ever seen her wrestle in three years,” Schroepfer said. “She’s done nothing but grown and improved.”

Freshman Alma Mendoza and Junior Kaylee Ditlefsen took second in their weight classes.

Mendoza went 2-1 with one pin and a 6-4 win leading up to an 11-2 loss against Kingston’s Peyton Reece, the seventh ranked state wrestler in their weight class.

Schroepfer said Mendoza wrestled well against Reece considering she pinned her previous opponents and none of them scored any points on her.

“Alma went all six minutes and scored two points and almost had a few more points as time expired,” he said.

Ditlefsen went 2-1 with a pin and a 15-7 win before losing 15-1 in the finals to Steilacoom’s Belen Simpson, the sixth ranked wrestler in their weight class.

“Kaylee went out and did what Kaylee does, taking it to girls,” Schroepfer said.

“(Simpson) is one of the toughest girls Kaylee has wrestled all season. I’d bet she places in the top four at state.”

Sequim’s girls placed eighth of 22 teams.

Boys send two alternates

Unfortunately for Sequim’s boys, last weekend’s sub-regional tourney in Port Angeles was indicative of a season filled with injuries and misfortune.

Two wrestlers — Royhon Agostine at 132 pounds and Nathan Allison at 220 — advanced to the consolation finals with a chance to advance to regionals, but both fell in those matches, and both will be alternates to the regional tourney at Hockinson High School on Feb. 15.

Agostine went 2-2 in taking fourth place in his weight class. After knocking off Port Angeles’ Gavin Crain 10-3 in the quarterfinals, Agostine fell to weight class champ Cameron Dubos of Bremerton, 6-4.

Agostine rebounded with an 18-6 drubbing of Olympic’s Tyler Munson, but lost another two-point decision, this one a 9-7 decision to Olympic’s Adrian Madison.

Sequim head coach Charles Drabek said Agostine is probably the most upset with the results of anyone on the team.

“With the two matches he lost it could have gone either way,” he said.

“There were things indirectly that Royhon couldn’t control. In his final match with seconds left, I think he got the reversal but the ref said no. I’ll have to look back at the video. It would have put them into overtime.”

Allison pinned Olympic’s Logan Metzger in the first round but in the quarterfinals was pinned by Klahowya’s Maric Taylor in the match’s second round. Allison rebounded to earn pins against Patrick Bruemmer and Nico Ramirez of North Mason and Adrian Miranda of Olympic, only to math up once again with Klahowya’s Taylor. Allison fell to Taylor by pin in the third round.

Drabek and other league coaches were surprised to learn earlier in the week that only the top three from each weight class would advance to regionals, working most of the season under the assumption that four would advance as in the 2012-2013 season.

The Wolves got more bad news even before the tourney started, with regional hopeful Michael Latimer unable to wrestle thanks to concussion symptoms, Drabek said.

The Sequim coach noted that Sequim 152-pounder Shawn Jones was pulled from action after one match with concussion symptoms as well.

A trio of Sequim wrestlers went 1-2 in their brackets: Grant Pierson (120 pounds), Kevyn Ward (145) and Adam Schaeffer (170).

A deep Olympic Trojan team took the sub-regional tourney team title with 303 points, while Port Angeles was second with 278 points. Sequim was eighth of the eight competing teams, finishing with 46 points.

Port Angeles finished with three individual champions: Tyler Gale at 106 pounds, Kyle La Fritz at 220 and Roberto Coronel at 285.

On the season, Drabek  said he’s not unhappy with how things progressed.

“ I’m looking forward to the future,” he said. “I see these kids who are putting their time in now. They are a little beat up a little bit but all of them are freshman and sophomores.”

The whole team will continue to workout this week.

Schroepfer said he’s not going to change much of the formula, particularly the girls team.

“Just keep them in shape and fine tune what they already know,” he said. “I can’t wait. We have a good chance to take all three of them to state.”

Following the 2A state tournament, Sequim will start Mat Rats from 5:15 p.m.-6:45 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays for wrestlers in grades 1-6. Fees apply. For more information, e-mail Drabek at cshells@live.com or cost or look for fliers at Sequim schools.