Coupeville senior Alex Turner (right) is five wins from a state title. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)
It all starts with “Truck” Turner vs. “Finn the Pin.”
The brackets for this weekend’s super-sized edition of the state wrestling tournament were posted Monday, and now Coupeville’s lone grappler knows his path.
Wolf senior Alex Turner is one of 32 wrestlers with still-active dreams of winning a 170-pound 1A title at Mat Classic XXXI, which goes down Feb. 15-16 at the Tacoma Dome.
The field is double the normal size, thanks to snow, ice and other hazardous conditions wiping out regional tournaments.
Turner, who swept three matches to win a sub-regional title, opens the state meet against Vashon Island sophomore Finnegan McClure.
A win in that match, and he would be 20% of the way to the five victories he needs to become the first wrestler to ever hang a state title plaque on Coupeville’s Wall of Fame.
The lack of plaques isn’t a huge surprise, as CHS has never had a wrestling program of its own.
After transferring from South Whidbey, where he was an alternate to state as a junior, Turner trained and traveled with 3A Oak Harbor this season, then returned to 1A once the regular season ended.
Since every wrestler needs a coach to be eligible, Coupeville assistant football coach Tyson Boon is shepherding Turner through the postseason.
When the lone Wolf grappler hits the mats this weekend, he’ll be facing what seems like the better half of the draw.
Four of the top six ranked 1A wrestlers at 170 pounds are in the top half of the draw, while Turner is slotted in the bottom half of the field.
#1 Wayne Baker of Castle Rock, a state champ at 160 last year, headlines the draw, and he, #2 Navarro Nanpuya of Omak, #5 Alejandro Llernas of Kiona-Benton, and #6 Hunter Wallis of Klahowya are jammed together.
Turner’s half of the draw is led by #3 Sammy DesRoches of Riverside and #4 Brett Moody of Forks.
The Washington Wrestling Report ranks the top 12 in each weight class, and the earliest Coupeville’s entry could find himself facing off with any of those grapplers is the quarterfinals.
If he wins his first two matches, Turner would likely find himself squaring off with either #9 Tristan DeOchoa of Zillah or #11 Jesus Ramos of Connell. Those two, for some reason, meet in the first round.
DesRoches, who claimed 2nd last season, is the only top-eight finisher from the 2018 tourney to make it back into 1A’s 170-pound draw in 2019.
Three graduated, while two others are now in different weight classes.
The final two, including last year’s champ, Kaden Krouse, are in 2B after Chewelah successfully lobbied to drop all of its sports programs down a rung starting with the 2018-2019 school year.
To see the full bracket, pop over to:
http://www.wiaa.com/subcontent.aspx?SecID=1169
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