North Salem’s Ian Carlos gets ahold of Roseburg’s Bennett Mesa at the OSAA state wrestling tournament finals on Saturday, Feb. 27, 2016, at Memorial Coliseum in Portland, Ore. Carlos lost the match by a 2-1 decision.
PORTLAND – The state championship was still rewarding even if it was strange.
Silverton High School senior Austin Reed won the OSAA Class 5A state championship match at 132 pounds by an injury default by St. Helens wrestler Michael Bowen.
Reed found out about 1 p.m. Saturday that Bowen was forfeiting after an injury in the semifinals while getting ready to take a shower at his hotel.
“I really wanted to compete, because I feel like it’s just part of the experience that I missed out on, but a state championship is a state championship,” Reed said.
Reed had pinned Haidon Allen in 1:05 in his semifinal match Saturday.
The state championship is the first for a Silverton wrestler since 2008.
“It’s unfortunate,” Silverton coach Stryder Davis said. “It’s good and bad. His finals match was really the semifinals match. He’s never beaten that kid. He was like 0-20 against him all through his life, and then that was his first time beating him.
“He did great. Ending on that was awesome and I believe he would have won in the finals anyway.”
Placing for Dallas were Ean Woodruff (fourth at 138), Jeffy Dunagan (fourth at 170), Noah Sickles (fifth at 126), Cody Janssen (fifth at 152), Marcos Molina (fifth at 220) and Dawson Barcroft (sixth at 106).
For Central, David Negrete placed fourth at 182 and Sam Crow placed fourth at 195.
Woodburn’s Michael Vasquez placed sixth at 113.
Class 5A
North Salem freshman Ian Carlos made it a long way, but lost the strategy game against Bennett Mesa of Roseburg in the 6A 126-pound championship match.
Carlos and Mesa wrestled defensively throughout the first round and neither was able to gain any advantage.
Mesa gave Carlos a 1-0 lead to start the second round with both wrestlers on their feet. Mesa nearly had a takedown with 39 seconds in the round, but the wrestlers were ruled out of bounds.
In the third round Carlos was called for stalling for the second time with 40 seconds left to tie the match then Mesa scored a point on an escape with 26 seconds left to gain the 2-1 win.
“Obviously we wanted first, but second place is nothing to hang your head about,” North Salem coach Andy Pickett said. “It was a loaded bracket, a lot of tough wrestlers and props to Mesa and Roseburg for bringing the good game plan.
“They implemented it well and unfortunately got the two stall calls, so we gave up a point and that was the difference in the match.”Sprague, which finished with 82 points, had freshman Daniel McClung place third at 113 pounds, sophomore Michael Murphy placed third at 132 and Spencer Nofziger placed third at 170.
For McNary, Brayden Ebbs placed fourth at 138 and Jonathan Phelps placed fifth at 132.
South Salem senior Vincent Villarreal placed third at 195.
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