The 23rd annual Reser’s Tournament of Champions brought together many of the state’s top wrestlers Friday and Saturday at Sherwood in an all-classification showdown. Philomath High was among the schools sending squads to the event, which was held outside of Hillsboro for the first time in its history.
It was the toughest tournament that Philomath High’s wrestling team will see this season — and that includes the 4A state tournament.
“It’s not like anything I’ve ever seen,” Philomath High’s veteran wrestling coach Troy Woosley said. “There were 24 champions there and there were 51 kids that were in last year’s finals — whether it’s 6A, 5A, 4A, 3A. … It’s the best of the best.”
Philomath’s seven wrestlers that competed had a combined record on the mat of 5-13. The team’s top wrestler, junior Riley Barrett, reached the semifinals at 150 pounds but exited the tournament following a loss, which raises questions about his season moving forward.
Barrett, who won a state title last season, defeated his first two opponents in convincing fashion with a first-period pin and a 12-4 major decision. In the semis against Bend senior Eric Larwin, last year’s state 5A runner-up at 138, Barrett lost on a 12-5 decision. The unbeaten Larwin went on to win the tournament.
Medical forfeits were entered into the results for Barrett’s remaining matches. In the official results, he placed sixth.
Junior Porter Compton and senior River Sandstrom both had respectable but frustrating showings at the event.
Compton opened with a major decision victory at 144 pounds before falling in the quarterfinals. After advancing on a medical forfeit, Compton went up against Dallas senior Tyler Basey in a consolation match, an opponent he had defeated earlier this season on a 5-2 decision. In this rematch, neither scored in the first period but Compton took a 4-0 lead in the second period with an escape and three-point takedown. In the third period, Compton had a 5-2 lead but was thrown to his back with under 30 seconds remaining, a move that got Basey three points on the takedown followed by a four-point nearfall.
At 120 pounds, Sandstrom pinned his first opponent before losing in the quarterfinals to top-seeded Riley Flack of La Pine on an 8-5 decision. Flack, last year’s 3A state champion at 113, trailed Sandstrom 5-0 on points nearing the midway point of the third period. Flack was awarded a penalty point after Sandstrom was called for stalling with 1:12 left and then followed with a three-point takedown at 1:04. A four-point nearfall followed with 44 seconds remaining to give Flack the win.
In the consolation match that followed, Sandstrom got into a hole in the second period against Thurston’s Ivan Henderson and ended up with a 9-3 loss.
“It’s just with this tournament, if you’re not wrestling 110% all the time, if you ease up, you’re going to get scored on … a little mistake is magnified so much,” Woosley said. “It was almost like under the lights of a big tournament, we weren’t quite ready for it and I’m not sure why. But I’ve never seen anything like it — this tournament is phenomenal.”
Philomath’s other win came at 175 pounds when senior JJ Lewis picked up a consolation bracket victory over an Eagle Point opponent. Wyatt Barrett (138), Ryder Zitlau (157) and Liam Bennett (165) were the team’s other entries.
The team competed with less than a full lineup with illness hitting the program hard in recent days.
Of note in the junior varsity portion of the tournament, junior Derick Kohn took first place at 215 pounds. Kohn rolled through five opponents with a major decision and four pins. In the championship match, he pinned Canby’s Jarrett Kelly in 5:31. Sophomore Odin Compton also placed in the JV tournament with fifth at 126.
The boys will next compete at 9 a.m. Saturday at the Jack Berger Invitational in Silverton.
Liddell, Pettit place at Dayton
The PHS girls wrestling team were also in action in recent days with a Thursday appearance in Dayton Girls Night.
Freshman Addison Liddell won two of three matches to place third at 145 pounds in the tournament, which featured 14 schools. Liddell lost her first match on a pin but came back to pin a Dayton wrestler in 3:51 to advance to the third-place match. There, she defeated Estacada’s Audrey Simmons in 2:25.
“She got beat by the best girl in the bracket but she’s starting to figure it out,” Woosley said.
Sophomore Alexis Pettit placed fourth at 100 pounds with two victories in four round-robin matches. Pettit opened the tournament with a loss but regrouped to pull off back-to-back wins over wrestlers from Knappa (pin in 3:05) and Putnam (12-6 decision). In her final match, Amity’s Cristal Martinez beat Pettit with a pin in 3:05.
“She’s pretty competitive,” Woosley said. “She’s still pretty raw so I think this next week of practices, we’ll take her aside and get her some more basics to get ready for Friday.”
The girls are scheduled to compete in the Jack Berger Invitational at Silverton at 3 p.m. Friday.
Sarah Robinson, a freshman that has seen exceptional success this season, continues to be sidelined and did not compete at Dayton.
