What to watch for at state wrestling — from the top contenders to a potential six-peat
The high school wrestling state tournaments return to Nampa’s Ford Idaho Center this season, bringing the state’s top talent to the Treasure Valley.
Action starts Friday with the 3A and 2A classifications kicking off the weekend at 9 a.m. The 5A and 4A wrestlers follow with their first round at 2:30 p.m. Friday. And the finals for all classifications start at 3:30 p.m. Saturday.
Here are a few of the top storylines and wrestlers to keep an eye on this weekend.
POST FALLS AIMS FOR THREE-PEAT
The Trojans from North Idaho return loaded for a run at their third straight team title, and fifth in the past six years, at the 5A level.
Post Falls brings four No. 1 seeds and one No. 2 seed to the state meet. But it also has the depth to rack up points in the consolation brackets with 19 state qualifiers.
Post Falls’ toughest competition might come from inside its own district as Coeur d’Alene made sure the Trojans didn’t roll to a district title last week. And Meridian looms with 26 state qualifiers, the most in any classification, after winning its first district championship since 1999.
KUNA SEEKS ANOTHER TITLE
The Kavemen cruised to the 4A state title a year ago with three individual champions and 11 placers. And they return two champions, six placers, four No. 1 seeds and a 4A-high 19 state qualifiers to defend their title.
Junior Hunter Mitchell (44-1) enters as the No. 1 seed at 120 pounds seeking his third consecutive state title. And reigning heavyweight champ Gavin Heindel (47-2) secured the top seed as he tries to repeat.
Kuna’s other No. 1 seeds include Dante Roggio (44-1) at 138 and Preston Owens (43-2) at 145. Roggio is a two-time state runner-up, and Owens finished third a year ago.
Lakeland looms as the top threat with 17 qualifiers, including a No. 1 seed and three No. 2s. A few upsets could allow it to catch the Kavemen if they stumble.
And district rival Columbia is always a threat with two top seeds and 14 qualifiers.
TURPEN’S SHOT AT HISTORY
No Capital wrestler has won three consecutive state titles. But senior Abe Turpen (29-5) has a chance to break that streak.
He returns to the 5A 195-pound division as its two-time reigning state champion. He made a pair of underdog runs to win the previous two titles, first as the No. 4 seed as a sophomore and from the unseeded ranks after a pair of injuries derailed his junior year.
But he sits atop the bracket as the top seed this time. And he pinned the No. 2 seed (Centennial’s Gable Watson) in 32 seconds for the district title last week and in 3:18 in last year’s state finals.
RIOS LOOKS FOR BOUNCEBACK
Columbia senior Angel Rios started his high school career as a potential four-time state champ, winning a 5A 120-pound title as a freshman. But a one-point loss in the finals two years ago, then a two-point loss in last year’s championship match, cost him a shot at history.
But Rios (46-2), the No. 1 seed in 4A’s 152-pound bracket, has a chance to make his fourth consecutive title match this weekend. And a championship as a senior would go a long way to erase the past two years of heartbreak.
RICE WATCH
Joe Rice won four straight state titles for New Plymouth from 2015 to 2018. Now Kyle Rice, his younger brother, has a chance to follow in his footsteps.
Kyle Rice (45-2) pinned his way to the 2A 106-pound title last year and enters as the top seed at 120. The only losses this season for the reigning Greco Cadet national runner-up came to larger-school opponents at Rollie Lane and the Calhoun Classic in Nyssa, Oregon.
NEW PLYMOUTH TRIES TO STOP SIX-PEAT
Ririe has won five straight 2A team titles, and one more would tie it with Teton (1968-73) for the all-class record of consecutive wrestling titles.
The Bulldogs brought a 2A-high 20 wrestlers to state. But they will have to rely on their depth with just two No. 1 seeds.
New Plymouth stands in the way of history with a bevy of top-seeded talent, including three No. 1 seeds and three No. 2 seeds. If those favorites advance to the finals, the Pilgrims could finally end Ririe’s reign atop the 2A classification.
HOW WILL THE GIRLS FARE?
A record 13 girls qualified for the state tournament weekend, nearly doubling the previous best of seven.
They will fight to become the third girl to place at the state tournament, joining Mountain Home’s Aerial Groene (fourth at 4A 106 in 2012) and Post Falls’ Cierra Foster (third at 5A 106 in 2014).
Idaho does not yet host a separate state tournament for its female wrestlers like 22 other states, requiring its girls to compete against the boys at the state meet.
The group of 13 girls includes:
Raji Singh, Post Falls, 98 pounds (5A)
Liv Wieber, Eagle, 113 (5A)
Taylor Call, Hillcrest, 98 (4A)
Skyla Zimmerman, Moscow, 98 (4A)
Brigid Shannon, Idaho Falls, 126 (4A)
Taylor Hood, Buhl, 106 (3A)
Gracie Rotter, Homedale, 106 (3A)
Holli Schumaker, Orofino, 106 (2A)
Fallon Wilkins, Clearwater Valley, 106 (2A)
Kadence Beck, Highland, 106 (2A)
Alice Smith, Valley, 106 (2A)
Paige Stewart, St. Maries, 113 (2A)
Taylor McPherson, Potlatch, 126 (2A)
TREASURE VALLEY NO. 1 SEEDS
Class 5A
- 132: Breyden Morrill, Meridian, 30-6
- 170: Kaleb Smith, Meridian, 34-3
- 195: Abe Turpen, Capital, 29-5
- 220: Charley Hastriter, Capital, 36-3
- 285: Josiah Lara, Skyview, 36-7
Class 4A
- 98: Dedrick Navarro, Nampa, 43-2
- 106: Simon Albe Luna, Nampa, 42-6
- 120: Hunter Mitchell, Kuna, 44-1
- 138: Dante Roggio, Kuna, 41-1
- 145: Preston Owens, Kuna, 43-2
- 152: Angel Rios, Columbia, 46-2
- 220: Nico Rodriguez, Columbia, 25-1
- 285: Gavin Heindel, Kuna, 47-2
Class 3A
- 98: Ezra Clemens, Fruitland, 43-6
- 220: Greg Gissel, Fruitland, 42-2
Class 2A
- 120: Kyle Rice, New Plymouth, 45-2
- 138: Trent Myers, New Plymouth, 40-4
- 145: Joel Campbell, New Plymouth, 42-7
- 182: Beau Carr, McCall-Donnelly, 22-5
This story was originally published February 27, 2020 at 3:28 PM.
