Idaho state wrestling: Meridian snaps title drought, a 4-time state champ is crowned
A Kuna wrestler etched his name in the record books, and Meridian brought home its first state title in 34 years Friday during the first day of the Idaho state wrestling tournament.
Here are all the highlights from a day that saw 13 Treasure Valley wrestlers win individual titles.
Meridian wins state wrestling title
The Warriors steamrolled the competition and threatened the tournament scoring record en route to their first state wrestling championship since 1987.
Meridian racked up 324 points, finishing 74 points ahead of Kuna with 250 points in second place. Post Falls, which finished third, holds the all-classification scoring at 338.5 points.
The Warriors qualified 29 wrestlers for state, and 16 of them finished on the medal stand. That includes two state champions in 126-pound freshman Jason Mara (40-2) and 138-pound sophomore Cade White (39-3). White is already a two-time state champ and could become the Warriors’ first four-time state champ.
Meridian also had a pair of runners-up in junior Nathan Gregory (132) and senior Kaleb Smith (182), who exited his final match with an injury.
The wrestling championship snaps a drought for Meridian’s wrestling program. It’s the school’s first state title in any team sport since its football program won it all in 2007.
Kuna’s Mitchell wins fourth title
Hunter Mitchell took his place among Idaho’s all-time greats Friday, pulling out a dramatic victory to become a four-time state champion.
Mitchell recorded a takedown of Gregory with 4 seconds left in sudden-death overtime to score a 5-3 win in the 5A 132-pound championship.
The win makes him the 30th wrestler in Idaho history to climb to the top of the podium every year of his career. And he’s the second in program history, following Michael Cook (2011-14).
Mitchell (40-6) didn’t steamroll his way through the season as he often does, finishing sixth at Rollie Lane and fourth at Minico’s Red Halverson Invite. But Kuna coach Pat Owens said his ability to overcome that adversity makes his championship even more impressive.
“His resilience is one of his greatest characteristics,” Owens said. “He didn’t get diverted. He kept his eye on the goal, even through losses and other difficult things in his life.”
Owens said he’s coached several outstanding wrestlers, but Mitchell will go down as one of the best.
“He’s special in his own way,” Owens said. “He’s a tenacious competitor, an incredibly hard worker and a coachable kid that learns and evolves.”
Capital heavyweight dominates
Oregon State signee Charley Hastriter punctuated a perfect season with a 9-2 decision over Highland’s Ian Allen in the 5A heavyweight finals, winning his second straight title.
Hastriter (18-0) had pinned every opponent he faced this year until the finals. He threatened a pin in the final seconds, placing Allen on his back. But time ran out.
Timberline’s first undefeated wrestler
After falling by one point in the semifinals each of the past two years, Timberline junior Josh Mendoza capped a historic season with a 4-0 decision over Kuna’s Anderson White in the 5A 113-pound finals.
The win makes Mendoza (15-0) the first undefeated wrestler in program history. He’s also just the second state champ from Timberline, following Ryan Gomez in 2003.
A third title for BK’s Martino
He needed overtime. But Bishop Kelly junior Christopher Martino kept his quest for four state titles alive with an 8-6 overtime win over Caldwell’s Hunter Bidelman for the 4A 126-pound title.
Martino trailed 5-3 entering the third, then quickly took the lead only to see Bidelman recover to force overtime. But Martino took the final momentum swing, taking down Bidelman in the sudden-death period.
Martino (36-1) was already the first two-time champ in Bishop Kelly history. He improved to 114-4 in his career.
Nampa barely misses state title
Despite 11 placers and two state champs, the Bulldogs fell four points short of their first state title since 1993.
Jerome took the 4A crown instead, edging Nampa 197-193 for its first title since 1975.
Nampa freshman Carson Exferd capped his undefeated season (36-0) with the 106-pound title. And Simon Alberto Luna (33-4) pinned his way to the top of the 113-pound division, including a 45-second pin in the finals. None of his matches reached the second round.
More state champs
- Tanner Frothinger, Eagle: He was Eagle’s first state champ in eight years last season. The sophomore (31-4) repeated Saturday with a 4-0 decision for the 5A 120-pound title.
- Cael Palmer, Kuna: The junior (45-1) held on to edge Post Falls’ Nathan Miller 6-5 for the 5A 160-pound title.
Layne Feasel Dalton, Emmett: The senior (28-2) won the 4A 182-pound title for the second year in a row with a 7-2 decision.
- Nico Rodriguez, Columbia: The junior (36-1) repeated as the 4A 220-pound champ with a 9-2 decision over Jerome’s Porter Wright.
- Dylan Summers, Middleton: A takedown in sudden-death overtime propelled the senior (37-7) and No. 4 seed to the 4A heavyweight crown.
Another girl places at state
Moscow sophomore Skyla Zimmerman became the third girl in Idaho history to place at the state meet, finishing sixth in 4A’s 106-pound bracket.
Idaho girls must compete against boys at the official state meet. But Idaho will start a separate, female-only division at next year’s state tournament.
A record 18 girls qualified for state this year, none above the 132-pound weight class.
Zimmerman (19-4) joins Mountain Home’s Aerial Groene and Post Falls’ Cierra Foster as the only girls to ever place at the state tournament. Groene finished fourth at 4A’s 106 pounds in 2012, and Foster was third at 5A’s 106 pounds in 2014.
5A State Wrestling Tournament Results
Friday
At Ford Idaho Center, Nampa
TEAM SCORES
1, Meridian 324. 2, Kuna 250. 3, Post Falls 201.5. 4, Cœur d`Alene 198. 5, Highland 169. 6, Thunder Ridge 115.5. 7, Rocky Mountain 114.5. 8, Lake City 84. 9, Eagle 77. 10, Capital 74.
11, Lewiston 58. 12, Madison 56.5. 13, Idaho Falls 45.5. 14, Rigby 41. 15, Centennial 38. 16, Mountain View 36. 17, Timberline 34. 18, Boise 17.5. 19, Skyview 13. 20, Borah 10.
INDIVIDUAL PLACERS
98 pounds: 1, Talen Eck, Thunder Ridge. 2, Zach Macdonald, Lake City. 3, Christian Kelly, Coeur d’Alene. 4, Kellen Kolka, Meridian. 5, Hunter Lowe, Kuna. 6, Wylie Stone, Eagle.
106: 1, Tyson Barnhart, Post Falls. 2, Cole Currin, Kuna. 3, Cael Bullock, Rocky Mountain. 4, Teigan Dickerson, Meridian. 5, Parker Reeves, Thunder Ridge. 6, Jaden Calkins, Meridian.
113: 1, Josh Mendoza, Timberline. 2, Anderson White, Kuna. 3, Connor McCarroll, Post Falls. 4, Brady Calderwood, Madison. 5, Zac Kimes, Meridian. 6, Marshall Parker, Rigby.
120: 1, Tanner Frothinger, Eagle. 2, Roddy Romero, Post Falls. 3, Zanlen White, Kuna. 4, Lucas Kanownik, Boise. 5, Austin Dye, Highland. 6, Isaac Korgan, Meridian.
126: 1, Jason Mara, Meridian. 2, Tristan Bremer, Lewiston. 3, Kaden Ramos, Thunder Ridge. 4, Anieas Rivera, Kuna. 5, Titus Nichols, Rocky Mountain. 6, Adrien Wess, Mountain View.
132: 1, Michael Mitchell, Kuna. 2, Nathan Gregory, Meridian. 3, Kayson Kenney, Idaho Falls. 4, Noah Ingram, Madison. 5, Ryan Graves, Post Falls. 6, Jamison Hunt, Capital.
138: 1, Cade White, Meridian. 2, Tyler Jones, Rocky Mountain. 3, Carsen Jensen, Thunder Ridge. 4, Kody Rich, Kuna. 5, Joshua Benson, Madison. 6, Zak Hiler, Eagle.
145: 1, Lane Reardon, Post Falls. 2, Nolan Randles, Coeur d’Alene. 3, Rustan Cordingley, Highland. 4, Brodyn Sunada, Meridian. 5, Riggin Stone, Eagle. 6, Demarco Piazza, Coeur d’Alene.
152: 1, Drew Roberts, Coeur d’Alene. 2, Preston Owens, Kuna. 3, Payton Brooks, Rigby. 4, Colton George, Highland. 5, Kael Cordingley, Highland. 6, Timothy Hebdon, Skyview.
160: 1, Cael Palmer, Kuna. 2, Ethan Miller, Post Falls. 3, Caden Frix, Meridian. 4, Logan Taylor, Centennial. 5, Marshall Buie, Meridian. 6, Carsen Speelman, Coeur d`Alene.
170: 1, Gunner Giulio, Coeur d’Alene. 2, Dante Roggio, Kuna. 3, Isaiah Twait, Meridian. 4, Bristin Corrigan, Highland. 5, Jose Laguna, Post Falls. 6, Ethan Pannell, Borah.
182: 1, Matthew Whitcomb, Lake City. 2, Kaleb Smith, Meridian. 3, Carter Torres, Kuna. 4, Luke Sidwell, Highland. 5, Trevor Miller, Post Falls. 6, Jay Sallee, Meridian.
195: 1, Rylan Rogers, Coeur d’Alene. 2, Bronson Staley, Rocky Mountain. 3, Xander Floth, Kuna. 4, Jovon Howe, Idaho Falls. 5, Roc Dixon, Meridian. 6, Reuben Thill, Lewiston.
220: 1, Logan George, Highland. 2, Isaiah Laguna, Post Falls. 3, Mason Jacobsen, Rocky Mountain. 4, Shai Murray, Capital. 5, Blaze Tokioka, Meridian. 6, Shilo Jones, Mountain View.
285: 1, Charley Hastriter, Capital. 2, Ian Allen, Highland. 3, Logan Parson, Lake City. 4, Jackson Kohal, Coeur d’Alene. 5, Beau Speelman, Cœur d’Alene. 6, Landon Gneiging, Idaho Falls.
4A State Wrestling Tournament Results
Friday
At Ford Idaho Center, Nampa
TEAM SCORES
1, Jerome 197. 2, Nampa 193. 3, Minico 171.5. 4, Lakeland 155.5. 5, Columbia 148. 6, Century 146. 7, Blackfoot 139.5. 8, Caldwell 108. 9, Middleton 74.5. 10, Twin Falls 71.5.
11, Moscow 59. 12, Bishop Kelly 53.5. 13, Shelley 53. 14, Ridgevue 47. 15, Emmett 45. 16, Pocatello 34. 16, Preston 34. 18, Hillcrest 30.5. 19, Bonneville 30. 20, Mountain Home 23.
21, Canyon Ridge 15. 22, Sandpoint 12. 22, Skyline 12. 24, Vallivue 8. 25, Burley 3.
INDIVIDUAL PLACERS
98 pounds: 1, Mack Mauger, Blackfoot. 2, Dedrick Navarro, Nampa. 3, David Scott, Columbia. 4, Andre Valero, Minico. 5, Matt Williams, Lakeland. 6, Aulani Macias, Nampa.
106: 1, Carson Exferd, Nampa. 2, Carter Balmforth, Shelley. 3, Xzavier Brown, Moscow. 4, Francisco Zagal, Twin Falls. 5, Kaiden Rubash, Jerome. 6, Skyla Zimmerman, Moscow.
113: 1, Simon Alberto Luna, Nampa. 2, Payton Hernandez, Columbia. 3, Christian Avila, Caldwell. 4, Treygen Morin, Ridgevue. 5, Hernan Dominguez, Minico. 6, Devyn Greenland, Century.
120: 1, Kolton Stacey, Shelley. 2, Simon Graeber, Columbia. 3, Aidan Go, Caldwell. 4, Gabe Blessinger, Pocatello. 5, Cody Fitzpatrick, Middleton. 6, Peyton Munson, Nampa.
126: 1, Christopher Martino, Bishop Kelly. 2, Hunter Bidelman, Caldwell. 3, Brody Kemble, Middleton. 4, Luke Moore, Blackfoot. 5, Eli Hernandez, Nampa. 6, Dominic Alcantara, Caldwell.
132: 1, Gabriel Taboa, Jerome. 2, Eli Abercrombie, Blackfoot. 3, Manuel Valdez, Bishop Kelly. 4, Kylan Guerra, Blackfoot. 5, Dominic Gonzalez, Nampa. 6, James Burr, Minico.
138: 1, Dawson Osterhout, Minico. 2, Xander Thompson, Century. 3, August Pena, Caldwell. 4, Nikko Gonzalez, Nampa. 5, Taye Trautner, Blackfoot. 6, Jacob Blandford, Middleton.
145: 1, Riley Siegford, Lakeland. 2, Austin Ramirez, Blackfoot. 3, Nakoa Fouret, Columbia. 4, Chris Franco, Twin Falls. 5, Diego Deaton, Moscow. 6, Colton Dow, Lakeland.
152: 1, Lorenzo Luis, Hillcrest. 2, Milton Hernandez, Minico. 3, Jacob Scott, Columbia. 4, Gavin Williamson, Jerome. 5, Dylon Fehrs, Ridgevue. 6, Soren Sabatke, Lakeland.
160: 1, Canyon Mansfield, Century. 2, Shale Webb, Nampa. 3, Cooper Johnson, Lakeland. 4, Dylan Forrest, Ridgevue. 5, Spencer Pease, Minico. 6, Levi Lockett, Jerome.
170: 1, Tazyn Twiss, Minico. 2, Easton Millward, Century. 3, Tucker Banks, Bonneville. 4, Emery Thorson, Preston. 5, Domnic Bush-Bly, Nampa. 6, Devon Suko, Lakeland.
182: 1, Layne Feasel Dalton, Emmett. 2, John White, Lakeland. 3, Adrian Martinez, Columbia. 4, Robby Ortega, Jerome. 5, Marcus Robinson, Mountain Home. 6, Austin Benson, Pocatello.
195: 1, Joseph Stevenson, Jerome. 2, Skeet Newton, Twin Falls. 3, Michael Houghton, Century. 4, Kaimbridge Gee, Minico. 5, Hayden Berger, Lakeland. 6, Preston Colvin, Skyline.
220: 1, Nico Rodriguez, Columbia. 2, Porter Wright, Jerome. 3, Logan Kearney, Moscow. 4, Campbell Hicks, Century. 5, Riley Robinson, Century. 6, Colby Coates, Jerome.
285: 1, Dylan Summers, Middleton. 2, Sam Feusier, Lakeland. 3, Miguel Perez, Caldwell. 4, Gerardo Duran, Century. 5, Zane Lovell, Nampa. 6, Mark Larsen, Jerome.
This story was originally published February 26, 2021 at 11:22 PM.
