Don’t call it a comeback. Meridian storms to another Rollie Lane wrestling championship
So much for a rebuilding year.
The Meridian High boys wrestling team reaffirmed its stranglehold on Idaho, cruising to the Rollie Lane Invitational title for the third time in the past five years Saturday at the Ford Idaho Center in Nampa.
The four-time defending state champions started the season as the unanimous favorite in the 6A Southern Idaho Conference and a contender for another state title. But after losing a loaded senior class to graduation, a few cracks started to appear in the armor during early-season results.
Meridian took fifth at Tri-State and then finished 22nd at the Reno Tournament of Champions, the second-best Idaho team in the field. Most programs would kill for those results. But the Warriors reestablished themselves as Idaho’s team to beat at the state’s largest and toughest tournament in Nampa.
“It’s been different,” Meridian coach Brad Muri said. “We have a pretty young team. I think we’ve seen some good things in the first half of the season. But this is, hands down, the best we’ve competed. I like the way that this team has progressed and is getting better.”
The Warriors racked up 221.5 points over the weekend, blowing past their top in-state challengers and wrapping up another Rollie Lane crown before the finals even began.
Freshman Blake Nevils captured Meridian’s only individual title, topping Caldwell senior Draven Johns 6-1 in the 126-pound bracket championship. But Jeremiah Gonzalez (120 pounds), Logan Shaver (157) and Camden Crespi (175) all joined him in the finals of a loaded tournament field.
All told, eight Warriors placed and 15 wrestlers contributed to Meridian’s team score. Graduation may have cost Meridian several multiple-time state champs and blue-chip recruits. But depth remains Meridian’s calling card as it reloads.
Muri pointed to emerging talent like Crespi, who’d never placed at Rollie Lane until taking second Saturday, and Darius Case, who took eighth after only competing in a handful of varsity duals.
Meridian’s second- and third-string varsity wrestlers also rolled to the team title at the Mountain View Invite on Saturday, further showcasing all the talent inside the Warriors’ workout room.
“We always remind them that they haven’t won anything yet,” Muri said. “They can’t ride on the coattails of (Carson) Gooley, (Jason) Mara, (Isaiah) Twait and all the other studs that have come through.
“They get to write their own story. It’s a new year and a new team. So you get to go out and make your own history.”
FRUITLAND TAKES SECOND AGAIN
A year after finishing second by 0.5 points, the Grizzlies tied their program-best finish at Rollie Lane with another runner-up trophy.
Fruitland finished with 178.5 points, 43 behind Meridian, by placing four wrestlers for the second straight year.
Seniors Kaden Mackenzie (15-1) and Quinn Hood (23-2) both defended their individual titles, finishing atop the 157- and 215-pound weight classes, respectively. Marcus Aleman (third at 120) and Coye Coffman (fourth at 150) also placed for the second straight year.
The showing bolsters Fruitland’s bid for another state title after setting a classification scoring record last winter.
WASATCH WINS GIRLS TEAM TITLE
The Utah school didn’t win any individual titles, instead riding five placers to edge Reed, Nevada, 169-168.5 atop the girls team standings.
Eagle was the top Idaho finisher in fourth place at 119.5 points. Three Mustangs finished on the podium, including Ella Elordi (fourth at 165 pounds), Gemma Lebeau (fifth, 152) and Emry Woods (fifth, 185).
MOST OUTSTANDING WRESTLERS
The tournament’s coaches selected the following wrestlers for the event’s top awards.
Boys lightweight: Cooper Sandoval of McQueen, Nevada, pinned every opponent he faced for the 106-pound title, including Nampa’s Ryan Hirchert in sudden-death overtime.
Boys middleweight: Canyon Ridge junior Sean Hall started the weekend seeded 10th before capturing the 138-pound division crown to improve to 24-0.
Boys heavyweight: Buhl senior Gabe Finley (26-0) extended his unbeaten season by racking up five straight pins for the heavyweight title.
Girls lightweight: Tri-Valley freshman Charlee Noah (16-0) made a splash by winning the 114-pound division. She scored a 3-0 decision in the finals over Lewiston senior Joely Slyter, a nationally ranked opponent.
Girls middleweight: Blackfoot sophomore Keanna Conrad (16-0) captured her second straight Rollie Lane title, pinning six straight opponents in the 132-pound bracket.
Girls heavyweight: Mountain Home senior Amie Hartman (12-1) racked up five straight first-round pins for her third consecutive heavyweight title at Rollie Lane.
7 LOCAL CHAMPIONS
Three more Treasure Valley wrestlers left Rollie Lane with a gold medal around their neck, including:
Jakobe Valle, Homedale: The third-seeded freshman (21-1) scored four pins and a tech fall to capture the 98-pound boys title.
Zoe Fries, Kuna: The senior (16-0) racked up five pins to finish atop the 138-pound girls division, including four first-round pins.
Elise Twait, Meridian: The senior (20-0) and reigning state champ steamrolled to her first Rollie Lane title with five first-round pins in the 145-pound girls bracket.
ROLLIE LANE INVITE
Friday-Saturday
At Ford Idaho Center, Nampa
BOYS TEAM SCORES
1, Meridian 221.5. 2, Fruitland 178.5. 3, Wasatch 158.5. 4, American Falls 155.5. 5, Chiawana 129. 6, Coeur d’Alene 125. 7, Minico 115. 8, McQueen 114.5. 9, Burns 111.5. 10, Crook County 111.
11, Bishop Kelly 106.5. 12, Redmond 102.5. 13, Sandpoint 98. 14, Riverton 96. 15, Hermiston 95.5. 16, La Pine 94. 16, Lakeland 94. 18, South Fremont 88. 19, Madison 85. 20, Buhl 83.
20, Middleton 83. 22, Rocky Mountain 82.5. 23, Weiser 82. 24, LaGrande 80.5. 25, Eagle 78.5. 26, Post Falls 72.5. 27, Lowry 72. 28, Mountain View 71.5. 29, Nampa 67.5. 30, Blackfoot 67.
31, Idaho Falls 64.5. 32, Lewiston 62.5. 33, Homedale 61.5. 34, Bend 60. 34, Forest Grove 60. 36, New Plymouth 59.5. 37, San Clemente 57. 38, Bonita Vista 55. 38, Churchill County 55. 40, Ridgevue 53.5.
41, Centennial 53. 42, Capistrano Valley 50.5. 43, Caldwell 50. 44, Emmett 48.5. 45, Mountain View, Oregon 46.5. 46, Siuslaw 45.5. 47, Moscow 44.5. 48, Hillcrest 43. 48, Timberlake 43. 50, Timberline 42.5.
51, Caldera 39.5. 52, Bonneville 38.5. 52, Shelley 38.5. 54, Mountain Home 38. 54, Rigby 38. 56, Kuna 37. 57, Newport 34.5. 57, Tri-Valley 34.5. 59, Scappoose 34. 60, Skyline 33.
61, Highland 32.5. 62, Hillsboro 32. 62, Nampa Christian 32. 64, Canyon Ridge 31.5. 65, Filer 30.5. 66, Borah 30. 67, Douglas 29.5. 67, Gonzaga Prep 29.5. 67, West Side 29.5. 70, Pocatello 27.
71, Grants Pass 26. 71, Thunder Ridge 26. 73, Owyhee 25.5. 73, Vale 25.5. 75, Boise 25. 76, Glenns Ferry 22.5. 77, Columbia 22. 78, Burley 21.5. 79, Grangeville 21. 80, Potlatch 20.
81, Payette 15. 81, Soda Springs 15. 83, Capital 13.5. 84, Priest River 13. 84, West Jefferson 13. 86, Yerington 11.5. 87, Skyview 11. 88, Grace 6. 88, Orofino 6. 90, East Valley 5.
90, Melba 5. 92, Nyssa 4. 93, Four Rivers 0.
BOYS CHAMPIONSHIP MATCHES
98: Jakobe Valle, Homedale, pin Zach Teal, Lakeland, 5:24.
106: Cooper Sandoval, McQueen, pin Ryan Hirchert, Nampa, OT.
113: Greysen Packer, South Fremont, dec Camden Kuntz, Mountain Home, 7-2.
120: Abraham Coronado, McQueen, dec Jeremiah Gonzalez, Meridian, 4-1.
126: Blake Nevils, Meridian, dec Draven Johns, Caldwell, 6-1.
132: Aidan Larson, Hermiston, dec Benjamin Kohler, Wasatch, 6-3.
138: Sean Hall, Canyon Ridge, dec Jake Mescher, Bishop Kelly, 7-0.
144: Landyn Philpott, La Pine, pin Daeton Johnson, Chiawana, 4:45.
150: Nathan Gugelman II, American Falls, dec Carlos Valdez, Bishop Kelly, 17-15.
157: Kaden Mackenzie, Fruitland, dec Logan Shaver, Meridian, 4-0.
165: Leif Larwin, Bend, maj dec Brock Armstrong, Coeur d’Alene, 10-1.
175: Jhett Harber, Lowry, tech fall Camden Crespi, Meridian, 3:47 (18-3).
190: Jorden Tyler, Sandpoint , dec Easton Kemper, Burns, 10-7.
215: Quinn Hood, Fruitland, dec Joe Weil, Burns, 11-10.
285: Gabe Finley, Buhl, pin Anthony Toomey, Eagle, 1:52.
BOYS INDIVIDUAL PLACERS
98: 1, Jakobe Valle, Homedale (21-1). 2, Zach Teal, Lakeland (16-1). 3, Burke Blue, Centennial (13-3). 4, Cole Jensen, Rocky Mountain (12-7). 5, Javier Gomez, La Pine (13-6). 6, Bodee Williams, Meridian (17-4). 7, Wyatt Meppen, Thunder Ridge (30-4). 8, Tristan Mendenhall, Post Falls (12-7).
106: 1, Cooper Sandoval, McQueen (28-2). 2, Ryan Hirchert, Nampa (19-3). 3, Easton Olson, Riverton (20-4). 4, Tobias Guillen, Meridian (22-6). 5, Brand`n Edstrom, Madison (22-2). 6, Caydin Chan, San Clemente (23-6). 7, Casen Villastrigo, Crook County (6-2). 8, Mikael Teague, Minico (22-5).
113: 1, Greysen Packer, South Fremont (27-0). 2, Camden Kuntz, Mountain Home (24-4). 3, Tanner Brumble, Crook County (7-1). 4, Ayden Tokita, Skyline (34-4). 5, Justus Peregrina, Coeur d’Alene (16-7). 6, William Shallenberger, Wasatch (13-3). 7, Adam Ostoja, Meridian (16-8). 8, Ilan Shank, Nampa (16-5).
120: 1, Abraham Coronado, McQueen (23-2). 2, Jeremiah Gonzalez, Meridian (23-4). 3, Marcus Aleman, Fruitland (16-4). 4, Sawyer Anderson, Highland (16-2). 5, Archy De la rosa, Forest Grove (26-2). 6, Aiden Nelmes, Mountain View, Oregon (25-4). 7, Solomon Resnick, Capistrano Valley (28-3). 8, Bragen Anderson, LaGrande (15-5).
126: 1, Blake Nevils, Meridian (25-3). 2, Draven Johns, Caldwell (35-2). 3, Boden Banta, South Fremont (27-1). 4, Jeratt Robinson, Minico (19-8). 5, Saxton Scott, Idaho Falls (22-5). 6, Samuel Moody, Riverton (26-6). 7, Chase Hemphill, Crook County (6-2). 8, Jayden Martinez, Hermiston (21-5).
132: 1, Aidan Larson, Hermiston (28-4). 2, Benjamin Kohler, Wasatch (25-2). 3, Raidyn Pugsley, Buhl (24-2). 4, Koy Orr, Filer (16-2). 5, Billy Jackson, Redmond (23-3). 6, Ian Avalos, Mountain View (20-7). 7, Nate Galloway, Rocky Mountain (16-6). 8, Gavin Peterson, West Side (12-4).
138: 1, Sean Hall, Canyon Ridge (24-0). 2, Jake Mescher, Bishop Kelly (19-1). 3, Daxton Bonner, Wasatch (17-5). 4, Ty Adams, Blackfoot (21-5). 5, Mason Aiken, American Falls (30-2). 6, Jordan Schield, Coeur d’Alene (18-5). 7, Evan Krantz, McQueen (20-9). 8, Darius Case, Meridian (16-6).
144: 1, Landyn Philpott, La Pine (24-1). 2, Daeton Johnson, Chiawana (28-3). 3, Wade Williams, American Falls (32-2). 4, Mason Thynes, Redmond (21-4). 5, Stellar Tew, West Side (24-3). 6, Tyson Cobb, Weiser (20-6). 7, Denny Dean jr, Caldera (17-4). 8, Peyton Gurney, Ridgevue (20-4).
150: 1, Nathan Gugelman II, American Falls (23-0). 2, Carlos Valdez, Bishop Kelly (21-2). 3, Dj Neider, Idaho Falls (27-3). 4, Coye Coffman, Fruitland (18-4). 5, Carson Melendy, Churchill County (29-6). 6, Devon Kerr, La Pine (14-3). 7, Leonardo Robertson, Siuslaw (20-8). 8, Ryker Vail, Bonneville (21-2).
157: 1, Kaden Mackenzie, Fruitland (15-1). 2, Logan Shaver, Meridian (27-4). 3, Tommy Belding, LaGrande (18-2). 4, Cannon Kemper, Burns (12-6). 5, Noah Holman, Gonzaga Prep (7-2). 6, Samson Castillo, Bishop Kelly (20-7). 7, Maverick Heimbuck, Scappoose (24-2). 8, Gabe Larsen, Coeur d’Alene (11-3).
165: 1, Leif Larwin, Bend (23-1). 2, Brock Armstrong, Coeur d’Alene (18-1). 3, Owen Hull, Grants Pass (16-1). 4, Eli Noah, Tri-Valley (16-4). 5, Kash Cobb, Weiser (22-4). 6, Jacob Shaw, New Plymouth (24-6). 7, Fabian Avalos`, American Falls (31-3). 8, Chaz Ponton, Mountain View (13-8).
175: 1, Jhett Harber, Lowry (30-4). 2, Camden Crespi, Meridian (4-1). 3, Ryan Lewis, Middleton (26-1). 4, Wyatt Hanssen, Wasatch (24-6). 5, Antonio Genovesi, Eagle (16-2). 6, Gavin Sandoval, Crook County (12-5). 7, Tayten Cissne, Chiawana (19-6). 8, Tate Cuthbert, Lewiston (11-8).
190: 1, Jorden Tyler, Sandpoint (18-1). 2, Easton Kemper, Burns (17-3). 3, Blaise Turner, American Falls (32-2). 4, Jean-luc Guerra, Mountain View (20-5). 5, Gabriel Cox, New Plymouth (27-4). 6, Orinn Hubbard, Redmond (23-5). 7, Elijah Dilworth, Soda Springs (24-3). 8, Sterling Johnson, Riverton (22-7).
215: 1, Quinn Hood, Fruitland (23-2). 2, Joe Weil, Burns (15-4). 3, Jacob Mann, Siuslaw (22-3). 4, Jaydin Chacon, Minico (16-4). 5, Mcgregor Miller, South Fremont (17-2). 6, Noah Morehouse, Timberline (23-5). 7, Luke Mihele, San Clemente (18-3). 8, Jake Farar, Ridgevue (22-3).
285: 1, Gabe Finley, Buhl (26-0). 2, Anthony Toomey, Eagle (17-3). 3, Austin Reeves, Hillcrest (6-1). 4, Rex Salas, Madison (23-2). 5, Sam Buck, Emmett (20-7). 6, Hyrum Heindel, Kuna (5-3). 7, Kenai Huff, LaGrande (17-4). 8, Kollin Bailey, Rocky Mountain (9-3).
GIRLS TEAM SCORES
1, Wasatch 169. 2, Reed 168.5. 3, San Clemente 128.5. 4, Eagle 119.5. 5, Forest Grove 107.5. 6, Sandpoint 105. 7, Redmond 104. 8, Thunder Ridge 100.5. 9, Rocky Mountain 94.5. 10, Kuna 93.
11, Juab 92.5. 11, McQueen 92.5. 13, Post Falls 89.5. 14, LaGrande 85.5. 15, Crook County 81.5. 16, Idaho Falls 80. 17, Buhl 77. 18, Middleton 74.5. 19, Chiawana 73. 20, Baker/Powder 72.
20, Emmett 72. 20, Grace 72. 20, Siuslaw 72. 24, Mountain Home 71. 25, Jerome 66. 26, Potlach 63. 27, Capistrano Valley 60. 27, Vallivue 60. 29, Scappoose 59. 29, West Jefferson 59.
31, Lewiston 58.5. 32, Caldwell 57. 32, Meridian 57. 34, Rigby 56. 35, American Falls 53. 35, Douglas 53. 35, Skyline 53. 38, Tri-Valley 51. 39, Blackfoot 50. 40, Caldera 46.
41, Coeur d’Alene 42. 42, Bend 41.5. 42, Borah 41.5. 44, Burley 38. 45, Burns 37. 46, Timberlake 34.5. 47, New Plymouth 34. 47, Vale 34. 49, Nyssa 33. 49, South Fremont 33.
49, Timberline 33. 52, Centennial 32. 52, Riverton 32. 54, Salmon 31. 55, Garden Valley 28. 56, Columbia 27. 56, Newport 27. 58, Fruitland 26. 59, Glenns Ferry 25.5. 60, Nampa 25.
61, La Pine 23. 62, Boise 22. 62, Hillcrest 22. 64, Ontario 21.5. 65, Bonneville 20. 66, Madison 19. 67, Bishop Kelly 18. 67, Homedale 18. 67, Ridgevue 18. 70, Filer 15.
71, Pocatello 13. 72, Shelley 11. 73, Four Rivers 8. 73, Payette 8. 75, Mountain View 7. 75, Yerington 7. 77, Moscow 6. 78, Priest River 4. 79, Owyhee 3. 80, Capital 0. 80, Skyview 0.
GIRLS CHAMPIONSHIP MATCHES
100: Alena Messerli, West Jefferson, dec Ava Bui, Centennial, 7-6.
107: Bella Cornado, McQueen, pin Irini Poka, San Clemente, 4:39.
114: Charlee Noah, Tri-Valley, dec Joely Slyter, Lewiston, 3-0.
120: Maya Fiodorova, Reed, dec Macali Lade, Siuslaw, 6-0.
126: Kasia Hanks, Burley, pin Kailea Takahashi, Forest Grove, 3:33.
132: Keanna Conrad, Blackfoot, pin Olivia Bezdicek, Jerome, 4:21.
138: Zoe Fries, Kuna, pin Kennedy Blanton, Forest Grove, 1:00.
145: Elise Twait, Meridian, pin Mackenzie Shearon, Redmond, 1:57.
152: Hayley Mcneal, Potlach, dec Roxy Sheen, Buhl, 12-7.
165: Brooklyn Anderson, Coeur d’Alene, dec Elianna Santos-Banks, Reed, 6-2.
185: Shauna Anderson, Thunder Ridge, pin Megan Weil, Burns, 5:05.
235: Amie Hartman, Mountain Home, pin Charley Timms, Reed, 1:43.
GIRLS INDIVIDUAL PLACERS
100: 1, Alena Messerli, West Jefferson (18-0). 2, Ava Bui, Centennial (13-3). 3, Malibu Boynton, Crook County (13-3). 4, Ryleigh Slocum, Borah (15-4). 5, Sara Pipinich, Caldera (11-2). 6, Tailynn Hirchert, Nampa (11-7). 7, Catherine Montalvan, West Jefferson (6-2). 8, Faith Gray, Redmond (11-5).
107: 1, Bella Cornado, McQueen (30-5). 2, Irini Poka, San Clemente (31-8). 3, Raelynn O’Connor, Salmon (13-1). 4, Taylor Drake, Kuna (18-4). 5, Kyra Cobb, Timberline (19-3). 6, Mya Bolander, Idaho Falls (19-4). 7, Kiera Hersel, Rocky Mountain (18-7). 8, Lucia Baradaran-Bybee, San Clemente (13-3).
114: 1, Charlee Noah, Tri-Valley (16-0). 2, Joely Slyter, Lewiston (11-1). 3, Talea Nichols, Rocky Mountain (11-4). 4, Ali Svancara, Buhl (21-2). 5, Kinzie Williams, American Falls (8-2). 6, Gracie Price, Thunder Ridge (21-4). 7, Brooklyn Lanningham, Columbia (16-5). 8, Allison Cano, San Clemente (6-3).
120: 1, Maya Fiodorova, Reed (28-4). 2, Macali Lade, Siuslaw (20-2). 3, Mia Pedersen, Redmond (12-2). 4, Bella Eddins, Grace (11-2). 5, Marabelle Brown, Wasatch (27-5). 6, Lyndie Isaacson, LaGrande (22-8). 7, Zuri Tavarez, South Fremont (13-3). 8, Makayla Smith, Mountain Home (17-5).
126: 1, Kasia Hanks, Burley (6-0). 2, Kailea Takahashi, Forest Grove (20-1). 3, Makenzi Mccoy, Wasatch (28-6). 4, Caddy Tverdy, Garden Valley (17-2). 5, Taylor Echeverria, Crook County (17-4). 6, Elyse Asaro, Rocky Mountain (17-7). 7, Joey Dean, Caldera (15-3). 8, Olivia Gutierrez, Jerome (7-3).
132: 1, Keanna Conrad, Blackfoot (16-0). 2, Olivia Bezdicek, Jerome (23-1). 3, Shelby Garten, Timberlake (20-1). 4, Renae Cook, Forest Grove (13-2). 5, Courtney Hunt, American Falls (5-2). 6, Jade Seymour, La Pine (18-5). 7, Payton Perry, Vale (20-3). 8, Shelby Prather, Potlach (6-3).
138: 1, Zoe Fries, Kuna (16-0). 2, Kennedy Blanton, Forest Grove (19-1). 3, Kahli Brown, Post Falls (5-1). 4, Danin Lacouture, Siuslaw (10-3). 5, Kylie Fowler, Middleton (17-4). 6, Ava Price, Thunder Ridge (17-7). 7, Paige Allen, LaGrande (24-3). 8, Samantha Reynolds, Juab (19-8).
145: 1, Elise Twait, Meridian (20-0). 2, Mackenzie Shearon, Redmond (12-1). 3, Gracin Dennis, Emmett (16-3). 4, Josie Newby, Grace (10-2). 5, Morgan Holdaway, Juab (18-10). 6, Ava Demitio, San Clemente (5-3). 7, Bianca Cluff, Wasatch (19-11). 8, Chloe Thomas, Post Falls (4-3).
152: 1, Hayley Mcneal, Potlach (5-0). 2, Roxy Sheen, Buhl (13-1). 3, Marli Lind, Baker/Powder (18-3). 4, Dakota Frogge, Wasatch (23-8). 5, Gemma Lebeau, Eagle (15-6). 6, Brianna Rodriguez, San Clemente (18-7). 7, Alivia Abouchani, Scappoose (13-5). 8, Peyton Reeves, Thunder Ridge (16-9).
165: 1, Brooklyn Anderson, Coeur d’Alene (13-0). 2, Elianna Santos-Banks, Reed (25-6). 3, Jasmine Morales, McQueen (25-4). 4, Ella Elordi, Eagle (18-2). 5, Sylvia Becker, Sandpoint (12-4). 6, Ellli Hansen, Madison (4-3). 7, Gavin Brown, Rocky Mountain (18-4). 8, Kambree Stierle, Hillcrest (4-3).
185: 1, Shauna Anderson, Thunder Ridge (20-1). 2, Megan Weil, Burns (14-1). 3, Ellie Smith, Reed (21-8). 4, Maddie Armstrong, LaGrande (22-6). 5, Emry Woods, Eagle (16-5). 6, Priscilla Arredondo, Kuna (12-6). 7, Yazmin Robles, West Jefferson (13-5). 8, Reese Habel, Middleton (14-4).
235: 1, Amie Hartman, Mountain Home (12-1). 2, Charley Timms, Reed (21-2). 3, Adyson Knight, Wasatch (15-8). 4, Macee Ercanbrack, Juab (21-6). 5, Charlie Robinson, Rigby (18-5). 6, Lilli Marti, Sandpoint (11-4). 7, Akira Harmon, Capistrano Valley (13-5). 8, Madison Meyer, Baker/Powder (11-7).
This story was originally published January 4, 2025 at 9:26 PM.
