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Raider wrestlers roll to NW title FOREST GROVE - Southern Oregon freshman David O'Brien was slated to be redshirted this season. With a late-season push, O'Brien wrestled his way into the Raider lineup, culminating with the 184-pound title at the Northwest Wrestling Championships. Southern Oregon captured four weight divisions and had 14 wrestlers place in the top four en route to its second Northwest Wrestling Championships crown in four seasons Saturday at Pacific University. The Raiders finished with 95 team points, and received additional individual championships from Ryan Presta at 157 pounds and Wes Balensifer at 285 pounds. Chris Huntley and Brian Wilson shared the 165-pound crown, while head coach Mike Ritchey was recognized as the best small college wrestling coach in the region. Menlo, which scored a rare dual meet victory over the Raiders in Ashland earlier in the season, made a late charge at SOU in the finals to finish second with 79 1/2 points. O'Brien pulled a major upset in the semifinals against NAIA No. 2-ranked Nathaniel Auguston of Embry-Riddle. Then O'Brien posted a 2-1 decision over Jeff Dahl of Menlo in the finals. In another noteworthy match, Balensifer defeated teammate Mike Whitehead 3-2 in the heavyweight division. Whitehead entered ranked No. 1, and Balensifer was ranked fifth. In the other all-Raider final, Ritchey decided to let Huntley and Wilson share the title. Presta registered a 3-2 overtime decision over No. 2-ranked Joey Martinez of Menlo in another pleasant surprise for the Raiders. "We entered the tournament with 12 wrestlers qualified for nationals and left with 15 qualifiers," said Ritchey. "It's a positive sign. It gives us some options for the national meet." LINKS: DAILY TIDINGS: Main | News | Sports | Obituaries | Opinion | Columnists | AP News | Subscribe | Archives | Weather | Classifieds | Contact Us | Privacy REVELS: Main | Calendar | Dining | Movies | T.V. OTHER: Road Cams Copyright 2003 Ashland Daily Tidings 541.482.3456. 1661 Siskiyou Blvd., Ashland, OR 97520. Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. - Advertisers -