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Comets on course for another title Photo by Jim Craven Crater senior wrestlers (from left) Chad Griffin, Cameron Fjarli, Matt Lee and Mike Whitehead. Defending state wrestling champs loaded with talent, ranked nationally By KRIS HENRY No real secrets exist in Southern Oregon Conference wrestling. That lack of mystery has more to do with the conference's overwhelming success each season than subterfuge. It's hard to be inconspicuous when your team dominated all others the previous season and returns so many talents that some view your junior varsity lineup as the only true nemesis to your success. Crater has the distinction of basking in the SOC spotlight this season. All eyes are on the Comets, who return 11 wrestlers from last season's state championship team. As if that weren't enough, Crater boasts countless others toiling in the gym waiting for their time to shine. Despite the high praise his team has already received -- ranked first in Oregon's Class 4A poll and fifth in the nation in another -- Crater coach Greg Haga argues the Comets aren't assured of anything. "I don't care about that stuff," the 11th-year coach says. "Unless they give us the state trophy right now, the rankings don't mean a whole heck of a lot." What does carry weight with Haga is an imposing lineup that features four returning state players and 17 who placed at district. "It's a pretty junior-senior dominated team, that's for sure. I like to see that," says Haga. Junior Justin Godley is Crater's top returning state placer, having finished second at 135 pounds last season. Senior Matt Lee placed third at 152, with senior Cameron Fjarli fifth at 215 and junior Morgan Hawkins eighth at 112. Haga says the best thing about all his wrestlers this season is that they aren't resting on last season's success. "I think these guys have come back fired up to get back there to state again," says Haga. "You don't get many chances to have teams that can go back-to-back as champions. Hopefully with a little luck things will go our way and we'll be one of the few who can make that happen." Haga says those ready to hand over the SOC championship to Crater's varsity or junior varsity will need to exercise some caution -- especially considering an expected challenge by Eagle Point. "They have some really good kids and (coach Bob) Bergen has everybody all fired up over there," Haga says. "They should be pretty tough." Already with victories over sixth-ranked Crook County and eighth-ranked North Bend, the 13th-ranked Eagles have sent a message. Bergen masterfully guided Eagle Point during his tenure as coach from 1975-90. He returns this season in a maintenance role while a search is conducted to find a replacement for Chris Lucas, who guided the Eagles to second in last year's district meet. Despite Eagle Point's early success this season, Bergen says the jury is still out on how high his Eagles will soar. "I was happy about last weekend, but then I'm also realistic in knowing what happened. We got kind of lucky," Bergen says, noting that Crook County was without a couple of its top wrestlers and North Bend had a few wrestlers not make weight. "But with this team, we'll take anything we can get." Eagle Point's success rests with its 10 returning district placers, led by the brother combination of Matt and Ryan Bray and B.J. McFall. Matt Bray will test his skills at 145, with Ryan Bray at 135 and McFall at around 130 pounds. Grants Pass is poised to make a bold move at the top with returning seniors Jeremy Conner (140), Jake Leair (189) and Chuck Martin (145). "We're definitely going to have some individuals that are going to be pretty darn difficult to beat," Grants Pass coach Tim Satre says. Conner is the defending state champion at 140, while Leair was the state runner-up at 189 last season. After missing last season due to injury, a healthy Martin is eager to return to the state tourney. Among North Medford's returnees are seniors Josh Baker (119) and Brian Backstrom (275) and junior T.J. Winningham (140). Winningham placed third at the district meet last season, while Backstrom finished fourth. The Black Tornado will soon gain a boost with the return from injuries of senior Matt Haight (215) and junior Josh Tarolli (112). Klamath Union pins its hopes on seniors Todd Knutson (112), Adam Nielson (119), Danny King (152) and Paul Mann (171). "They're going to be the rock of our team. We're going to feed off them," says first-year coach Lew Stork, who previously guided Junction City, Harrisburg and Crescent Valley. With 35 freshmen and 35 upperclassmen, Roseburg boasts an intriguing mix of talents that co-head coach Ted Wilton says could be in for an eye-opening experience as the SOC slate draws near. "We've got a long ways to go," Wilton says. South Medford coach Ken Wharry is hopeful his squad will post a breakthrough performance in his debut season, with junior Jason Kruggel (103) leading the charge. Kruggel is South's lone returning district placer, having finished sixth last season. Beyond Kruggel, the former Eagle Point assistant coach says the Panthers boast a nice blend of youth and veteran talent. "We've got a couple guys who should do extremely well," Wharry says. "I think we're going to surprise a lot of people. "It won't be like last year. I don't think they won a dual meet at all last year. That won't happen again." Ashland coach Curt Radcliff continues his effort of building a program, with the second-year coach relying mainly on youngsters to fill the holes made by having only 21 wrestlers. "We're going to have to go with a bunch of freshmen in our lineup," he says. "We're just looking to learn again this year and hoping to continue building our program and doing the best we can to survive in the SOC." Leading the way for the Grizzlies will be returners Anthony Mogollon (103), Brandon Aleshire (135), Henry Swales (160), Elijah Blessing (145) and Eli Perkins (215). SOC wrestling glance SOC Coaches Poll 1. Crater (7)..............................................49 2. Eagle Point (1)).....................................42 3. Grants Pass)........................................38 4. North Medford)......................................32 5. Klamath Union).....................................22 tie Roseburg)............................................22 7. South Medford).....................................11 8. Ashland)................................................9 Crater COACH -- Greg Haga (11th year). RETURNING LETTERMEN -- Andy Oman (103, sr.); Chad Griffin (112, sr.); Morgan Hawkins (119, jr.); Joey Morgan (125, sr.); Jayson Stratton (130, jr.); Justin Godley (135, jr.); Joe Green (140, so.); Nathan Reed (145, sr.); Shane Webster (152, so.); Matt Lee (160, sr.); Tanner Hillyer (171, jr.); Mike White (189, sr.); Cameron Fjarli (215, sr.); Joel Dunn (103, jr.); Burk Thomas (275, sr.); Scott Toney (189, jr.); Anders Vetch (215, jr.); Bob Pool (130, so.); Ben Tibbets (275, so.). RETURNING SOC PLACERS -- Oman first; Dunn second; Hawkins first; Griffin second; Morgan sixth; Stratton first; Godley first; Green fourth; Webster fourth; Reed fifth; Lee first; Hillyer third; White second; Vetch sixth; Fjarli first; Toney fourth; Thomas second. RETURNING STATE PLACERS -- Godley, second at 135; Lee, third at 152; Fjarli, fifth at 215; Hawkins, eighth at 112. Eagle Point COACH -- Bob Bergen (first year; 1975-1990 coach at Eagle Point). RETURNING LETTERMEN -- Carlos Alvarez (215, sr.); Matt Bray (145, sr.); Ryan Bray (135, sr.); Blake Cam (275, so.); John Gallo (112, so.); Brian Hayes (112, so.); Mike Lopez (125, sr.); James Mannenbach (152, so.); B.J. McFall (130-135, jr.); Evan Pogue (160-171, jr.); Bret Thomas (152-160, sr.); Jason Welch (171, sr.); Jesse Heppner (152, sr.). RETURNING SOC PLACERS -- McFall second; Lopez fourth; Ryan Bray second; Matt Bray third; Pogue third; Thomas fourth; Welch fifth; Cam sixth; Alvarez fifth; Heppner fifth. NEWCOMERS TO WATCH -- Morgan Edenstrom (103, fr.); Derrick Jaramillo (119, jr.); Jacob Leonardo (119, fr.). Grants Pass COACH -- Tim Satre (10th year). RETURNING LETTERMEN -- Jason Hoy (103, jr.); Grant Cannon (112, so.); Jeremy McLean (130, jr.); Eric Chase (135, jr.); Jeremy Conner (140, sr.); Roy Blower (140, jr.); Chuck Martin (145, sr.); Billy Fish (152, jr.); Kim Ray (160, jr.); Robert Costa (160, jr.); Justin Clatt (171, sr.); Jimmy Seager (171, so.); Jake Leair (189, sr.); Tony Delack (215, so.); Trenton Ray (275, so.); Brian Chase (275, sr.); Levi Fuller (130, sr.); Joel Sequeira (125, jr.). RETURNING SOC PLACERS -- Cannon fifth; McLean sixth; Fuller sixth; Conner first; Leair first; Clatt fifth. RETURNING STATE PLACERS -- Conner, first at 140; Leair, second at 189. NEWCOMERS TO WATCH -- Lance Wolters (119, sr.); Greg Jones (215, sr.); Joey Rossknecht (103-112, fr.); Tom Martin (135, fr.); Mike Watts (125, so.); Cameron Whipp (160, jr.); Jim White (130, jr.); Matt Mettler (135, jr.). North Medford COACH -- Ken Thompson (third year). RETURNING LETTERMEN -- Josh Baker (119, sr.); Brian Backstrom (275, sr.); T.J. Winningham (140, jr.); Matt Haight (215, sr.); Frank Silva (189, sr.); Josh Tarolli (112, jr.); Cory Sweet (145, jr.); John Mahar (103, jr.); John Whitaker (152, jr.); Andy Tow (125, so.); Brent Rhodes (215, sr.); Ramon Cortez (160, jr.); Mike Blum (189, jr.). RETURNING SOC PLACERS -- Tarolli fourth; Winningham third; Sweet sixth; Backstrom fourth. NEWCOMERS TO WATCH -- Chris Jensen (103, fr.); Norris Bier (189, so.); Shawn Backstrom (160, so.); Brian Salinas (125, so.). Klamath Union COACH -- Lew Stork (first year). RETURNING LETTERMEN -- Todd Knutson (112, sr.); Adam Nielson (119, sr.); Loyal Neumann (125,jr.); Matt Schiek (130, sr.; Danny King (152, sr.); David Trujillo (160, so.); Paul Mann (171, sr.); Jason Bybee (275, sr.); Ryan Cornelison (103, jr.). RETURNING SOC PLACERS -- Knutson fourth; Nielson fifth; Neumann fourth; Trujillo second; King second; Mann fourth; Bybee third. NEWCOMERS TO WATCH -- Greg Hamilton (112, fr.); Brian Mahoney (130, fr.); Steve Bitzer (103, fr.); Brendon Keane (112, so.); Mike Nork (189, sr.); Trevor Harris (130, jr.); Corey Wolfer (152, jr.). Roseburg COACHES -- Doug Tovey (fifth year) and Ted Wilton (first year, Roseburg coach 1988-94). RETURNING LETTERMEN -- Dustin Forrest (140-145, sr.); Luke Wells (125, sr.); Mark Pyle (119-125, sr.); Jeremy Sprague (189, sr.); Chris Folsom (189-215, sr.); Jed Brewer (145, sr.). RETURNING SOC PLACERS -- Pyle fifth; Forrest third. NEWCOMERS TO WATCH -- Willie Kingry (275, fr.); Frank Folino (171, sr.); Randy Wilkerson (152, sr.); Ty Turner (160, so.); Levi Thomas (135, fr.); Jesse Alexander (145, sr.); Joel Oilar (119, fr.). South Medford COACH -- Ken Wharry (first year). RETURNING LETTERMEN -- Steve Himmelman (112, sr.); Tad Hildebrand (125, jr.); Jacob Bean (130, jr.); Brian Govi (135, sr.); Dave Alonzo (140, sr.); David Jennings (152, sr.); Ian Taylor (215, jr.); Jason Kruggel (103, jr.). RETURNING SOC PLACERS -- Kruggel sixth. NEWCOMERS TO WATCH -- Ian Rasmussen (103, fr.); Kirk Case (119, fr.); Ben Vandagrift (189, fr.); Jacob Villa (215, fr.); Don Jackson (125, so.). Ashland COACH -- Curt Radcliff (second year). RETURNING LETTERMEN -- Anthony Mogollon (103, so.); Brandon Aleshire (135, jr.); Henry Swales (160, jr.); Elijah Blessing (145, so.); Eli Perkins (215, sr.). Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1998, Medford, Oregon USA