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SUNNY Temp: 85 °F Wind: NW at 3 mph Saturday, June 28, 2003 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine W3 Magazine Jobs @ Mail Tribune Tempo A & E Oregon CarZone Wellness Connection Real Estate Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend February 23, 2003 Crater�s Jeremy McLaughlin, left, wrestles McNary�s Sean Santana in the 140-pound title match. McLaughlin lost the match, 8-2, but the Comets took home the team title by amassing 186 team points to win their fourth Class 4A state championship in six year AP Comets take the fifth Fueled by huge points in the early rounds, Crater dominates to win the Class 4A crown By DON HUNT Mail Tribune PORTLAND — The atmosphere was rather anticlimactic at the Class 4A state wrestling tournament Saturday night at Memorial Coliseum. And that suited Crater High coach Greg Haga just fine. Haga’s Comets were so dominant they had the team championship wrapped up a day earlier, leaving the anxious moments for those teams fighting for second place. Crater failed to crown an individual champion, but three of its wrestlers claimed second, three collected third and another finished fourth. Fueled by huge points in the early rounds, Crater amassed 186 points as it soared to its fourth state title in the past six years. Fellow Southern Oregon Conference member Roseburg had a strong showing of its own and wound up second with 119 points. Newberg and surprising Grants Pass took home the other two team trophies, scoring 118 and 117.5 points, respectively. Southridge of Beaverton wound up fifth with 105.5 points, and Eagle Point was sixth with 96. Haga said he knew the Comets had the team title locked up after building a 53-point lead over Roseburg on Friday. "There was no way we were going to give up that many points the next day," Haga said. "We went out and dominated." The Comets sent three wrestlers into Saturday night’s championship finals, but 135-pound sophomore Chase Maloney, 140-pound senior Jeremy McLaughlin and 152-pound sophomore Ron Lee all came up short. Maloney lost 7-5 to Churchill’s Nick Cautrell; McLaughlin lost 8-2 to McNary’s Sean Santana; and Lee dropped a 7-3 decision to Hermiston standout Kyle Larson, considered by many to be the top grappler in the tournament. Maloney fell behind 5-0 to Cautrell in the second period, but closed to within 5-4 after wiggling free for an escape early in the third period. But Cautrell registered his third takedown of the match with 35 seconds remaining to clinch it. "I was too high on my stance early on and gave up two singles (single-leg takedowns)," said Maloney, who finished the season with a 34-3 record. "I didn’t wrestle my best match, but this will give me some motivation for next year." Bryson Gutches (119), Nate Gipson (130) and Clayton Tankersley (145) chipped in third-place showings for the Comets, Taylor Wilkerson (275) added a fourth and freshman Cody Clark (171) was eighth. The Comets set the tone for their fifth state title under Haga on Thursday, when they won 19 of 22 matches, including 15 by pin. The dominant first day enabled them to score 71.5 points and take a 29-point lead over their nearest pursuer. "Scoring 71 points on the first day — that’s unheard of," Haga said. "Coming up here, we would have been happy to win by a half-point. But the kids wrestled tough and everything just fell into place." Roseburg was led by Trevor Lofstedt, who eked out a 1-0 win over Grants Pass’ Tyler Baker in the 103-pound final, and Justin Troxel, who advanced to the 275-pound finals before getting pinned by McKay’s Allan Mikolas. The Indians had four other state placers. Grants Pass, meanwhile, impressed onlookers throughout the tournament with their gutsy performance. Competing with just six wrestlers, the Cavemen brought home a team trophy for the first time since 1971 as they won 27 of 35 matches. Like Crater, no Cavemen won an individual title, but Baker (103), Zach Steddum (125) and Brian Alves (189) captured second, Chris Hotch (112) was third, Andrew Ditty (215) fourth and Eric Sedivy (130) seventh. "When we moved all six kids to the quarterfinals, we started to think something special might be happening," Grants Pass coach Kelly Marval said. "And the more we won, the more the kids went on an adrenaline rush. "What these kids accomplished is truly amazing." Almost lost in the excitement of three SOC teams taking home trophies was the individual performance turned in by North Medford’s Rob Folsom. The 160-pound junior fought tooth-and-nail with Newberg’s Neal Beaudry but lost 5-4. The score was tied 4-4 after two periods when Folsom gave up an intentional escape, thinking he could take down Beaudry in the final period. He fired one shot after another into the elusive Beaudry, but couldn’t score. "It’s hard to give it all you’ve got and come up short," said Folsom, who lost a one-point match to Beaudry earlier in the season. "I tried my hardest but didn’t get it done tonight." Reach reporter Don Hunt at 776-4469, or e-mail [email protected] Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2003 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback A D V E R T I S E R S SPECIAL SECTIONS Rogue Valley Auto Finder Rogue Valley Job Finder --> Rogue Valley Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Real Estate Showcase Food for Thought Hike of the Week Wellness Connection Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Openings Prime Times