Casey brothers highlight Mat Classic XXXI accomplishments for Peninsula wrestlers
In the end, there were no state titles for any Peninsula High School wrestlers at Mat Classic XXXI state tournament at the Tacoma Dome on Friday night, but there were certainly some close calls.
Specifically, from the Casey brothers, senior Isaac and junior Nolan.
Isaac Casey, competing in the 160-pound weight class, advanced all the way to the championship match, facing off against Southridge High senior Mikael Failor.
Casey was coming off a surprisingly dominant victory in the semifinals just one match earlier, scoring a 7-1 decision over Stanwood’s Riley Van Scoy to advance to the championship match.
But with the semifinal match being a high-tempo, high-energy affair, the championship match was a stark contrast, as Failor was more methodical and deliberate in his approach.
Failor scored two takedowns in the first round, giving him a 4-1 advantage on points heading into the second round. It proved too much for Casey to overcome, eventually ending in a 6-2 decision, in favor of Failor.
“I would’ve liked to see Isaac get his offense generated,” said Peninsula coach Mark Nickels. “It didn’t quite have the intensity we were hoping to see. It was just a little flat. He got beaten on a couple take downs on his feet and we weren’t able to respond there.”
That’s not to say Casey was out of his league. There were some times during the match when he found himself in favorable positions, including in the third round, when for a moment, Casey was in a position to land an armbar.
“He looked pretty good on top there, he had that bar set up pretty nicely, he just needed to break that hip down so he could finish,” Nickels said. “It just didn’t come together.”
It may not have been the dream ending Casey was looking for, but second in the state is nothing to scoff at.
“He had a great tournament, an awesome semifinal match,” Nickels said. “I’m proud of the way he wrestled. I know he’s going to be disappointed to not finish where he wanted to, but I think he’ll get over that and be pretty excited for second.”
Casey’s brother, Nolan, also had a strong showing in the tournament, taking third place in the 152-pound weight class. Casey lost to Bonney Lake’s Cody Coffey on a 12-5 decision in the semifinals, but bounced back to win two consolation matches afterward, including a 7-2 decision over Kelso’s Jakob Webb to take third place.
“It would’ve been nice to make it to the finals,” the younger Casey brother said. “That was my season goal, but it didn’t happen this time. I got third, so that’s third best. I’m happy with that. It’s cool to see my brother go to the finals. That just raises the bar for me next year.”
Against Coffey, Casey said his strategy didn’t line up with his expectations of his opponent.
“I started into it thinking he was going to be one of those really shifty guys, so I went to my knees and then he just muscled me over,” Casey said. “I was pretty tired throughout. He played it smart and kept it conservative. I did the best I could. No regrets, but going into it again, I might have had a different strategy.”
Also taking third was Peninsula senior Nathan Johnson in the 145-pound weight class. Johnson had a longer path back to a state placement after losing a 2-1 decision to Oak Harbor’s Blake McBridge in the round of 16. Johnson went on to win six consecutive matches following the loss to earn the third-place placement.
“It feels really, really, really good,” Johnson said. “Yesterday, I didn’t wrestle really well, but today, I really picked it up. So I was super excited. It’s pretty daunting when you lose in the first two rounds and then you look at the bracket. You see how many matches you have to win to get there. But I stopped thinking about it and just took it one match at a time.”
For Gig Harbor High School, senior Zayne Ball took third, earning a 7-6 decision over Rogers’ (Spokane) Tre Phillips in the final match. Also placing was senior Jake Flynn, who took fifth place in the 195-pound weight class in just his first wrestling season in high school.
This story was originally published February 17, 2019 at 12:36 AM.
