Masked and tested, high school wrestling teams ready to grapple

Around late spring, athletes would normally wrap up their respective seasons in baseball, fastpitch, soccer, tennis and track.

But that would be in a normal year.

As restrictions from the COVID-19 pandemic are slowly being lifted, the Washington Interscholastic Athletics Association continues to require shortened seasons for all athletics. This, of course, includes wrestling at Gig Harbor and Peninsula High Schools.

Being a sport of extreme contact, there are vital safety precautions put in place to protect coaches, referees and the wrestlers themselves such as wearing masks, rapid testing twice a week and practicing with a limited number of teammates.

With major changes that both schools are adhering to, this new year will be a challenge. Yet despite all of that, the Tides and Seahawks are ready to rock this year. Here is what to expect from them:

PENINSULA

The Seahawks in 2020 went to Mat Classic XXXII and finished ninth overall with a score of 56 points. Wrestlers like Luke Golden, Nolan Casey and Brock Allen rounded out a senior class that went out with strong individual finishes.

Over a year later and now, the Seahawks only have one senior in Andrew Boden. However, there is lots to look forward to in the following years with underclassmen getting crucial competitive experience.

“It’s exciting to get back on to the mat, and I think the guys that really want to be wrestlers and carve out their path through high school are excited as well,” said coach Gary Griffin. “We don’t have as many kids as we normally have, participation levels are down. The kids who wrestle in the circuit and club wrestling are used to doing it in the spring and summer time. In general, it is a little odd wrestling heading into June.”

As much has having the opportunity to work out in a new variety of ways is great for Griffin and his squad, they are facing a new set of opponents this season in the form of the 4A South Puget Sound League.

Teams like Puyallup, Rogers and Bellarmine have the resources to field teams that are big in terms of numbers and size. And again, it is a down year in terms of participation for the Seahawks. But that doesn’t bother the Seahawks. In fact, these are wrestlers that they’ve seen in the past through tournaments so they aren’t completely thrown off.

“Competing is competing and since we don’t have tournaments this year, we would see these same schools at the different tournaments that we go to,” he said. “It’s not a shock to the system, it’s not anything different. Wrestling is wrestling, so that doesn’t change. Some of the schools are a little bigger, but its competing and it doesn’t really matter who we go against.”

Headlining the wrestlers for the Seahawks this year are junior captain Kylan Sommen, sophomore Emmitt Casey and Boden, who is also a captain. Sommen and Boden bring some veteran leadership to the team, where Casey is part of the young, malleable core that will be there for the Seahawks in the future.

Yes, the future looks really good for them but talent still needs to be developed. One of the most exciting things Griffin is looking forward to is how those young wrestlers will respond to the adversity they will face during the season.

Even though they will matchup with some wrestlers that have more experience, the Seahawks are going to go onto the mats and do whatever they can to work their opponents to the ground.

The Seahawks will have one more meet to gain that vital experience Griffin is hoping the young members of the team can build off of for next season.

They will take on Gig Harbor, Curtis, and Bellarmine at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 2 at Gig Harbor High School.

GIG HARBOR

The Tides are trying to bounce back from a year where they finished 29th at Mat Classic XXXII with a score of 23 points. However, the beginning of club sports like rowing and lacrosse has cut into the numbers that they would have on a team.

Pair that with the COVID-19 pandemic and coach Jacob Spadoni had to refigure out his approach to this wrestling season. Instead of trying to get his guys to show up to practice, he’s out the choice in the athlete’s hands. Some chose club, others sat out due to concern, but his core group of guys are putting in the work to get better.

“This year is still a year that we’re working through and we’re working through it together,” he said. “Things are weird, and we got to do different things just so we’re able to wrestle and it makes things a little bit more complicated. But the kids are really stepping up, and doing what they need to do to be on the mat.”

Like the Seahawks, the Tides are now competing against opponents from the 4A SPSL. This year, Gig Harbor has some really talented upper classmen competing in their final matches of their high school careers.

Seniors Will Christman, Will Waymire and Simon Atwell are trying to have their last hurrah in a very rushed and shortened season. At this point, their final season is almost over and they’ve only competed in a fraction of the amount of matches they are used to from years past.

“They’ve been wrestling well, and it’s kind of weird because we’ve already had three competitions and six duals,” Spadoni said. “In a normal season, we would’ve just barely started wrestling. This year has been kind of a rush, which is fine. The kids are having fun doing it but for younger and newer kids, it’s not ideal.”

This year, Spadoni has taken up the mantra that records are not the most important thing to strive for this year. Wins and losses will come and go for the Tides, but experience is what they covet for their dedicated wrestlers to get better.

A couple of standout wrestlers that Spadoni has noticed are junior twins Abe and Charlie Odiorne. Both young men have been in the program since they were freshmen and have shown they can win about half of their matches.

This year, the Odiorne twins come into the season having but on a combined 70 pounds of good weight, making them a force to be reckoned with in the 170 lb. class for Abe and 160 lb. class for Charlie.

Even though records are not important to Spadoni and the Tides this year, it will be a bittersweet ending for Christman, Waymire and Atwell with their final wrestling meets.

They will take on Curtis twice within a week. The first time will be 4:30 p.m. Thursday, May 27th at Curtis High School. The second meet also includes Peninsula and Bellarmine, and that will be at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 2 at Gig Harbor High School.

This story was originally published June 2, 2021 at 9:20 AM.