Curtis wrestling has plenty of ‘hammers’ this season, led by defending champion Yacapin
Curtis High School boys wrestling coach Shawn Gaspaire supposes there will be seasons when his wrestling room doesn’t have a ton of depth. This is not one of those seasons.
“It’s just nice when you have a whole bag of hammers,” Gaspaire said. “Wrestling is cyclical, so one year I’m sure we’ll have a whole box of nails. But, this is a great shot if things can stay together.”
The Vikings have plenty of hammers this season. Which is why Gaspaire, and his team, believe the Vikings — the Class 4A runner-up at Mat Classic two years ago — can win a state title.
“I think this is our best shot,” said junior Aizayah “Maka” Yacapin, who is the top-ranked wrestler in any classification at 126 pounds by Washington Wrestling Report. “We’re melding way better than we have before. We’re picking each other up, we’re working hard, and we’re having fun doing it.
“I think we’re looking pretty good this year. Hopefully we can all stay healthy and just keep it rolling.”
Yacapin is the defending 4A state champion at 113 pounds, took third as freshman at 106, and is already verbally committed to Stanford. He’s a big hammer.
“Maka is the best wrestler I’ve ever seen, and there have been a lot of good wrestlers who have come through Washington state,” Gaspaire said. The first-year coach is a Lincoln graduate who has more than two decades of coaching experience in the South Sound, including running MABJJ Tacoma, where he instructs Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.
“He’s got the right mindset, and he’s willing to learn, and he’s willing to push,” Gaspaire continued. “He’s always seeking excellence, he’s will to go the next step above and doesn’t settle. Those are some of the intangibles wrestlers need. He’s been blessed with a lot of tools, and he’s taken advantage of those tools.”
Yacapin, who was born in Hawaii, said he started wrestling at 4 years old. His family moved to Washington when he was young, and he worked consistently to become one of the state’s top wrestlers.
His freshman season, he ripped through local competition on his way to the Tacoma Dome, and pinned his first Mat Classic opponent before losing a minor decision in the quarterfinals. He pinned three of his final four opponents to rally for third.
“What I’ve learned most about my body and myself, is there’s such a thing as outworking yourself,” Yacapin said. “Going into the tournament, it was going good until that match. Walking from the mat to the locker room (after that loss), I was just telling myself to wake up — it’s not a nightmare, it’s real.
“I was just crying back there and thinking, ‘Well, I have to finish this tournament. Third is the next best thing, and then next year we’ll take it.’ ”
Yacapin said that loss in the Tacoma Dome his freshman year is what propelled his wrestling career to the level it’s at now.
“(Wrestling) was a serious thing for me throughout life, because I have a wrestling family,” he said. “But, I think after freshman year when I took that loss, I was like, ‘All right, I need to drop everything else. I really want to pursue this, and this is what I really want.’ ”
He regrouped, returned to the Vikings’ wrestling room for practices the following season, and won the elusive state title at 113 pounds. Yacapin pinned his opening round and semifinals opponents, won by major decision in the quarterfinals this time, and topped Auburn Riverside’s Yusef Nelson by 5-2 decision in the final.
“It was 2-2 going into the final round,” Yacapin said, recalling his championship match last season. “My coaches were telling me to go neutral, cut him and take him down to (make the score) 4-3. But, I was like, ‘I have confidence. We’ve been working top all year. I’ve got this.’ ”
And, when time expired, it was Yacapin with his hand held in the air.
“It was the best feeling in the world,” he said. “It wasn’t like anything I’ve felt before. Taking third at national, getting to the finals at World Team Trials — nothing compared to it. Just the feeling of working three months and finally getting what I wanted for so long, and knowing that I bounced back. ... Coming back to school as a state champion is a good feeling.”
This season, as Yacapin chases back-to-back individual titles, he has plenty surrounding him.
Seniors Luke Purcella (second at 220 pounds) and Devin Neal (third at 145) are both returning state placers. Purcella is the top-ranked wrestler in 4A at 220 this season, while Neal is ranked fifth after moving up to 170.
Senior Adrian St. Germain, a two-time 1A state champion who transferred from Vashon Island last year, is ranked second at 160 pounds. And junior Ryan Wheeler, who was hampered by an injury last season, is ranked second at 145 pounds.
Curtis is also the 4A SPSL favorite, and the top-ranked South Sound team in 4A, trailing only Mead and Chiawana in the team rankings.
“Two years ago, when we took second, we were really pushing each other,” Purcella said. “But, this year, we just seem like more of one unit, and a team, just cheering each other on more and being in each others’ corner. I think that will be a difference if it comes down to it, just having that team unity.”
This story was originally published January 2, 2019 at 12:03 PM.
