White River wrestling reached the top again in 2018. Now they’re looking to repeat

The payoff was a long time coming for the White River High School boys wrestling team.

After decades of close calls and near falls, the Hornets finally claimed a coveted Class 2A state championship last February. It announced that a school once known for its wrestling program was back.

Before last season, the Hornets hadn’t reached the top spot on the podium as a team since 1995, when they edged Othello for the 3A title. In 2018, the Hornets won in dominant fashion, topping second-place Orting, their 2A SPSL rival, by 61 points.

“Our school has a long lineage of being a tough, a tough school for wrestling,” said senior Nate Moore, a two-time defending individual champion. “There were 10 years where we weren’t recognized as a wrestling school at all. As my class and the class below me started (wrestling) in the program, that’s when things picked up.”

In the 1980s and 1990s, Buckley was a wrestling town. By the early 2000s, the Hornets were often considered a state favorite. White River finished third in 3A in 2001 and was the runner-up in 2002 and 2003, losing to powerhouse Sedro-Woolley, which won six straight titles from 2002-07.

White River’s resurgence as a state power in wrestling is in full swing after last year’s title win.

This season, with a month remaining before Mat Classic, the Hornets are ranked third in 2A by Washington Wrestling Report — behind Toppenish and Orting — and have nine wrestlers ranked in the top eight in their respective weight classes.

White River entered the week with four wrestlers ranked at the top of their classes in Gabe Hawthorne (138 pounds), junior Weston Lyver (152), Moore (160) and senior Max Wheeler (182), who is a two-time state runner-up.

Junior Nate Belcourt (fourth, 113), sophomore Klein Carter (fifth, 160), Jack Ervien (third, 170), senior Johnny McBride (sixth, 170) and senior Eric Campbell (seventh, 195) round out White River’s deep roster.

It’s no surprise that White River’s return to the top coincided with Moore and this current group of seniors and juniors joining the Hornets’ wrestling program.

“As much as (Moore) getting that third state title, it’s about as much as the team getting him there,” Ervien said. “He can work hard, but as long as he got the partners, he has other guys bringing him there.”

Arguably no White River wrestler has had a career quite like Moore’s. He’s never had a perfect season, or a perfect tournament run in his career, but when it’s mattered most, Moore has always risen to the occasion.

As a senior, he has a chance to finish his career as the greatest wrestler to suit up for the Hornets.

“It’s pretty cool because when you win a state title, it’s a lot of pride,” he said. “You’re really happy, but it’s a lot of relief though because it’s kind of like it’s over, especially after you win your first state title.

“It’s a lot of stress. You’re ranked No. 1, and you’re supposed to go win another state title. So, after you do what you’re supposed to and you get the win in the finals, it’s like a big weight off your shoulders.”

With two consecutive state titles, and a third-place finish as a freshman, Moore is on the cusp of becoming the first wrestler in school history to win three championships in his career.

“It’s a grind, but I’m really looking forward to college. It’s a stepping stone. I’ve won two titles, and I’m going for my third. I’m obviously super excited about it,” said Moore, who is committed Northern Colorado.

“If I win I will be the first three-timer at my school, so that’s something I really want to accomplish. But, I mean, I think winning state will be a resolve of my wrestling in getting ready for Division I.”

But it will take more than points to catapult the Hornets back to the top of the team standings.

“It was a lot of team bonding,” Hawthorne said. “We haven’t had a group of kids do that in a long time, and that brought a lot of the kids closer together.”

This group has gone from White River junior leagues to wrestling for the high school, building a strong bond.

“We’ve had the same group of kids coming up together since we were 8, 9 (years old),” Hawthorne said. “We’ve just been waiting to get to high school. We haven’t lost anyone in particular or gained anyone. It’s been that same group of kids since little league.”

With top youth programs in the Puyallup, Sumner, Bonney Lake, Orting, Spanaway, Graham and Buckley areas, it is common to see wrestlers go through a program in one town, only to move into their high school careers in one of the other high schools in the area.

“It’s always been a wrestling part of the state,” senior Jack Ervien, a three-time state placer, said of eastern Pierce County. “Even past years, White River has been tough. Orting has always been tough. Sumner, Bonney Lake, it’s a passion that we have. We want to show our school spirit.”

That team bond could be a key as the Hornets chase another state title in the Tacoma Dome.

“It’s exciting obviously,” first-year coach Ruben Navejas said. “Looking to repeat is always hard. (Former coach) Tim Kitchen did a great job of building this program up, putting a lot of time in with these guys. I’m not trying to change anything — nothing’s broken. ...

“We understand that a lot of teams are gunning for us. Returning state champs — we’re not holding anything back.”