The four regional champions of the Wrangell Wolves wrestling team (left to right): Jamie Early, Liana Carney, Ryan Rooney, and Hunter Wiederspohn. According to Assistant Coach Jack Carney, 11 wrestlers in total have qualified for the state tournament in Anchorage.
The Wrangell Wolves wrestling team claimed first place among 2A schools in regionals this past weekend, at Craig. According to Assistant Coach Jack Carney, on the Wolves' Facebook page, this is the fifth time in team history that they have taken the title. The team also received a sportsmanship award thanks to their performance, he said. Not only that, but four team members claimed personal championships in their brackets.
Ryan Rooney took first place in the 125 bracket. He received a bye in the quarterfinals, and beat Trey Dock of Mt. Edgecumbe in the semifinals. He won the final match by fall over Ajey Moses of Mt. Edgecumbe in 2 minutes and 56 seconds.
Hunter Wiederspohn took first place in the 152 bracket. He received a bye in the quarterfinals, and beat John Bisset of Petersburg in the semifinals. He won the final match by fall over Ruben Hoppe of Craig in 5 minutes and 48 seconds.
Liana Carney took first place in the 119 bracket. She won the quarterfinals by fall over Pyper Booth of Metlakatla. In the semifinals, she beat Taylor Sullivan of Ketchikan. The first place match was won by fall over Ruby McCue of Ketchikan in 3 minutes and 10 seconds. Carney also won the Outstanding Wrestler Award.
Jamie Early took first place in the 135 bracket. She received byes in the quarterfinals and semifinals. She defeated Bernadette John of Mt. Edgecumbe by fall, in the first place match, in 1 minute and 55 seconds.
"With only three upperclassmen, juniors and seniors, to win the regional title was a big deal," Carney said.
The rest of the team's results are as follows: Devlyn Campbell took third place and Jacen Hay took second in the 103 bracket. Elias Decker took fourth place in the 112 bracket. Logan Ritchie took third place and Jonah Comstock took second in the 119 bracket. Ethan Blatchley took third place in the 135 bracket. James Shilts took third place in the 160 bracket. Rowen Wiederspohn took third place in the 171 bracket. Jake Eastaugh took fourth place in the 215 bracket. CeAirra Glaser took third place in the 112 bracket.
Along with the four champions, each wrestler who placed third or above qualified for this weekend's state tournament in Anchorage. Carney said that 11 Wrangell wrestlers will be competing in all. He added that the entire team was vital to their winning the regional title, and he feels very good about their odds in state. The team is taking shorter, but harder practices right now, and he said they are focusing on areas of wrestling they really want to perfect.
"I feel like we're peaking out at the right time," he said. "We really looked sharp in regionals."
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