WARDEN–Pirate wrestlers Curtis Winona and Braedyn White both finished fourth in their weight classes at the 1B/2B Region 2 tournament in Warden last Saturday to advance to the state wrestling tournament in Tacoma this week. Sophomore Walker Flynn finished the day with two losses and plans to return next year.

"The Pirate wrestlers faced their toughest competition of the year," commented Head Coach Ben Slaybaugh.

In the 182-lb. division, Pomeroy senior Braedyn White won three, lost two for the fourth-place spot in the Mat Classic XXXIII. "Braedyn wrestled very dominantly in his wins today," Ben Slaybaugh commented. "He continues to wrestle tough as he works to finish his wrestling career on the podium at state."

White opened with a 29-second match where he executed a fireman's carry move and quickly pinned Hunter Davis of River View. White took a little longer with Evan Vanatta of Tonasket in the semi-finals, pinning him at 2:58.

That win put White in the quarter finals against junior Jeshua Cwik of Liberty-Spangle. Cwik won by fall in the first round to advance into the championship round and White headed to the consolation bracket. There his first opponent was Trentin Ensley of Colfax, and White pinned him in the first round.

Now in the third-fourth place match, White faced Sam Schneider of Davenport in his fifth match of the day, with Schneider pinning the Pirate wrestler for third place and White on the podium in fourth place.

At state, White will go against Hayden Queen of Forks, also a senior, with a 3-0 record, in the fourth match of the 182-lb. division.

Sophomore Pirate Curtis Winona, in the 170-lb. class, won three and lost two for a fourth-place finish at Regionals and a state berth. "Curtis really stepped up today," said Ben Slaybaugh, "overcoming tough odds to qualify for state. He showed real grit beating two opponents that he had lost to previously."

Winona first met River View junior Miguel Farias, who edged into the next bracket with a 2-0 decision over Winona. In the consolation bracket, Winona faced sophomore John Pierce of Almira-Coulee-Hartline, pinning him at 2:07.

His next opponent in the loser-out bracket was senior Sergio Galicia of Lake Roosevelt. Winona counted up seven points for a win by decision, staying alive for his fourth match. It was a repeat against Farias of River View and Winona dominated in the rubber match, pinning Farias in 1:28.

-East Washingtonian photo

Senior Braedyn White didn't waste any time pinning Hunter Davis of River View, hearing the slap 29 seconds into the first round. White continued with a second-round win then dropped into the consolation bracket, where he went on to finish 3-2 with a state berth.

In the third-fourth match, Winona squared off with Clayton Jeanneret of Chewelah, the junior challenger taking the match by 5-2 decision for third, Winona going to state in fourth.

Winona takes on Damion Soto of Toledo in the first round of the 170-lb. division at Tacoma.

"Walker Flynn wrestled two tough matches but was unable to come away with a win," Ben Slaybaugh said. "He had a great season and made a lot of improvements. We look forward to seeing what he can accomplish next year."

Flynn had a bye in the first round and was edged in the second round by Dahani Trupp of Warden, a senior, by a 9-7 decision. The loss shuffled Flynn into the consolation bracket where he had a bye before meeting junior Josiah Skindzier of Kittitas. The match ended with a pin at 2:41.