Oregon (OSAA) 5A wrestling state championships preview: 6-way battle for team title, at least 10 new champions to be crowned
The Oregon 5A high school wrestling state championships take place Friday and Saturday at Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Portland. Here's a look at what to expect.
Photo by Taylor Balkom
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Schedule
Friday, 8 a.m.-2:30 p.m.: Round 1 and Quarterfinals
Saturday, 9 a.m.: Semifinals
Saturday, 6:15 p.m.: Parade of Champions and Finals
Top seeds (returning champions in italics)
106 Michael Salas Sanchez, Thurston, Fr.
113 Jeremiah Oliva, Crater, Fr.
120 Ryder Lee, Redmond, Jr.
126 Jose Romero, Dallas, Sr.
132 Scout Santos, Mountain View, Sr.
138 Joey Hutchins, Crater, Jr.
144 Colton Annis, Thurston, Jr.
150 Kutter Christensen, Crater, Soph.
157 Bo Zurcher, Silverton, Jr.
165 Leif Larwin, Bend, Fr.
175 Jackson Potts, Mountain View, Sr.
190 Preston Echeverria, Hillsboro, Sr.
215 Jackson Doman, Canby, Jr.
285 Brash Henderson, Silverton, Jr.
Other returning champion
113 Kanoe Kelly, Thurston, Sr.
Most state qualifiers
1, Thurston 22. 2, Dallas 21. 3, Canby 17. 4, (tie) Crater and Mountain View 16. 6, Redmond 14. 7, Bend 13. 8, Centennial 12. 9, Hillsboro 11.
What to watch
Which of six contenders can ‘put a whole tournament together’ and win title?
Last year, Redmond sneaked up on teams with its prowess in the consolation bracket, amassing the necessary points to surpass Thurston by seven points to win the Panthers’ first state title since 1959.
The Panthers won’t be able to sneak up on anyone this weekend. Instead, they’re one of six teams that head to Memorial Coliseum harboring realistic hopes of taking home the blue trophy late Saturday night.
“We’re all tough teams, and we’ve all got numbers,” said first-year Dallas coach Austin Markee, who looks to lead the Dragons to their first title since 2018. “Whoever wins it is going to have to put a whole tournament together, not just the front half of the bracket but the back half, too.”
The Dragons, fresh off a third consecutive Mid-Willamette district championship, have the second-most qualifiers, one behind Thurston. Behind them, Canby, Crater, Mountain View and the defending champions all figure to jostle for position for one of the four trophies — if not the championship.
Markee has only one top seed — Romero, who won the Reser’s Tournament of Champions last month — but two No. 2 seeds and three No. 3s, giving the Dragons some firepower at the front end of their lineup.
As Redmond showed last year, it's more than just who reaches the semifinals and finals that matters.
“The thing about state is that the kids start treating it a little differently,” Markee said. “They start doing bracket math, trying to figure out what will happen where. But if we just do one match at a time, stay consistent and wrestle tough like we’ve done all year, the team score will take care of itself.”
Doman, Henderson look to cap unbeaten seasons with first state titles
If all goes according to chalk, the final two matches Saturday night will feature wrestlers looking to complete undefeated seasons with their first state championships.
First would be Doman, who improved to 41-0 last weekend with a 9-1 major decision against teammate Tyler Konold in the district final and looks to become the first Cougar to win a state title since James Roberts in 2010.
Konold (the runner-up at 195 last year) ended up on the opposite side of the bracket, where he could meet Dallas’ Cole Langford in the semifinals. If Langford and Doman reach the final, it would be a rematch of their Reser’s TOC final from last month.
Then, another Reser’s TOC champion in Henderson could vie to become Silverton’s first champion since Kaden Kuenzi five years ago. Henderson, who moved to 20-0 with his victory in the district final, has a potential run-in with Redmond’s Ashton Fields in Saturday’s final — both were runners-up at state last year (Henderson at 220, Fields at 285).
At least 10 new champions to be crowned this weekend at Coliseum
Last year’s bracket was senior-heavy, with nine of the 14 titles won by wrestlers who have graduated.
With 113 champion Elijah Bayne having moved from Crater to Rumson, N.J., the door has opened for 10 new champions this season — including Lee, the runner-up to Bayne last year, and Annis, who placed second at 126, as top seeds.
Then there’s Kelly, who won the 106-pound title last season, a year after he failed to qualify as a sophomore. This season, Kelly has wrestled behind Salas Sanchez and junior Mason Hakki at most tournaments and finished third at the Midwestern district meet — although he was still given the No. 5 seed at 113, ahead of teammate (and district runner-up) Hakki.
