Wrestlers of the Week – Ryan Desroches & Erich Schmidtke
Jan. 2, 2007: Pair score Tri-State shockers
By Rob Sherrill, W.I.N. High School Editor
The assault on top-ranked wrestlers was not limited to the eastern half of the nation.
The Tri-State Tournament, Dec. 15-16, at North Idaho College provided the backdrop for a pair of unheralded juniors to show they’re more than just state champions.
Ryan Desroches of Chattaroy Riverside High was the Class AA champion at 160 pounds last year — the second-smallest of Washington’s four state tournament classes — and Erich Schmidtke of Aberdeen High won at 171 pounds in Class 3A.
But each of them scored back-to-back shockers to win titles at 160 and 189 pounds, respectively.
Desroches, seeded No. 4, advanced to the finals by stunning Class 4A state champion and Junior National champion Trevor Hall of Battle Ground (Wash.) High, 12-6, in the semifinals, then capped a run for the ages with a 3-0 finals victory over two-time state champion Michael Lomsdalen of Sedro Woolley High, who went on to go 6-0 at The Clash, which took place Dec. 29-30, in Rochester, Minn.
Schmidtke’s run was even more impressive. He pounded Oregon state champion Troy Kessell of Hermiston High, 9-0, in the semifinals, then stunned the nation’s top-ranked wrestler, Oklahoma State recruit Clayton Foster of Kamiah High 2-1 in the final.
How do you pick between the two? Which was more impressive? We won’t. So Desroches and Schmidtke are co-Wrestlers of the Week.
Another tough weight class that went closer to form was 171, where Auburn (Wash.) High state champion Shane Onufer won the title with impressive victories of 13-3 over Cadet National place-winner Reid Chivers of Nine Mile Falls Lakeside High in the semifinals and 12-6 over Andrew Buck of Kelso High in the final.
Sedro Woolley’s Derek Crouter (112) edged Cadet National runner-up Jake Love of Missoula (Mont.) High, 2-0, and Hermiston’s Brent Parks (140) shut out Auburn (Wash.) Riverside’s Eric Jones, 7-0.
Some other impressive winners: Coeur d’Alene High’s Braden Mowry (103), Spokane (Wash.) University High’s Brian Owen (119), Oklahoma recruit Joey Fio (125) of Sandpoint High, Lake Stevens (Wash.) High’s Kelly Kubec (130), Riverside’s Michael Mangrum (135), two-time state champion Andrew Johnson (152) of Kent (Wash.) Tahoma High, state champion Jake Graham (215) of Libby (Mont.) High and state runner-up Mark Skogrand (285) of Lewiston High.
By Rob Sherrill, W.I.N. High School Editor
The assault on top-ranked wrestlers was not limited to the eastern half of the nation.
The Tri-State Tournament, Dec. 15-16, at North Idaho College provided the backdrop for a pair of unheralded juniors to show they’re more than just state champions.
Ryan Desroches of Chattaroy Riverside High was the Class AA champion at 160 pounds last year — the second-smallest of Washington’s four state tournament classes — and Erich Schmidtke of Aberdeen High won at 171 pounds in Class 3A.
But each of them scored back-to-back shockers to win titles at 160 and 189 pounds, respectively.
Desroches, seeded No. 4, advanced to the finals by stunning Class 4A state champion and Junior National champion Trevor Hall of Battle Ground (Wash.) High, 12-6, in the semifinals, then capped a run for the ages with a 3-0 finals victory over two-time state champion Michael Lomsdalen of Sedro Woolley High, who went on to go 6-0 at The Clash, which took place Dec. 29-30, in Rochester, Minn.
Schmidtke’s run was even more impressive. He pounded Oregon state champion Troy Kessell of Hermiston High, 9-0, in the semifinals, then stunned the nation’s top-ranked wrestler, Oklahoma State recruit Clayton Foster of Kamiah High 2-1 in the final.
How do you pick between the two? Which was more impressive? We won’t. So Desroches and Schmidtke are co-Wrestlers of the Week.
Another tough weight class that went closer to form was 171, where Auburn (Wash.) High state champion Shane Onufer won the title with impressive victories of 13-3 over Cadet National place-winner Reid Chivers of Nine Mile Falls Lakeside High in the semifinals and 12-6 over Andrew Buck of Kelso High in the final.
Sedro Woolley’s Derek Crouter (112) edged Cadet National runner-up Jake Love of Missoula (Mont.) High, 2-0, and Hermiston’s Brent Parks (140) shut out Auburn (Wash.) Riverside’s Eric Jones, 7-0.
Some other impressive winners: Coeur d’Alene High’s Braden Mowry (103), Spokane (Wash.) University High’s Brian Owen (119), Oklahoma recruit Joey Fio (125) of Sandpoint High, Lake Stevens (Wash.) High’s Kelly Kubec (130), Riverside’s Michael Mangrum (135), two-time state champion Andrew Johnson (152) of Kent (Wash.) Tahoma High, state champion Jake Graham (215) of Libby (Mont.) High and state runner-up Mark Skogrand (285) of Lewiston High.