Southridge escapes with Mid-Columbia Conference win over Pasco

The Southridge Suns were cruising right along in their Mid-Columbia Conference dual Wednesday night with the host Pasco Bulldogs.

They opened with wins from Ryan Nett (138 pounds) and Mikael Failor (145) before picking up three forfeits from 152-170 for a commanding 27-0 lead.

A 16-5 win by Zayid Al-Ghani at 182 made it 31-0 and the rout was on. Or was it?

The Bulldogs (1-2 MCC) won four of the next five matches to pull within 34-27, but would get no closer as the Suns (2-1) escaped with a 43-27 victory.

“I knew coming in it would be a good match,” Southridge coach Steve Isley said. “We got three forfeits and they got one. When you take those away, it’s close.”

Pasco coach Jay Covington did not want to forfeit the three middleweight matches, but he had no choice.

“I have seven heavyweights, but I can’t find a guy in the middle,” Covington said. “I was proud of our kids. We didn’t back down.”

With a slim seven-point lead with two matches to go, the Suns needed to stay off their backs.

Freshman Ryan Stayrook gave Southridge the boost it needed at 126 pounds, pinning Nick Massey at 1:37 to put the match out of reach.

“He pulled out a huge win for us,” Isley said. “He has been wrestling up a weight for us, filling in where we need him. Zayid did the same going up to 182 (from 170). That kid was quite a bit bigger than him.”

Xavier Velasco finished off the night for the Suns with a 7-2 decision over Jordan Renteria at 132.

“They have a good team,” Covington said of Southridge. “Their coaching staff has done a good job with their team. We need to find a way to make things happen. We are young, but that doesn’t mean we have to lose. I hate to lose.”

The Bulldogs had dug themselves a big hole by the time they got to the 195-pound match, trailing 31-0. But Avery Burrows helped turned things around.

Southridge’s Eric Stayrook had a 7-2 lead over Burrows in the third period, but Stayrook got caught, turned and pinned in a blink of an eye as Pasco put its first points in the board.

“That’s inexperience in that situation,” Isley said, noting that this is Stayrook’s first year on the mat. “He was up and he tried to finish for the pin. You can’t go for the pin at the expense of the match. He is learning. His growth to this point has been phenomenal.”

Davion Pruitt (285), Nathaniel Tovar (106), Ed Manzo (113) and Isaiah Gonzalez (120) posted consecutive wins for the Bulldogs to bring them within 34-27.

This story was originally published January 4, 2017 at 9:52 PM with the headline "Southridge escapes with Mid-Columbia Conference win over Pasco."