League wrestling titles at stake this week

A big week of wrestling is on tap for Mid-Columbia teams in the hunt for league titles.

In the CBBN 4A, Chiawana (4-0) travels to Moses Lake (3-0) on Thursday for a dual that should decide the regular-season crown. That same day will see Pasco travel to Sunnyside in a battle of 5-0 teams in the CBBN 3A.

This is the second consecutive season the Bulldogs and Grizzlies will meet with unblemished records. Last year, the Grizzlies won 34-18 and went on to secure the league title.

Meanwhile, Kiona-Benton can lock up back-to-back SCAC East championships after sharing it with Connell last season.

The Bears (2-0) wrestle at Wahluke on Thursday against the host Warriors (2-0) and Royal (1-1) in a double dual along with River View. A sweep, and only Wahluke could come back to force a tie, and that would require Ki-Be to lose to River View (0-2) next week.

"That was one of (the wrestlers') goals early on," said Bears coach Ben Hill, who last season was named 1A coach of the year.

Ki-Be's deep and talented lineup is led by senior 132-pounder Matt McCallum, a three-time state placer who was runner-up at 119 as a sophomore and finished fourth bumping up to 130 last season.

This season, he is 26-1 and looking to get back to the finals.

"You look at him, and he's mild-mannered, a very nice kid to talk to," Hill said. "He's an upstanding student. But when he gets out on the mat, he doesn't like the person he's wrestling."

No one in the Ki-Be wrestling room has made a splash quite like sophomore 170-pounder Cruz Del Angel, who is 25-0 and ranked fourth in the state for all classes by Washington Wrestling Report.

His signature win came at the start of the season, a 38-second pin of Kamiakin state placer Sisto Santana Pina, who was injured in the match.

Del Angel hasn't let up since.

"He wrestled so much freestyle this spring," Hill said, noting that Del Angel was motivated after failing to place at state last year. "He made the Washington state dual team, went 6-2 in duals.

"That's his goal. He wants to place high at state, he wants to be an All-American in freestyle or Greco or both. He's got goals."

A bone to pick: Tonight's tri-dual between Kamiakin, Kennewick and Southridge at the home of the Braves will be the second "Battle of the Bone" in as many weeks.

Last week, Hanford beat city rival Richland 39-35 in the 14th edition of their "Bone" rivalry, the first win for the Falcons in five seasons as they pulled to within 8-6 in the series.

Southridge has claimed the lion's share of the Kennewick "bone" battles, though the exact numbers are a little sketchy.

The Suns won it back from Kennewick last year, though it is hard to pick a favorite this season with all three teams at 1-2 or 1-3 in the CBBN 3A.

Kamiakin and Kennewick open the show at 5 p.m., with Southridge-Kennewick slated for 6:30 and Kamiakin-Southridge at 8.

Things can only get better: This has been a rough season for the Grandview Greyhounds, though most of their pain is of the self-inflicted variety.

At 0-6 in CWAC duals, Grandview is staring a winless league season right in the face. But the problem isn't a lack of talent in the wrestling room, but getting that talent on the mat.

"We have 42 kids on the roster, but we've had 10 eligible for most of the season," coach Jeff Sevigny said. "Grades have killed us."

But there is reason for optimism.

First, 285-pound state vet Martin Torres is in the lineup for the first time this season, and the senior didn't waste any time in winning his weight at the Stewart Invite in Tacoma over the weekend.

Second, the Greyhounds have some serious talent on the squad that should keep them wrestling to the final day of Mat Classic XXIV (24, for the non-Romans out there).

Aside from Torres, there is sophomore Fidel Medina, one of the top 106-pounders in the area and ranked in the top 10 in the state for all classes by WWR.

Another sophomore, David Castaneda, is tearing it up at 126, with a 26-2 record against some quality competition.

"He's been outstanding this year," Sevigny said.

Finally, the Greyhound have a real shot at sticking one in the win column. With three matches left, they are at East Valley (2-4) today and travel to Wapato (1-5) on Jan. 26. In between, they face league heavy Othello (6-0) on Thursday.

"It's a possibility," Sevigny said. "But giving up five 6s (forfeited team points) in a dual ..."

This story was originally published January 17, 2012 at 12:00 AM with the headline "League wrestling titles at stake this week."