MILL CREEK — The last time Shorewood sent a wrestler to the state tournament, Tim Hester wasn’t even born yet.
Hester, a sophomore, ended the Thunderbirds’ 18-year dry spell with an 11-1 victory over Tony Cadiz of Marysville-Pilchuck in the fifth-place, 171-pound match of the Class 4A Region 1 wrestling tournament at Jackson High School Feb. 11.
Hester lost to Cadiz in the first round 8-5, but won his next two matches before losing a 17-6 decision to Kentlake’s Jared Walsh to set up a rematch with Cadiz with a berth to Mat Classic XVIII on the line.
After Cadiz broke a scoreless tie with an escape in the second period, Hester got busy. He notched a takedown and three-point near fall to take a 5-1 lead.
In the third period, Hester was ruthless and dominant. He held Cadiz down on the mat, immobile for more than a minute as Cadiz groaned in pain. Hester scored two more near falls to win 11-1 and become the T-birds’ first wrestler to advance to state since Erik Wahl in 1988.
“It feels good as a sophomore (to go to state),” said Hester, who won the Western Conference South Division 171-pound title Feb. 4.
Hester, who has a 32-5 record, came out much sharper the second time around and wrestled a nearly error-free match.
“I think that was a real eye-opener for him,” Shorewood head coach Arnie Moreno said of the first-round loss to Cadiz on Friday, Feb. 10. “He came in not as focused as he should (have been).”
The second time around, Hester made adjustments and was prepared.
The difference was “being calm,” he said. “I let him in my legs last match.”
Hester had to battle through the consolation bracket to punch his ticket to state. He pinned Kentwood’s Joel Phillips in 59 seconds and won by disqualification over Monroe’s Dustin Shelton to ensure that he would have a shot at a trip to state.
For Hester, who wrestles with the Wrestling Rhinos club team, years of practice and dedication have paid off. Now his goal is to win a medal at the Mat Classic at the Tacoma Dome Feb. 17-18.
“I thought I could place at state,” Hester said. “It’s going to be tough as this (regional meet) was.”
Shorewood’s last state placer was Jeff Hansen, who took second in 1987.
Region I is regarded by coaches, wrestlers and fans as the state’s most challenging region, so Hester should be battle-tested.
“They’re not going to run up against anybody better at state,” Moreno said. “This is mini-state really. They’re all tough teams.”
Five other T-birds qualified for the regional round.
Senior Mitch Zemanek, the only T-bird to qualify for regionals last year, won a preliminary match to earn a spot in the main 152-pound bracket. He lost to Lake Stevens’ Billy Moehrle in the first round but came back with a gutsy 7-6 win over Mountlake Terrace’s Kody Cundy. Zemanek scored a takedown with time running out in the match to beat Cundy and avenge a loss to him earlier in the season. However, T.J. Lochman of Monroe pinned Zemanek in the next round to end his hopes of a state berth. Zemanak, battling some minor injuries, ended his day with an injury default in the seventh-place match. His final season-record was 21-8.
“He didn’t have anything else to prove,” Moreno said of Zemanek’s decision not to wrestle.
Sophomore Matt Jensen, the T-birds’ entry at 135 pounds, lost both his matches and was eliminated.
Moreno said Jensen (19-8), who placed third at the Western Conference South Division meet, got a taste of the regional meet’s intensity.
“Next year he’s got to be hungrier,” Moreno said.
T-birds Carl Berenson (103 pounds, 11-10 record), Michael Yun (112, 9-12) and Luke Wyman (171, 11-9) lost in preliminary matches on Friday and failed to advance.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
