By Nathan Joyce
MaxPreps.com
At Mat Classic, the state wrestling tournaments held annually at the Tacoma Dome, it was about dynasties.
Sedro-Woolley recorded its record sixth-straight Class 3A team title over the weekend. It was the 11th overall state title for the Cubs.
The highlight of the tournament for the Cubs was Derek Crouter, who won his third-straight individual title, winning at 112 pounds.
"They're both important," Crouter told the Seattle Times. "But, probably, six is better...just knowing we made history. There are quite a few three-time state champions, but to do it as a team, to make history, it's incredible."
Crouter finished with a 128-11 career record.
Lake Stevens won its fifth team title since 1990, winning the Class 4A state title.
For the Vikings, the perfect illustration of their dominance was when teammates Zach Zweifel and Jack Stilwell met for the 103-pound title. It's just the second time in state history that teammates have met in the state finals. Zweifel won with a second-round pin. He also won the sub-regional and regional titles.
"Even though he's my teammate and wrestling partner, I still wanted to wrestle my best," Zweifel told the Seattle Times. "I didn't want to let up."
Kelly Kubec won his third-straight individual title at Lake Stevens, claiming the 130-pound title.
While those two schools showed their mat dominance, Hoquiam started what they would hope is a dynasty of their own. With a tourney-high six qualifiers, Hoquiam won the inaugural girls tournament with two individual champions.
And in another milestone for girl wrestlers, Olympic's Camie Yeik, one of only two girls grandfathered into the boys tournament, became the third girl to win a medal (top-eight finish) when she finished eighth at 103 pounds of the Class 3A tournament.
Tournament officials said a record 36,453 fans turned out for the two-day event.
State Gymnastics: Dragland Repeats
Bothell's Carrie Dragland won her second-straight Class 4A all-around championships at the state gymnastics meet at the Tacoma Dome Exhibition Hall. She nailed the day's highest score with a 9.9 on the vault.
Woodinville won the Class 4A team title.
In the Class 3A/2A meet, Bainbridge's Marie Welsh won the all-around title. As a freshman and a sophomore, Welsh fell off the beam, the difference between finishing as a state champion and third place. This year, she stayed on and cruised to the title.
Newport of Bellevue, despite five falls, repeated as team champs.
The following day, as the top 10 gymnasts in each event returned for the individual titles, even more impressive performances awaited.
Dragland earned just the second perfect 10 at the state meet, nailing a Yurchenko full tuck with a 1 « twist on the vault. Dragland also won Class 4A titles on the floor and beam.
In the Class 3A/2A event finals, Kennedy's Anissa Madrid shared the floor title, giving her eight career state titles, tied for most in the smaller-school meet. Welsh added titles on the vault and bars.
State Swimming: Big Night for Snohomish
The Snohomish Panthers recorded two big feats the Class 4A state swimming and diving meet held at the King County Aquatic Center in Federal Way.
Snohomish repeated as team champion, beating second-place Redmond by more than 100 points.
Snohomish started the day by breaking the state's 17-year old record in the 200 medley relay. Eric Pedack, Garren Riechel, Dan Ferguson and Michael Turner set the record in 1 minute, 36.12 seconds.
The record was the longest-standing meet record.
"I was so fired up I wasn't thinking straight," Turner told the Seattle Times. "When I hit the water, I couldn't even feel my arms, that's how pumped I was."
Mercer Island also repeated as champions of the Class 3A/2A meet. It was the Islanders fourth team title.
Basketball: Beach Knocks off No. 1 Bainbridge
Just call the Metro League boys basketball tournament the Rainier Beach invitational.
Rainier Beach has dominated the league tournament for the top boys basketball league in the state. The No. 4 Vikings upset top-ranked Bainbridge Saturday night, 37-36. The win gave Rainier Beach its seventh title in 10-straight appearances in the title game.
The game, which had 10 lead changes, wasn't decided until Reggie Moore's bucket with 35 seconds to play.
"Our guys really wanted that title for respect for Bainbridge," Bainbridge coach Scott Orness told the Seattle Times. "Rainier Beach played great defense and dictated our offense, and that's not normally the way we've been able to play this season. We've been the aggressor and have been able to put other teams on their heels."
Basketball: Class 1B Tourney Kicks off State Run
As the state reclassified its high schools in the offseason, it created a new state tournament.
For decades the Class B tournament has been run with much success in Spokane. The B classification split, leaving the 2B schools in Spokane and the 1B schools at the Yakima SunDome. The state tournament with the smallest schools in the state starts on Wednesday.
Both Sunnyside Christian teams, which have won 15 state trophies (top-eight finishes) and three boys titles are expected to be the favorites. The boys are 22-0 and No. 1 in the state, while the girls are 19-3, but they face a tough tourney draw.