It was another good week for Montesano’s seventh and eighth grade wrestlers.

At meets hosted by Rainier and Miller junior high schools, the Monte team complied a record of 50 wins (including 33 pins) and 26 losses while wrestling against teams from Tenino, North Beach, Elma, Raymond, Toledo, Winlock, Miller and Rainier.

At Rainier, eighth-graders Sean Ryker, Cole Ekerson and Ethan Blundred continued to show marked improvement. They were joined by classmates Carson Daniels, Jesse Hollatz, Kaleb Ames, Justin Forsythe, Denali Harris and Mateo Sanchez, as well as seventh-grader Owen Larsen in winning both matches.

Standout Hailee Stoken suffered her first loss of the season, falling to Rainier’s Adrian Hambly. She bounced back in her second match scoring a pin victory over Elma’s Elias Cordova.

The meet hosted by Miller Junior High in Aberdeen proved to be difficult. Blundred and Mateo Sanchez, both previously undefeated, lost to Tenino wrestlers. Both boys beat the Tenino kids the last time they met. But the tables were reversed last week.

Sanchez, who weighed 15 pounds less than his opponent, was leading the match when he attempted to counter a head-and-arm throw but was caught on his back.

Blundred lost by decision.

With Stoken, Blundred and Sanchez all suffering their first defeats, the list of Monte’s unbeaten’s dropped to two: Eckerson (14-0) and fellow eighth-grader Denali Harris (8-0).

Despite the tough completion, coaches had high praise for the team.

“We are seeing some terrific improvement in our kids,” coach Darrel White said. “They are using the techniques that we have been teaching them more effectively, and several are starting to chain wrestle (use multiple moves in a row).”

Wrestlers of the Week

Seventh-grader Owen Larsen and eighth-graders Kaleb Ames and Jesse Hollatz are the Wrestlers of the Week.

Larsen, a first year wrestler, has compiled an 11-2 record that includes 10 pins. Larsen was 4-0 at the past two meets, and coaches say he is starting to be effective using cradles. A cradle is a pinning combination applied by locking hands while encircling an opponent’s head and one leg. Larsen is deceptively strong for a 75 pound wrestler and has a motor that just never runs down, coaches said.

Hollatz, also a 75-pounder, relies upon intelligence, technique and grit to win matches. He is 7-4 on the season and was impressive in his 3 recent wins.

“Most of Hollatz’s opponents are stronger than he is, but few are as cagey or as tough,” coach White said. In two of his matches, he came from behind to win in the final seconds.

Ames also is a first-year wrestler. He has a13-1 record.

“Kaleb is a natural wrestler,” White said. “He is a terrific athlete, feels pressure and reacts well. And he is willing to work hard to be coachable and improve himself. He is having a terrific season.”

The wrestling team wrapped up the season week, hosting a meet, Tuesday, that occurred too late to make this paper.