Boys medal at Pomeroy Christmas Tournament

POMEROY – Several Whitman County wrestlers placed in the annual Pomeroy Christmas Tournament on Dec. 17.

In the the 120-pound class, Colfax’s Cooper Phillips took first place, pinning White Swan’s Arturo Espindola in 1:06 in the championship bout.

Garfield-Palouse’s Walker Montgomery also brought home a first-place finish – pinning White Swan’s Marvin Ramirez in 1:08 in the 126-pound championship.

Tekoa-Rosalia boys brought home two medals. Bryce Casey placed third at 145 after pinning Thomas Farley of White Swan. He lost matches to ranked competitors from Enterprise, Ore., and Kittitas.

The Timberwolves’ Joshua “Matthew” Gamez brought home silver at 160 pounds.

He pinned Enterprise’s Ashtyn Irwin in 1:39 in the semifinals, before losing to by fall to Kittitas’ Josiah Skindzier 45 seconds into the second round. Skindzier was a state medalist last year for the Coyotes.

The 285-pound class saw another championship match between Colfax and White Swan.

This time White Swan came out on top, with De’Angelo Sauceda pinning Colfax’s Tristen Burd in 23 seconds, leaving the Bulldogs with a silver medal.

In girls wrestling, Alexis Taylor of Tekoa-Rosalia, Hope Allen and Grace Jones for Colfax, and Laynie Southern all medaled.