BELLINGHAM - Neither Bellingham, Sehome, Squalicum nor Lynden won the Class 2A Sub Regional Tournament on Saturday, Feb. 2, at Squalicum High School.
Whatcom County's four 2A schools did gain something moving forward, though, and Lynden's 126-pounder Nick Iaconetti described best what that was.
"It gives me the most confidence I could get," said Iaconetti after his 10-5 win against Sehome's Steven Yazzie in his championship match.
Iaconetti was one of seven Whatcom County wrestlers to win individual titles and gain plenty of confidence heading into 2A regionals next weekend.
Sedro-Woolley won the sub regional with 285.5 points, Burlington-Edison placed second with 269 points, Squalicum took third with 222.5 points, Lynden placed fourth with 193, Sehome was fifth with 141.5, Bellingham finished sixth with 138.5 and Anacortes took seventh with 109 points.
Besides Iaconetti, Lynden's Ryan Meggison (170 pounds) and Caleb Newman (220) claimed individual titles for the Lions. Squalicum's Luke Jordan (120) and Patrick Schjelderup (285), Bellingham's Patrick Anderson (138) and Sehome's Austin Vosburgh (160) won their respective weight classes.
For Iaconetti and Vosburgh, the win proved why they've been working so hard this season.
"I had to work my butt off," Iaconetti said. "I've been dedicating the last four years of my life to this sport. Now I know I can do it, go out and take first at conference, first at (sub regionals) and hopefully first next week at regionals."
Vosburgh, who earned a 6-4 decision against Bellingham's Blair Bennett, also reflected on the amount of hard work he's put in to place him in a great spot to earn a state tournament berth next weekend.
Vosburgh took a late two-point lead in the second period of his finals match. Bennett took bottom position to start the third, and the Sehome standout spent the entire third period preventing Bennett from getting off the mat.
"It just makes all the hard work all so worth it," said Vosburgh, who unleashed a loud yell when the referee's whistle blew to signify the end of the match. "Halfway through the season, people are doubting themselves. It just shows if you trust people around you and let them help, you can make it happen."
Schjelderup not only helped his seeding for regionals with his win against Bellingham's Dylan Hanson, he beat his city nemesis in a meaningful match.
The Squalicum big man said he's faced Hanson countless times throughout his wrestling career but has never beat him in an important situation.
"This is my first, first-place tournament," Schjelderup said. "I keep getting second the last couple of weeks, so it feels good to win. Every dual (Hanson) has pinned me in the exact same way. It gives me good confidence. ... We got third in this tournament this year, a very solid third, and a lot of guys wrestled hard."
Sehome's Yazzie and Evan Villalobos, and Squaliucm's Kyle Stallo, Lynden's Ryan Mouat and Bellingham's Bennett made the finals but lost.
Next for Whatcom County's 2A wrestlers is the Class 2A Regional Wrestling Tournament at 10 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 9, at Sedro-Woolley High School.
SEDRO-WOOLLEY 285.5, BURLINGTON-EDISON 269, SQUALICUM 222.5, LYNDEN 193, SEHOME 141.5, BELLINGHAM 138.5, ANACORTES 109
106: Gustavo Sanchez (Sedro-Woolley) forfeit. 113: Adam Adkinson (Sedro-Woolley) dec. Hugo Diaz (Burlington-Edison) 9-1. 120: Luke Jordan (Squalicum) dec. Eman Trujillo (Burlington-Edison) 9-4. 126: Nick Iaconetti (Lynden) dec. Steven Yazzie (Sehome) 10-5. 132: Nick Grandberg (Burlington-Edison) dec. Tanner Zavala (Burlington-Edison) 5-3. 138: Patrick Anderson (Bellingham) pin Evan Villalobos (Sehome). 145: Jacob Farrell (Sedro-Woolley) dec. Brandon Grandy (Burlington-Edison) 9-1. 152: Kyle Morgan (Sedro-Woolley) dec. Ryan Mouat (Lynden) 14-5. 160: Austin Vosburgh (Sehome) dec. Blair Bennett (Bellingham) 6-4. 170: Ryan Meggison (Lynden) dec. Wes Fleury (Burlington-Edison) 12-3. 182: Ross Atterberry (Anacortes) dec. Kyle Stallo (Squalicum) 5-3. 195: Jeff Bajema (Burlington-Edison) pin Gabe Torgerson (Sedro-Woolley). 220: Caleb Newman (Lynden) dec. Jay Moore (Sedro-Woolley) 11-7. 285: Patrick Schjelderup (Squalicum) dec. Dylan Hanson (Bellingham).
Reach ANDREW LANG at andrew.lang@bellinghamherald.com or call ext. 862.
