Ten Oak Harbor High School wrestlers qualified for regional competition through their efforts at the subregional tournaments last weekend.
Four Wildcats earned individual championships as Oak Harbor placed third in the 12-team boys subregional at OHHS Friday and Saturday, Feb. 3 and 4, and fourth in the 15-team girls subregional at Squalicum High School in Bellingham Saturday.
The top five boys in each subregional weight class now move on to the regional at Sammamish’s Skyline High School Saturday, Feb. 11, starting at 10 a.m. The top four girls qualified for their regional at Bellingham High School Saturday at 10 a.m.
The first four at regional earn state berths.
Oak Harbor’s Cody Fakkema (126 pounds) and Josh Crebbin (152) captured boys titles while Kylene Ayer (106) and Jennifer Fremd (145) won in the girls competition.
Other regional qualifiers are Ray Quinday (second, 220), Jeremy Vester (third, 103), Jahleel Vester (third, 120), Mark Johnston (fourth, 132), Brittany Johnston (fourth, 170) and Jackson Constant (fourth, 285).
Collin Higingbotham (172), Carl Meders (195), Desiree Dillaman (118) and Bri Patton (137) are first alternates.
Fakkema rolled to his title with two pins and two major decisions (10-1, 12-4).
A pin and 9-3, 12-5 decisions put Crebbin in the title match. In the championship bout, Crebbin fell behind 5-0 while almost being pinned in the first round. A reversal near the end of the period netted two points.
Using a move his coach and father, Mike Crebbin, said they drilled on all week, Joshua Crebbin pinned Sedro-Woolley’s Josh Farrell for the win.
Other matches of note, according to coach Crebbin, were Jahleel Vester’s win in the bout for third place over an opponent he lost to earlier this year and Jeremy Vester’s third-place win after losing a 15-14 thriller in the semifinals.
Crebbin added that he was “pleasantly surprised” by a pair of freshmen, Meders and Constant. Meders wrestled junior varsity all year but “came on as of late” to earn a regional alternate spot and Constant earned a regional berth.
Crebbin said, “This is a great experience for such young wrestlers. Assistant coach Peter Esvelt has to receive a lot of credit for helping these kids succeed.”
Crebbin came into the season expecting his boys team to contend for the subregional crown and was disappointed with third place: “We lost too many wrestlers in the elimination round Saturday morning. That was unexpected.”
Oak Harbor was also missing several wrestlers because of injuries, most notably Hunter Vail (220) who was undefeated before being sidelined with a back injury in midseason.
Sedro-Woolley (284) won the team title, followed by Mount Vernon (251), Oak Harbor (232.5) and Everett (227).
Mount Baker won the girls title with 297 points; Oak Harbor tallied 108.
Coach Larry Falcon said Ayer was “the standout” in the girls tournament.
The unseeded junior wrestled all nine periods plus an overtime to snare her title. She was down 8-1 in the championship bout, came back and tied it in the third period and won 10-8 in overtime.
Fremd used two pins to reach the finals where she won by injury default.
Oak Harbor boys results:
106 pounds, Jeremy Vester, third place: won 14-3, lost 15-14, won 5-2, won by pin.
120, Jahleel Vester, third: won by pin, won 16-1, lost 8-4, won by pin, won 8-3.
120, Gage Perner: lost by pin, lost by pin.
126, Cody Fakkema, first: won by pin, won by pin, won 10-1, won 12-4.
126, Ben Pralle: won by pin, lost by pin, won by pin, lost by pin.
132, Mark Johnston, fourth: won by pin, won by pin, lost 9-3, won 7-2, lost 7-4.
132, Ryuta Meany: lost by pin, won 15-4, lost 9-0.
138, Wiatt Charlesworth: won by pin, lost 6-0, won by pin, lost 5-2.
138, Noel Cheeseboro: lost 9-3, lost by pin.
145, Nathanael Stanford: won 7-2, lost 9-3, lost 6-2.
145, Sheyenne Sams: won 12-3, lost 7-4, lost by pin.
152, Josh Crebbin, first: won by pin, won 9-3, won 12-5, won by pin.
152, Kekai Tarrant: lost 12-7, lost 13-0.
160, David Payne: won by pin, lost 4-3, won 13-0, lost 6-4.
160, CJ Shavers: won by pin, lost by pin, won by pin, won by pin, lost by pin.
170, Collin Higingbotham, sixth: won by pin, won 14-3, lost 5-2, lost 8-4.
170, Chris Carter: lost 13-5, won by pin, won by pin, lost by pin.
182, Josh Orritt: won by pin, lost by pin, lost by pin.
182, Kenny King: won 15-9, lost by pin, lost by pin.
195, Carl Meders, sixth: lost by pin, won 11-5, won by pin, lost 5-0, lost by pin.
195, Jeremy Alonzo: lost 8-6, lost by pin.
220, Ray Quinday, second: won by pin, won 6-1, lost by pin.
220, Austin Wotring: lost by pin, lost by pin.
285, Jackson Constant, fourth: won by pin, lost by pin, won by pin, won by pin, won by pin, lost by pin.
285, Tyler Adamson: lost by pin, lost by pin.
Oak Harbor girls results:
106, Kylene Ayer, first: won 5-3, won by pin, won 10-8.
106, Tricia Desquitado: lost 13-5, lost by pin.
112, Rebecca Holloman: won 10-2, lost by pin, lost by pin.
118, Desiree Dillaman, fifth: won by pin, lost by pin, won by pin, won by pin, lost by pin, won by pin.
124, Zaiha Sams: lost by pin, won by pin, lost by pin.
130, Brittany Kjos: lost 5-3, lost 4-3.
130, Ainsley McLoud: lost by pin, lost by pin.
137, Bri Patton, fifth: won by pin, lost by pin, lost by pin, won by pin.
145, Jennifer Fremd, first: won by pin, won by pin, won by injury default.
155, Aimee Oliver: lost by pin, won 9-2, lost 2-0.
170, Brittany Johnston, fourth: won by pin, lost by pin, won by pin, won by pin, won 9-8, lost by pin.