Dusty Fiske
IVN Contributing Writer
The Cougar wrestlers went to Gold Beach Saturday and came home with their fourth championship of the season, despite missing three of their starters due to injury. I.V. scored 123 points to edge North Bend for the title. Glide finished in third and Marshfield fourth in the 11-team tournament.
Several of the wrestlers brought home some hardware. James Conn, Mike Miller, Justin Foster and Jozia Williams all took first place. Cole Nerple, Dylan Hall, Kaiden Green, Justin Foster and Grit Charitram finished second and Jayson Heckard took third. It was the final tournament of the season for the team before Districts.
The defending class 2A state champions are sending 19 of their 21 wrestlers to the OSAA special district 2A/1A district tournament in Lowell this Saturday beginning at 10 am. There are 21 teams represented in this district so it should be an exciting day.
I.V. has four wrestlers (James Conn, Mike Miller, Ryan Griffin and Jozia Williams) with 30 or more wins this season. Four other wrestlers (Micah Martinho, Kaiden Green, Talen Shaffer and Ethan Green) have over 20 victories and still four ( Cole Nerple, Dylan Hall, Grit Charitram and Jaxson Heckard) have 12 or more wins.
This talented group is one of the favorites to win their third straight district championship. Come see their efforts this Saturday if you get a chance!