Tigers fall to Ellensburg in CWAC wrestling opener

EPHRATA — After defeating Quincy earlier last week, the Ephrata Tigers fell 48-30 in a home dual against Ellensburg on Thursday night, Ephrata’s first Central Washington Athletic Conference match of the year.

“Ellensburg just brought a little more intensity tonight than we did,” Ephrata boys wrestling coach Joe Knox said. “They really came to wrestle. Maybe we weren’t as ready as we should have been, and at the end of the day that’s my responsibility.”

The Tigers opened the dual with back-to-back wins by senior Jorge Rodriguez and junior Jerry Vasquez, with the former winning by a fall over Ellensburg’s Ryder Suemori and the latter winning by an 11-8 decision over Ellensburg’s Coltyn Tassevigen. 

From then, Ellensburg rattled off seven straight pins to take a 42-9 lead in Thursday’s dual; the streak was broken up by Ephrata sophomore Micah Sandberg, who pinned Ellensburg’s Deklin Graham in the first round of the 285-pound matchup.

“There were a couple matches that we felt like we were going to get that Ellensburg got, and I think that really turned the tide of the dual,” Knox said. “Our kids felt that, and it just snowballed a little bit.”

After a Bulldog forfeit in the 106-pound match and a Bulldog win in the 113-pound match, the Tigers ended the dual with back-to-back wins by senior Zander Boyd and senior Alex Gutierrez Castillo. Boyd pinned Ellensburg’s Israel Cox in less than 45 seconds, while Gutierrez Castillo took home a victory in a 6-0 decision. Knox called Gutierrez Castillo’s win the “highlight of the night.”

“That was a really good kid that he beat tonight,” Knox said. “They had a real tight match at the Davis Invite on (Dec. 2), in fact, I think Alex (Gutierrez Castillo) only won by two. To come out and win 6-0 tonight was a really good win for him.”

Thursday’s dual came just two nights after the Tigers defeated Quincy 60-19 on their home mat. The loss to Ellensburg dropped the Tigers to 2-1 in duals so far this season, as Ephrata won its season-opener 45-30 on the road against Cashmere on Nov. 30.

“The kids felt pretty good after the Quincy match,” Knox said. “Any time Ephrata competes against Quincy, it’s a pretty big deal. The kids were pretty excited about that.”

Ephrata traveled to West Valley (Spokane) for the West Valley Wrestling Invite over the weekend and will travel to East Valley (Yakima) for a CWAC dual against the Red Devils on Thursday, beginning at 7 p.m.

“In some ways, we’re kind of a young team, and we need to understand that you have to bring it every night in every match because if you don’t, the other guy will,” Knox said. 

Ian Bivona may be reached at ibivona@columbiabasinherald.com.

    Ephrata senior Zander Boyd, background, takes down his opponent at the Tiger’s dual against Ellensburg on Thursday.
  

    Ephrata senior Jorge Rodriguez, left, opened Thursday’s dual against Ellensburg with a pin in the first round.
  

    Ephrata senior Alex Gutierrez Castillo ended the dual with a 6-0 win over Ellensburg’s Tyler Bacon, a match that Ephrata Head Coach Joe Knox called the “highlight of the night.”