Union’s Brosius scores big win over rival on way to Pacific Coast title

Despite some thrilling finishes in an action-packed set of finals at Saturday’s Pacific Coast Championships, it was an all-local semifinal earlier in the day that defined the prestigious tournament at Mountain View.

Class 4A’s top two ranked 170-pounders, Camas’ Gideon Malychewski and Union’s Kyle Brosius, are quite familiar with each other.

“The kid’s been beating me up since my sophomore year,” said Brosius, who earned a takedown with 26 seconds left to win a 7-6 decision over the defending 170-pound champion. “I felt bad celebrating, but I was just so overcome with emotion. It was really nice to get that win.”

Brosius went on to win the 170-pound championship, pinning Selah’s Jackson Yates in the second round. It goes to show how far the Union senior has come this offseason. He’s never even medaled at state, but he’s likely to slot in as the state’s top-ranked 170-pounder when the weekend is over.

“I’ve made some huge bounds in the offseason because, thanks to Gideon, I’ve always had someone to motivate me,” Brosius said. “I really appreciate that I’ve gotten to where I want to go. But I’m not done yet; I’m going to go farther.”

Prairie’s Jason Wilcox knows a thing or two about hard work. Like Brosius, he’s improved tremendously this offseason. The tournament’s top-seeded 145-pounder, also ranked second in Class 3A, earned a 7-2 decision over Evergreen’s Denny Roa in the championship match. Wilcox placed fifth at state a season ago, but has never placed at the Pacific Coast Championships.

“Being out here and being a champion is a big deal for me,” Wilcox said. Especially so because his title victory came against a wrestler he will likely see several times this season. Roa is ranked fifth at 138 pounds, but this was the two’s first meeting.

“I doubt it’s going to be the last,” Wilcox said.

While Wilcox waited three years for his Pacific Coast trophy, Heritage’s Alex Newberry waited 12. The Timberwolves senior is a regular attendee of the event, dating back to when he was 6 years old and it was held at Hudson’s Bay. On Thursday, Newberry had no dreams of winning. “I was like ‘Meh, I could probably show up,'” he joked.

On Saturday evening, he grinded out a 5-2 decision over Peninsula’s Nolan Casey in the 160-pound championship match.

“To finally win it, means a lot,” said Newberry, who recently signed to wrestle for Arizona Christian University. “It’s just a grind of a tournament.”

Union’s Spencer Needham rounded out the local champions, as he opened the finals matches with a 4-3 decision win over Camas’ Porter Craig. The match set the tone for what was to come, as Needham held off a potential match-winning takedown as the buzzer sounded. Several championship bouts followed suit, with late escapes, come-from-behind near falls and pins while trailing putting a packed house into a frenzy throughout the final two hours of the event.

Needham, just a freshman, came into the weekend unranked. He’ll likely be noticed now after topping 4A’s sixth-ranked 106-pounder. The youngster is still transitioning to the high school level, but so far, the results have been stellar. He’s 23-3 on the year.

“They’re a bit more technical and faster than middle school or USA wrestling,” Needham said. “It’s a lot different.”

Needham was a big part of the Titans’ fourth-place finish, the highest place for a local school. Selah won the tournament by edging out West Linn by 1.5 points.

PACIFIC COAST CHAMPIONSHIPS

at Mountain View

Team scores: 1. Selah 208, 2. West Linn 206.5, 3. Orting 202.5, 4. Union 187.5 … 11. Prairie 122, 13. Camas 110, 15. Mountain View 93, 16. Heritage 91, 30. Woodland 55.5, 31. Evergreen 53, 32. Seton Catholic 50, 37. Columbia River 45.5, 38. Ridgefield 43, 39. Battle Ground 40, 47. Skyview 25.

Saturday’s championships

106 — Spencer Needham (Union) d. Porter Craig (Camas), 4-3; 113 — Mitchell Neiner (South Kitsap) p. Kagen Lawrence (Redmond), 3:36; 120 — Ricky Bell (West Linn) p. Donnie Krissak, 2:49; 126 — AJ DeGrande (Scappoose) d. Evan Anderson (Selah), 7-2; 132 — Conor Goucher (Orting) p. Junior Downing (Redmond), 5:05; 138 — Angel Sanchez (Westview) p. Owen Cline (Orting), :40; 145 — Jason Wilcox (Prairie) d. Denny Roa (Evergreen), 7-2; 152 — Cael Brunson (West Linn) d. CJ Hamblin (Seton Catholic), 2-0; 160 — Alex Newberry (Heritage) d. Nolan Casey (Peninsula), 5-2; 170 — Kyle Brosius (Union) p. Jackson Yates (Selah), 2:16; 182 — Jared Coxen (Dallas) d. Austin Carter (Redmond), 8-3; 195 — Blade Gray (Spanaway Lake) d. Josiah Green (David Douglas), 11-9; 220 — Antonio Garcia (North Salem) d. Amadeo Pimental (Selah), 6-5; 285 — Cutter Sandstrom (Scappoose) d. Johnny Nomani, 5-2.

Medalists

106 — 3. Marcos Gonzales (Selah), 4. Mikey Bishop (Orting), 5. Erik Morales (Graham-Kapowsin), 6. Ryan Wilson (Mount Vernon), 7. Nathaniel Cortez (Graham-Kapowsin), 8. Abel Acosta (Prosser); 113 — 3. Anthony Comer (Scappoose), 4. Hayden Narruhn (David Douglas), 5. Judeah Sanders (Woodland), 6. Conrad Bellon (Central Kitsap), 7. Peyton Motter (South Kitsap), 8. Diego Contreras (Prosser); 120 — 3. Reyden Huizar (Prosser), 4. Josiah Sanders (Woodland), 5. Cameron O’Connor (Tigard), 6. Demani Thomas (Orting), 7. Ler Pweh Htoo (Kennewick), 8. Kai Calhoun (Graham-Kapowsin); 126 — 3. Dylyn Jimenez (Union), 4. Brock Allen (Peninsula), 5. Kieron Lawes (Orting), 6. Noah Larsen (Prairie), 7. Brady David (W.F. West), 8. Ethan Goff (West Linn); 132 — Noah Messman (Mountain View), 4. Wylder Kraght (Kentwood), 5. Cael Morrison (Dallas), 6. Nico Crosnoe (Emerald Ridge), 7. Cameron MacAlevy (Shelton), 8. Ty Whitney (Eatonville); 138 — 3. Xavier Eaglin (South KItsap), 4. Bridger Paradis (Prairie), 5. Dylan Lee (Redmond), 6. Jesse Salinas (Selah), 7. Judah Yates (Selah), 8. Cauy Wood (Eatonville); 145 — Travis Blasingame (Westview), 4. Elijah Volk (Seton Catholic), 5. Elijah Marquez (Bellingham), 6. Layton Smail (Kentwood), 7. Simon Swan (Woodinville), 8. Andres Nicacio (Union); 152 — 3. Robert Allred (Shelton), 4. Colson Spencer (Dallas), 5. Alonzo Lopez (Selah), 6. Johnny Ryan (Clackamas), 7. Cyle Workman (Ridgefield), 8. Calvin Bahl (Union); 160 — 3. Kevon Zakula (Westview), 4. Justin Rademacher (West Linn), 5. James Depas (Dallas), 6. Ruben Kovalenko (Union), 7. Trey Dieringer (Scappoose), 8. Brenden Kennedy (Emerald Ridge); 170 — 3. Gideon Malychewski (Camas), 4. Atticus Kurtz (Columbia River), 5. Benjamin Matson (Prairie), 6. Cole Peters (West Linn), 7. Gavin Murphy (Tumwater), 8. Jacob Quast (West Linn); 182 — 3. Logan Stafford (South Kitsap), 4. Va Ili (Mountain View), 5. Quentin Farrar (Orting), 6. Ayden Ganitano (Bethel), 7. Michael Gilman (Shelton), 8. Dylan Holt (Kennewick); 195 — 3. Dominic Kremer (Kentwood), 4. Jacob Erickson (Glacier Peak), 5. Tyler Woods (Tumwater), 6. Jacques Badolato-Birdsell (Camas), 7. Isaac Reavis (W.F. West), 8. Chris Jenning (Graham-Kapowsin); 220 — 3. Colby Stoller (Camas), 4. Carter Thomas (Orting), 5. Logan Wilson (Union), 6. Cobie Daly (West Linn), 7. Levi Harms (Union), 8. Michael Echtle (Toledo); 285 — 3. Ashten Brecht (Dallas), 4. Curtis Hill (Graham-Kapowsin), 5. Hunter Hill (Graham-Kapowsin), 6. Luke Martin (Olympia), 7. Bryson Boyd (W.F. West), 8. Mekhi Frink (Bethel).