TACOMA – At a Mat Classic different than any in its 36 years, a trio of Skyview wrestlers made sure history repeated.
JJ Schoenlein, Mason DesRochers and Jonas DesRochers are once again state wrestling champions.
Schoenlein became just the fifth boys three-time state champion from Clark County when he won the Class 4A 175-pound title Friday night at the Tacoma Dome.
And the DesRochers twins are now each two-for-two as the sophomores won titles within minutes of each other.
For the first time, those three champions navigated a Mat Classic with brackets of 64 wrestlers, double the size of previous years.
For Schoenlein, reaching the end of that bracket and his high school career was a cause for reflection. The senior, who will wrestle at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Arizona, said the realization that this was his final high school tournament hit before the championship match.
He looked at his coaches, he thought of all his other mentors since he began wrestling at age 8.
He took it all in.
Then Schoenlein put on a clinical, controlled performance to score a 4-1 win over Tahoma’s Adriano Perez.
“Honestly, taking it all in made me more present to the match,” Schoenlein said. “It was easier for me to wrestle. I was really focused on my breathing, and that got me through the match with out dying cardio-wise.”
After winning his third title in as many years, Schoenlein held up three fingers toward the dozens of cheering Skyview fans.
“I had so many people come to support me,” Schoenlein said. “So to throw up those three fingers was a testament to everyone in the stands.”
Like last year, Jonas and Mason DesRochers earned state titles in back-to-back matches.
Jonas won the 132-pound crown, beating Jacob Alcala of Davis 5-3. Minutes later, Mason completed an undefeated season by topping Zackary Motzkus of Battle Ground 17-2 in the 138-pound final.
Last year, Jonas and Mason won at 113 and 120-pounds, respectively. Neither said going up multiple weight classes was too tough.
“I don’t know if anything was challenging,” Mason DesRochers said. “I love this weight way more than 120. There’s no cutting weight, no nothing.”
“In a couple matches I found kids who felt stronger than me, but it didn’t make much of a difference,” Jonas DesRochers added.
After opening his tournament with two pins, Jonas DesRochers outscored his next three opponents by a combined 32-10. Mason blazed through the bracket with three technical falls and a pin.
Goals set. Goals met.
“At the beginning of the season we wrote down our goals,” Mason DesRochers said. “My goal was to be an undefeated state champ. I’ve been thinking about it since November.”
Though it’s possibly two years away, the DesRochers said it’s not to early to talk about becoming four-time state champions.
“It’s halfway done,” Jonas DesRochers said. “I think we could get those other two.”
Union senior Noah Koyama fell short in his bid for a second state title. Gonzaga Prep junior Izzy Acosta, himself a returning state champ, took an early lead en route to a 10-1 victory in the 144-pound title match.
