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Skagit River Journal

of History & Folklore
Free Home Page Stories & Photos
The most in-depth, comprehensive site about the Skagit
Covers from British Columbia to Puget Sound. Counties covered: Skagit, Whatcom, Island, San Juan, Snohomish & BC. An evolving history dedicated to committing random acts of historical kindness
Noel V. Bourasaw, editor (bullet) 810 Central Ave., Sedro-Woolley, Washington, 98284
Home of the Tarheel Stomp (bullet) Mortimer Cook slept here & named the town Bug
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Sedro-Woolley high school owns
Washington wrestling through 2007, winners again

(1953 Sedro-Woolley championship team)
The 1953 Sedro-Woolley state championship team included: left to right, front row, Leroy Shelton (state champion weight-class winner), Don Garney (state champion weight-class winner); row 2, Ted Meamber (state champion weight-class winner), Ron da Silva (state champion weight-class winner), Ken Price, Bob Burnett; back row, Coach Bo Campbell, Fred Nicholson, Chuck Fritsch (state champion weight-class winner), Ed Eckenberg, Brownie Wilson (state champion weight-class winner), Bruce Brink (state champion weight-class winner).
Update 2007: Sedro-Woolley Cubs wins sweet sixth straight state championship in February
      Yes, the Cubs did it again. Sedro-Woolley beat Kelso for their sweet sixth straight state wrestling championship. Michael Lomsdalen (160) stole the show by winning his weight class for the third year in a row. This is Sedro-Woolley's 11th championship in the history of tournament, including the first state tournament in 1953. the Cubs held off Kelso by 154 1/2-141. See this Seattle Times news story. We will follow up with more details next week.
2006: champions again, fifth year in a row
      The Sedro-Woolley Cubs wrestling team was honored at the State Legislature on Feb. 27 for their record-breaking fifth straight high school-team state championship at the 3A level. House Resolution 4714 was adopted, sponsored by 39th District Representatives Kirk Pearson and Dan Kristiansen. In this year's tournament at Tacoma in February, the Cubs — coached again by Jay Breckenridge, literally ran away with the title, scoring a school-record 197.5 points, 83 ahead of their closest competitor, Kelso.
      Cub senior Patrick O'Neil set a school record by winning his third state title, this time in the 135 weight class. Blind in his right eye, O'Neil finished 34-2 in matches this season and 106-14 in his career. He watched his younger brother Devin, 32-1 this year, fall in the 119-pound finals in the final seconds, the second year in a row. O'Neil won his match 14-10 but Nick Miller of Fife gave him a lot of trouble early, leading 8-6 with an early takedown. But O'Neil rallied with three takedowns, including one at 24 seconds to go.
      Cub junior Michael Lomsdalen, repeated as state champion, this year at 145 pounds. Derek Crouter won his state title at 112. Seven Cubs made it to the semifinals and five wrestled in the championship round. "All three titles have been interesting," said O'Neil, "(Being the first Cub to win three titles) weighed on me a little bit, but it was more excitement than anything. It is a great honor to wrestle for this program."
      Their fifth championship tied the record for state wrestling titles, set by Moses Lake from 1964-68, but the latter record was apparently at the 2A level. The Cubs have by far the best record of any team in the 54-year history of the championship, winning ten titles altogether. Before this latest string, they won the first year in 1953, then placed first in 1956, 1976, 1981 and 1983. They tied for second in 2001, the year before this string started, and also placed second in 1954, 1960, 1984, 1985, 1987 and 1991.
      Patrick Janicki lost a heartbreaker as the fifth Cub in the finals. He was pinned by Kelso High's Brandon Sitch in the 160 class. But Sith was heavily favored; he won his fourth state championship tying a record with three prior wrestlers, Pat Connors of R.A. Long, Martin Mitchell of Tonasket and Burke Barnes of Lake Stevens.
      History was also made at other weight classes. Jim Belleville, a freshman from Black Hills High of Tumwater, finished 39-0 for the season with his win at 103 pounds. Chehalis junior Derek Driscoll, came back from an off-year when he was dropped from the team disciplinary reasons, just before state along with some teammates. This year he finished 39-0 at 152 pounds. Driscoll stopped Bellingham senior Levi Brearley with a 19-8 major decision for the crown. Tyler Jolley of East Valley Spokane beat 2004 heavyweight champion Derek Altona of Ferndale for the 275 title.
Update 2005: Sedro-Woolley won again and now in 2005
      Update Feb. 19, 2005: After a slow start, the Cubs came roaring back on the final day and won their fourth straight 3A Wrestling Championship. They trailed East Valley of Spokane by three points going into the final day but pulled ahead by 41 points. Winners of the weight classes were: Derek Crouter, 103; Patrick O'Neil, 135; Michael Lomsdalen, 140. Second: Devin O'Neil, 119; Ethan Sandelin, 160; Third: Nathan Decker, 130; Fourth: Brad hayes, 112; Sixth: Randall Nersten, 125; Patrick Janicki, 152. Congratulations to coach and team for what now is truly a dynasty, winning the 9th state championship in 53 contests.
History of Sedro-Woolley's phenomenal wrestling supremacy
1953 to 2003
By Noel V. Bourasaw, Skagit River Journal of History & Folklore —2003
      If you are an alumnus of Sedro-Woolley High School, as I am, you may have repeated at one time or another this phrase: "Sedro-Woolley owns wrestling." Mount Vernon may be perennial basketball champs and Burlington may have powerhouse football teams, but Sedro-Woolley has dominated wrestling since a state tournament was instituted in March 1953. The only squads that could legitimately argue against that claim are the Bo Campbell teams of Burlington and those from Moses Lake, east of the mountains.
      Ken Driskill fought hard to have wrestling recognized as a serious competitive sport at high school level. And Bo Campbell took the Sedro-Woolley squad to the first state championship in 1953 and crushed the competition. Jay Breckenridge coached the Sedro-Woolley squad that won the 50th tournament in 2002 and just to prove that was not a fluke, he took the 2003 team to the tournament and they repeated for him as state champs, the seventh time that Sedro-Woolley brought home the championship trophy. In between times, coach Spud Walley took three teams that carried home the trophy and his son was also a state champion in his weight class in one of those years.
      Ted Meamber is a good friend, fellow veteran and present Sedro-Woolley city councilman who graduated with my late brother, Jerry, in 1955. He wrestled on that first squad when he was a sophomore, tipping the scales at about 80 pounds less, and he has told us many times the intricate details of how he wrestled and how the squad was determined to win the respect of teams from the big city. Ted and six other winners of their weight classifications at that first tournament were honored this year at a special ceremony in Tacoma. They are all alive and healthy and feeling mighty proud. Back in the early days, the wrestling teams were not as organized as today. Matches were often staged in between boxing matches at "smokers," staged wherever a promoter found a venue.
      Jonny Wicker, who is the great-grandson of one of our earliest pioneers, C.J. Wicker Sr., repeated as consecutive state champion in 2003. That is a very rare occurrence. Larry Nelson, a 1964 Sedro-Woolley graduate who still lives here, knows that feeling. Wicker is one of the greatest high school wrestlers ever. He wrestled the state tournament all four years, and placed third as a sophomore at 135 pounds prior to his two state titles. Coach Jay Breckenridge predicts that Wicker could very well replace him as coach in the near future.
      The following story quotes the feature: "Sedro-Woolley's stately six: How it read in the Skagit Valley Herald," in the Herald in February this year. For the full story and photos, you can read this website: And see the link for the results of past wrestling championships that we have added on April 4, 2005.
Sedro-Woolley repeats as state champs in 2003
Feb. 23, 2003
      On the day the Washington high school wrestling community paid homage to the state's first championship team, the 2003 Sedro-Woolley Cubs gave their predecessors the ultimate tribute. With most of the 1953 team in attendance for the 50th anniversary celebration on Saturday, the present-day Cubs completed a feat the elder Cubs and four other state-championship teams from Sedro-Woolley were unable to do — repeat as state champions. The Cubs finished with seven placers, including repeat champion Jonny Wicker. Seven appeared to be the magic number for Sedro-Woolley — that was the number of champions from the 1953 team. The team title was also the seventh in school history, most among the state's Class 3A squads.
      "It's great that they won it this year," said Don Garney, one of the 1953 champions. "It's exciting that they'll get a championship too." Sedro-Woolley stayed comfortably ahead of White River, which finished second for the third straight year, finishing with a 125-92.5 advantage.
      "Everything culminates at the state tournament, and we did it," said Cub senior Andy Goedl. "We pulled together this weekend and made it happen. Now it's done."
      Wicker also joined a select group, becoming the fourth Cub to win two individual state championships. He joins Garney, B. Parker and L. Nelson. Nelson was the last, in 1963 and 1964.
      "It's been 39 years since anybody here won two, and no one has worked harder for it," Cubs Coach Jay Breckenridge said. "It's been great to be his coach."
      Wrestling on the mat that bears the name of every Cub state champion (including his), Wicker avenged a regional-tournament loss to Liberty (Issaquah) junior Justin Studer and successfully defended his 152-pound Class 3A title with a 6-3 victory.
      "I always seem to wrestle better in the dome," Wicker said. "Jay just told me to open up a bit. He said I was wrestling too conservative. He told me to open up like I was a kid again and have fun. I did and it worked out. I had fun.
      "I'm glad we could win this for Jay. He's earned it. He's put in a countless number of hours. This is a good way to pay him back." The shots Wicker completed — one each in the first and third rounds to go with a second-round reversal — were the ones he didn't finish against Studer last week in a 3-2 loss.
      "When he hit a shot, he out-scrambled me the last time," Wicker said. "He was quicker to the move."
      Sophomore Nathan Decker (103), the Cubs' other finalist, scored the only takedown of his final match against Clarkston freshman Jason Fairley, but lost 3-2. Decker led 2-1, but was docked for an illegal hold as Fairley escaped. The two-point swing with 30 seconds left decided the match as Decker wasn't able to record a takedown.
      "This was tough. It was one I could have won," Decker said. "That was a heartbreak," Breckenridge added. "He did all the work for 5 minutes and 30 seconds of that match. He controlled the whole match, but that's wrestling."
      Helping to ease the pain of defeat was sharing in the second team title in his two years of high school wrestling.
      "We've dominated two years in row, been on top," Decker said. "That makes (losing in the finals) easier." For the second year in a row, Jacob Evans (135) battled back through the consolation bracket, winning three straight matches to take third place.
      "This feels great," Evans said of being part of two straight title teams. "It's probably better than winning an individual title. This will put a lot of pressure on the kids in Sedro-Woolley 50 years from now."
      Wicker advanced to the finals by pinning teammate Ryan Ringhouse in a match neither seemed to enjoy and both seemed more concerned with not injuring the other.
      After a consolation-round victory, Ringhouse's final match came against West Valley-Spokane's Tyson Hurst, who took Wicker to double overtime on Friday. The Cub senior was leading by three points in the final seconds when Hurst took Ringhouse to his back and got two near-fall points for a 9-8 victory.
      Goedl (160) finished fifth, with Zach Olson (119) and Jehra Moore (215) each taking sixth. All share in the state title, however.
      "This year was harder, because everybody was expecting it," Breckenridge said. "We won it in the quarterfinals. Nathan Decker sparked our team.
      "It was a thrill to show all the (1953 Cubs) that we are still tough. They were tough when they started it, and I'm glad we get to continue it." —Skagit Valley Herald
Cubs State Champs in 2002
Sunday, Feb. 17, 2002
      How it read: The top-ranked Sedro-Woolley Cubs completed the journey to the pinnacle of Class 3A wrestling in the state of Washington they seemed destined for all season, but the last step proved to be a doozy.
      The skinny: One Cub won a title and four others finished second as Sedro-Woolley captured its sixth state championship, most among Class 3A schools. The Cubs edged White River for the title, 137-130, under Coach Jay Breckenridge.
      Champ: Jonny Wicker, 152.
Cubs Take First State Wrestling Crown in Pullman in 1953
Monday, March 5, 1953
      How it read: The state high school wrestling championship trophy is being proudly displayed at Sedro-Woolley high school today following their team's impressive win at Pullman Saturday.
      The skinny: Seven Cubs won seven titles and two others finished second under Coach Bo Campbell. Depending on which account you go by — separate stories ran on Sedro-Woolley and Mount Vernon — the Cubs either scored 55 points or 44 points. Still, Sedro-Woolley finished far ahead of runner-up Lincoln with 16. Mount Vernon placed third with 12.
      Champs: Don Garney, 103; Leroy Shelton, 112; Ron da Silva, 127; Ted Meamber, 133; Chuck Fritsch, 154; Bruce Brink, 165; Brownie Wilson, 175.
Sedro-Woolley State Champs in 1956
Monday, March 5, 1956
      How it read: PULLMAN — Skagit County athletes completely dominated the state high school wrestling championships that were concluded here Saturday.
      Ken Driskill's undefeated Sedro-Woolley Cubs won the team championship handily with 75 points and picked up three individual titles.
      The skinny: The Cubs capped an undefeated season with a 16-point win over Burlington-Edison, which was second with 59. Mount Vernon placed sixth at 39.
      Champs: Bud Parker, 112; John Sandifer, 120; Mike Crawford, heavyweight.
Cubs win AA wrestling title
March 1, 1976
      How it read: SEDRO-WOOLLEY — The Sedro-Woolley Cubs couldn't have done better if the whole mad scene in their own gym last Friday and Saturday had been scripted in Hollywood.
      The Cubs became the 1976 state AA wrestling champs, their first team title in 20 years, by devastating the cream of the state's wrestling crop in the first state high school tournament of any kind staged in Skagit County.
      The skinny: Sedro-Woolley scored 97 1/2 points to win its third state title in school history, far ahead of second-place Sunnyside's 70. Two Cubs won crowns — including Coach Spud Walley's son — and three others placed among the top six.
      Champs: Brian Flones, 178; Don Walley Jr., 190.
Cubs cop state mat title in 1981
Monday, Feb. 23, 1981
      How it read: CHENEY — Don 'Spud' Walley knew exactly what he was doing when he threw a giant bear hug on Arlington's 135-pound Rick Senff during the championship round of the 29th Annual State Class AA Wrestling Tournament.
      Walley, the coach of Sedro-Woolley High, was aware that a win by Senff over T.R. Raygor of Franklin Pierce would clinch the state championship for his Cub matmen.
      The skinny: The Cubs scored 88 points to top second-place Franklin Pierce's 80 1/2 for their second crown under Walley and the school's fourth. Burlington-Edison, picked by many insiders to win, finished fourth. Five Sedro-Woolley wrestlers finished among the top six, including one champ and two runners-up. Champ: Dan Johnson, 148
Cubs claim second state wrestling title in 3 years
Monday, Feb. 21, 1983
      How it read: CHENEY — Seasons like the one the Sedro-Woolley High School wrestling team just completed do not happen often.
      "Everything we entered this year, we won," said Sedro-Woolley coach Don 'Spud' Walley. "It's really nice to go through and have a year like we did.
      "I've never had a year like that while I've been coaching."
      The skinny: The Cubs captured the Class AA title with 75 points — Walley's third title at Sedro-Woolley and the school's fifth. Franklin Pierce finished with 65 1/2 points and was the runner-up for the third straight year behind a Skagit County school. Burlington won in 1982 and the Cubs won in '81. All eight wrestlers Sedro-Woolley took to state won at least one match, producing one champion and two runners-up.
      Champ: Bob Halverson, 168.
State high school wrestling champions,
records, Sedro-Woolley and others
      We found a most interesting site for those of you who want to research the history of Washington state high school wrestling back through the first state tournament in 1953. On this site, you can find the winner of each weight class through 2001.

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